Donny Sales

Shadow Leader

Shadow Leader

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The selling patterns at Donny Sales (Spring Horses in Training) today has been bizarre, to say the least. For many vendors it's been a bloodbath, barring the top end lot. It seems that horses are selling for c.£20k+ or less than about £2k! I was thinking of going up today but as there were only a handful on there that I wanted to see and I thought that they mostly [going on breeding I thought they'd go for a bit] would be out of my price range - one went for £1000 and one for £800, both of which I'd possibly have come home with! Of the others, one went for £95k so I'd have struggled with that one......another I had on my shortlist goes through the ring tomorrow but the bloody thing won a few days ago, after a load of mid division placings, so that'll be unaffordable for me too!

It does seem though by looking at how things have been selling that unless they're top end, buyers aren't interested. I suppose that's probably down to the economy, in that those that would go for low-mid range horses are feeling the pinch and aren't buying. It certainly seems like there are bargains to be had. It'll be interesting to see how they sell at the Stores sales next week, there are some lovely looking animals [on paper!] entered.
 
feel the same Dom, had I known Driving Miss Suzie would make 800Gns I would have bought her and I am now in the process of contacting the new buyer to see if he wants to take £500 profit to sell to me.
 
What appeals to you about this filly, CBR, and do you want her for racing or breeding?

She seems very slow, although some decent horses are to be found a few generations back in the female line. Has run enough times to be described as basically sound.
 
I think she's had problems.

The filly lost all confidence having been unseated at Kempton and ran loose and got knocked into.

She hasn't been the same filly since and I think the way she has been ridden over hurdles is simply criminal, as she barely gets 2m, she needs the Walsh treatment.

The breeding side aint too bad and I think she is the sort who would make a broodmare.

I have no doubt if given time and confidence she could come back good. I know she showed a bit early for Andrew Balding.

I would love to be able to contact Mr Clarke who bought her but Donny won't release details which is a bit annoying.

She is the sort of horse I like, foundations are there, just need a bit of time and tlc and they come back.

For 2 or 3k its worth paying in my opinion.
 
For me, she'd gone the wrong way a long time before Kempton. A horrid head carriage was already on display by her third Flat start. She picked up the timeform squiggle after her fifth run in a handicap at Lingfield.
 
I liked a couple of unraced fillies in particular whose breeding looked sound on paper.

Drives you mad, doesn't it Chris?? It doesn't help that I know that when I do go I'll see feck all I like!!!
 
Yeh it does rather Dom., as had I gone 300 miles to donny today I bet she would have made 8k !!!!

Roll on Newmarket July I say, if the markets the same, I could be Bill Turner's biggest owner LOL, got my eye on 4 or 5.
 
The Store sale will be interesting next week - if they're selling in a similar fashion there might be some very nice animals going cheap, if they don't have reserves.

Mind you having gone through the Ascot catalogue there are some surprisingly decent looking types [on paper] entered up there as well.
 
Good luck with him Ian - has he a reserve? You can at least cover your backs a little bit then.

It just seemed to me that the lower end stuff was going for nothing, the top end was selling fine and the stuff inbetween was either not selling or going for less than you'd think, at least that was the case with the younger stock I was interested in, wasn't paying so much attention to those in training. W&D must surely appeal to the PTP crowd though, he'd be ideal for that.
 
Scanning down the sales results, it didn't look too dreadful a day's business although there were some cheapies and not solds, but I don't have the average and median figures.

The two highest prices were paid by Howard Johnson (no doubt for the Wylies) for a couple of young p-t-p winners at 370k and 320k. I'd rather be the seller than the buyer for those two!
 
Originally posted by Venusian@May 20 2008, 10:51 PM
Scanning down the sales results, it didn't look too dreadful a day's business although there were some cheapies and not solds, but I don't have the average and median figures.

The two highest prices were paid by Howard Johnson (no doubt for the Wylies) for a couple of young p-t-p winners at 370k and 320k. I'd rather be the seller than the buyer for those two!
Click to expand...
Wylie must be wise to Johnson's rip off tactics by now surely?
 
The litmus paper over here will be the Land Rover sales. I noted from a press release a few months back that it was going to be a four day sale, with the first two days for the Land Rover but now see it has been cut to three days with the first two for the Land Rover. Sounds to me like they are getting nervous in Goffs about the quality of the sale this year. And extending the Land Rover for another day is simply a money making exercise. When you consider it's €850 just to enter in Feb I'm not surprised they can increase the prizemoney to €100k. But back to the point, these sales will tell a lot about the state of the Irish economy. Fewer english buyers here than at Derby sale and with sterling in the toilet compared to the euro, I can't see too much incentive for english trainers to come over. So could be a blood bath.......which would be nice to see from our perspective. The key will be whether those that have pointers have been able to sell them and if they will want to buy again or cut back.
 
i am at the sales and looked at winds and dragons, does not interest me, he is up for sale in about 20 minutes, i reckon he will do well to make 3 or 4 grand, the lower level horses are selling very poorly.
 
Happyaslarry, did you get a look at the Cloudings filly, lot 214? She was one I was particularly interested in but thought that she'd probably go for a fair bit, having seen her on paper only. Hemmings bred 4yo filly, out of an Executive Perk mare, dam half sister to a grade 2 winner in Tonoco and other winners, more black type further back. You can't really get a sense of them from the webcam as it's a strange angle but she looked a little small? Is that possibly why she went for only a grand or was she just horrible?! :D Still, you'd have thought a filly like that would be worth a few grand on her breeding alone as a broodmare if nothing else.
 
They look to be going for a bit more today, then again today's sale has more horses in training as opposed to unraced youngstock, and they seem to be selling better.

The Henderson horse I'd had my eye on since it debuted in a bumper, then selfishly went and won on Friday after a string of mid div efforts went for £10k; a horse of Hen's I'd also earmarked a while back but then decided that on balance it's form really wasn't the greatest, even for pointing, went for £12k! The latter, although it's entitled to improve on what he's done and is a lovely looking animal (always handy in case they don't make the grade - people would have snapped my hand off to buy him as a riding horse) I really didn't think would fetch a lot in all honesty, certainly not less than the Henderson animal which has won and is bigger, and a type more likely to make a chaser. Oh well, sometimes you just can't predict what they'll go for!

Good to hear W&D did quite well - I thought he'd probably do ok as he stays and although not over big is a lovely looking animal with a fine head - something which tends to go at sales! In those respects I thought he'd probably appeal as a point to pointer.
 
Apparently Winds and Dragons has been bought to go point to pointing. I think he could do quite well in that sphere and I wish the new owners good luck.
 
shadow
i was there for yesterday only. i would have thought that a daughter of cloudings would make limited appeal to commercial breeders hence the very low price secured.

the henderson horse you referred to, back to the wind, went at a fair price, word on the ground was that he had a bad nature and was a difficult animal to handle. when i looked at him he was very nervous in his box and possessed a wild eye.

i bought one yesterday, the one i most wanted st matthew was too expensive at 22,000. i was happy to pay 15-18, but liam lennon bought him for an owner who wants a runner in next years ulster and scottish nationals, and they were prepared to go to 30 to get him, so i wish them luck in their venture.
 
Cheers for that happyaslarry - I was up there today and spoke to a friend who has been up there all week buying horses for clients. He said the Cloudings filly was horrible; she had short stumpy legs, was short and stumpy herself and might have made a show hunter or a riding horse!

Interesting what you say about Back To The Wind - I'm glad I didn't go for him in the end!! St Matthew is a likeable type too, I could see why you'd want him for that sort of figure - presumably for between the flags? Good luck with getting something - there are some decent types at Ascot (mainly if you want stores, admittedly) the week after next. My mate also recommended that I go back to Donny in August, he said there will be plenty of bargains on offer that didn't get into the June sales. That might actually suit me as due to circumstances I wouldn't want one to crack away with now, something young and unbroken would be ideal.

Also interesting was that I looked at a Noel Chance filly today, he was outside the box at the time so I asked him about her. He said he'd had her in training four months and she was too slow to be a racehorse but might make a riding horse as she had a nice temperament. I wasn't quite sure about one of her legs either and passed her over - only to see her go for £5500! She was fairly short and stocky too, not unattractive but not attractive either, but you'd have thought that on the trainer's admission that she's no good she'd have been readily passed over!

The one I really, really wanted and only one I bid on went for too much......
 
Quote from Paul Nicholls

"There's been a very good trade at the upper end for what are perceived to be the quality form horses and it's been very strong for point-to-point and hunter chase types that get a trip. But it's been sticky for the middle of the road fun horses, especially those that are two-milers. That's one area that the effect of the credit crunch might just have been felt.

"It will be interesting to see how the stores do next week and I'm trying to get some of my clients interested because, although I think the top will be very strong, there could be some good value around the £30,000-£60,000 mark."

I hope he is right. Heading to the Land Rover to find the next star and I think the number of syndicates buying this year will be down so that €30-40k level might be a bit softer. I think it's a great time to be buying some nice horses!
 
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