The 2020 Ohio Selected Jug Sale will take place on Friday, September 18, with HIPS 1-278 available during the one-day event. After being held at the Brave Horse Show Park in Johnstown for the last three years, this year's sale will be conducted at the Pickaway Agriculture and Event Center in Circleville. Ohio's group of stallions has improved with every year since slots were introduced to racetracks in the Buckeye State, and the group of Downbytheseaside, Fear The Dragon, What The Hill, and Long Tom that will have their yearlings sell for the first time in 2020 might be their best yet. Downbytheseaside, a son of Somebeachsomewhere who was a multi-time stakes winner at both 2 and 3 and picked up world records on a mile track and a half-mile track during his rookie campaign, is based at Sugar Valley Farm, though Diamond Creek Farm is doing the contracts and the bookings for him. Already with Always B Miki and Sweet Lou, Downbytheseaside gives Diamond Creek another chance for a powerhouse sire on the pacing side, and Owner/President Adam Bowden is looking forward to Friday. "We've been extremely excited, and now that we've had visitors out to the farm, and they can see them in the flesh and turn them out in the paddock and watch them move, I think we're not the only ones that are excited," remarked Bowden. "I think there's 37 in the Ohio sale and more in Lexington. We're very happy with what we've seen, and again I haven't seen them all, but the ones I have seen, I think the buyers are going to like. "I think one of the reasons Somebeachsomewhere was so popular as a sale horse, before they ever made it to the track, was that they were a consistent bunch. You kind of knew what you were going to get, and he's the same way. I've seen enough now that I can kind of spot them. They're the same type of physical; they're a lot of times like the Beaches, and like Downbyseaside is himself. A light bay color, you're not going to get a ton of white, and you're going to get a big, rugged horse with a lot of bone. They move fluid in the field, and they're athletic. They normally are fairly well-conformed, and they have the similar traits that he had that made him a good horse. When you see that across the board from the beginning, I think that gives him a leg up." Among the Downbytheseaside yearlings that Diamond Creek has in the sale are HIP 95 Terminator, the second foal out of the stakes-placed Rocknroll Hanover mare Crescent City, and HIP 79 Ants Marching, whose dam is a half-sister to Sportswriter and Precocious Beauty, the dam of Tall Dark Stranger. "He's a physical standout, and I'd argue that he maybe has one of the best pedigrees in the book," Bowden said of Terminator. "He's a second foal. The first foal was, I think, one of Burke's best 2-year-olds (a Sweet Lou colt named Lunar) until he got injured. He qualified impressively and then before he made his first start was injured. We've got some nice pedigrees and nice physicals, too. If we're missing something on physical, it's there on pedigree, and if we're missing something on pedigree, it's there on physical, so I'm pretty excited." Hanover Shoe Farms Inc. also had shares in Downbytheseaside and have five by him to sell. They include HIP 57 Seaside Hanover, a colt out of Shyaway, and HIP 149 Allnighter Hanover, a filly out of Allamerican Coed. Both Seaside Hanover and Allnighter Hanover are half-siblings to a pair of fast performers. "The colt out of Shyaway is very, very nice. He's a half-brother to Western Fame," said Dr. Bridgette Jablonsky, Hanover's Executive Vice President. "HIP 149, she's a sister to Abelard Hanover, record of 1:48, and she's out of a sister to Caviart Ally, so you can't get a better pedigree than her." Others by Downbytheseaside of note are HIP 210 Surfin Mercy, a Dublin Valley Farm (agent)-consigned colt whose dam is a half-sister to Sweet Lou, Bettor Sweet, and Nutcracker Sweet, and HIP 224 Oceanfrontproperty, the first foal out of Igottafeelinfran, a daughter of Feelin Friskie who earned over $569,000 in her career. Fear The Dragon, who is at Midland Acres, won stakes in Pennsylvania and Indiana as a freshman and then stepped up as a 3-year-old, taking the North America Cup, the Hempt, the Adios, and the Tattersalls. Being by Dragon Again, whose best performers have mainly been geldings or mares, Fear The Dragon had an attractive pedigree and on-track resume, and Hanover, who stood his sire, seized on the chance to breed mares to one of his sons. "We love the Ohio program. We've been supporting it, and we actually have done quite well out there. We feel like Fear The Dragon has been one of the most promising horses to start his stud career in Ohio in quite some time on the pacing side," remarked Dr. Jablonsky. "Dragon Again hasn't had a lot of sons go to stud, and we felt like he might be a good match for a lot of our mares. "Of course, we bred many mares to Dragon Again because we had him for several years, and we thought it would be a good opportunity for our mares that have had good Dragon Agains. That's kind of what we do. Like if a mare has had a good Somebeachsomewhere, a lot of times we'll follow up and breed her to Captaintreacherous, so with Dragon Again we haven't been able to do that because there has been no son of his." Hanover has a pair of Fear The Dragons. HIP 55 Elvarg Hanover is a half-sister to world champion Elver Hanover, and HIP 165 Makena Hanover is out of Maremma Hanover, who threw Martini Hanover, a Dragon Again gelding who banked $487,939 and took a mark of 1:49. "Elver's sister is nice, and the one out of Maremma Hanover is a tall, leggy, really, really racy filly, and she has a tremendous stride on her, so I like both of those as well," remarked Dr Jablonsky. Some other ones by Fear The Dragon to keep an eye out for are HIPs 175 Springbridge Dragn and 179 Dragon Lady. Springbridge Dragn, consigned by Spring Haven Farm, is a half-brother to Springbridge Duel, a two-time Ontario Sires Stakes Gold Series winner this year with a mark of 1:51 3/5, and Dragon Lady, consigned by Midland Acres, is a half-sister to Artful Dancer, who finished in second as the favorite in the Ohio Sires Stakes final for 3-year-old pacing fillies this year and was third in the Ohio Sires Stakes final in 2019. Switching over to the trotting side, What The Hill won the Peter Haughton Memorial at age 2 and then as a sophomore bounced back after being disqualified from the win in the Hambletonian by taking the Canadian Trotting Classic, the Breeders Crown, and the TVG final against older foes. What The Hill is by Muscle Hill and his dam is a sibling to Majestic Son, giving him all the pedigree and on-track credentials to be a major player. He is standing at Hickory Lane Horse Farm and has the most yearlings by one sire in the Ohio Selected Jug Sale with 47. One of the 47 What The Hills is being consigned by Diamond Creek as agent, and that's HIP 12 AB Brightlight. His dam Oaklea Odessa was a multi-time stakes winner in Ontario during her career, and she has thrown three six-figure earners. "He was actually a massive surprise when we got him into the barn. He is a gorgeous horse, and if the rest of them look like him, then they should sell great," said Bowden. "They should race great, too. He's got all right qualities, this colt does. He's a star." Also available by What The Hill are yearlings like HIP 82 I Am Tough, a Dublin Valley Farm (agent)-consigned colt who is the first foal out of a sister to O'Brien and Ohio award winner Only Take Cash and HIP 160 Belpre, the first foal out of $158,000 earner, Ohio Sires Stakes leg winner, and Ohio Breeders Championship victor Chim Swift. Long Tom gives Muscle Hill another son entering the Ohio market. Long Tom won a Grand Circuit stakes event at The Red Mile during his 2-year-old season, then followed that up by taking the New Jersey Sire Stakes final and a split of the Stanley Dancer at age 3. He's also probably gotten a boost based on being a half-brother to In Range, who won multiple Pennsylvania Sire Stakes legs this year and was second to Captain Corey in the final. Standing at Midland Acres, Long Tom has a group of 17 that will go through the ring on Friday. Included in his bunch are HIP 22 Photo Tom, a Dublin Valley (agent)-consigned colt who is the first foal out of $236,159 earner Photosavvy, and HIP 122 Queen Of The North. Consigned by Midland Acres, that filly is a half-sister to Robin Banks, who came in third in the Ohio Sires Stakes final for sophomore trotting fillies this year. Midland Acres also has HIP 234 Beatemby Alongshot, a filly who is the first foal out of a half-sister to millionaire Rose Run Hooligan and $904,000 earner Rose Run Parker. The sale begins on Friday at 10 A.M. In addition to the traditional in-person sale, online bidding will be available for the Ohio Selected Jug Sale, but will require signing up beforehand. Visit https://cci.auction/orgs/79/auctions/1404 for further details and to take advantage of that option.