It was a very, very strong opening session of the 2018 Standardbred Horse Sale on Monday in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, with the average up 24.2 percent from last year ($93,541 versus $75,305) and the gross surging 28.8 percent, going from $12,350,000 for 164 yearlings last year to $15,902,000 for 170 horses today. "It was just a fantastic sale top to bottom - trotters, pacers, colts, fillies," said Standardbred Horse Sales Company President and CEO Pete Spears.  "I looked down through the consignors, and it looks like virtually all the consignors have done well.  Everyone I have talked to is just very excited and pleased, so obviously I am too. "I was hoping to get a day like this.  There's always the possibility that things won't work out the way you hope, but we really felt that we had a very strong catalog, and that this type of day was possible.  We're very happy that the buyers recognized the strength of the entries and have bought a bunch of good horses." The day was headed by HIP 144 Fifty Cent Piece, who sold to Lennart Agren's S R F Stable for $500,000.  Consigned by Concord Stud Farm for breeder Order By Stable, Fifty Cent Piece, a Muscle Hill filly, is out of Thatsnotmyname (Windsong's Legacy, $340,730), making her a half-sister to Basquiat (Cantab Hall, $289,748). "I actually had a limit, but it was great that we got her," said agent Lina Alm.  "I got a text from Lennart right before $500,000, then she was home.  It was exactly when they were bidding, right when they bid $490,000, I got a text message.  I was lucky I had my earbud so I could hear it go off. "It's like it always is, we do the same thing every time when we pick out horses.  They have to have the pedigree, which she has obviously, and they also have to make a good video.  We know the fact that some horses don't make good videos, but they still are good.  We like to see at least a tiny bit of what we want to have in the horse in the video.  The last thing is me looking at them and feeling energy and things.  Also, of course, the conformation, we need them to stand straight." Agren also had another hefty purchase in HIP 13 Swiss House Onfire, who went for $335,000 to place sixth on Monday.  Swiss House Onfire, another Concord Stud Farm/Order By Stable collaboration, is a Muscle Hill full brother to stakes-winning 2-year-old Kings County and $261,561 earner Brooklyn Hill. "I think he was the best colt in the sale," said agent Robert Lindstrom.  "He had perfect conformation, nice size, perfect all the way, and I know he's a good breeder. it's a good place where he's been at Concord Stud Farm.  Everything figures perfect, just what you want.  He has the whole package.  Of course we looked at him because of the family (Agren also owned Brooklyn Hill), but he's such a nice individual." Concord also consigned the second-highest seller on the day in HIP 133 Krickan, who went to agent Clark Beelby for owner John Floren and his Coyote Wynd Farms for $415,000.  Bred by Solveigs Breeders, Krickan is a daughter of Trixton, and she is out of Solveig (Yankee Glide, $820,791), making her a half-sister to Shake It Cerry (Donato Hanover, $2,786,104). "I'm in the breeding business, and you don't get to buy out of that type of mare very often," stated Floren.  "She's a very nice filly as well, one of the nicest ones out of that mare from what Jimmy (Takter) just told me, and I think he's trained them all.  I was expecting $400,000, there's the other one that's coming up, the Muscle Hill (Fifty Cent Piece), which I think is going to go a similar price.  Either one would have been nice to take home.  I'm happy about this one, this one's a bit of a nicer individual. "She looks racy.  If you look at her video, she looks like she's going to go down the track.  We raced against her sister this year, Susy, I have The Ice Dutchess, and I liked the way she looked racing.  She's another nice filly.  The mare produces stakes horses, and that's what I'm looking for for my breeding program." Rounding out the top three sellers was HIP 47 Honorat Hanover, who went to agent Myron Bell for the Captains Court syndicate (George Segal, Brad Grant, Marvin Katz, Joe and Vinny Barbera, Bell, and In The Gym Partners) for $400,000.  Bred and consigned by Hanover Shoe Farms Inc., Honorat Hanover, a Captaintreacherous colt, is out of Hana Hanover (Western Hanover, $1,206,644) and is a three-quarter brother to Hayden Hanover (Somebeachsomewhere, $513,022).Derick GiwnerHonorat Hanover in the ring "I thought he was one of the nicest Captains in the sale, and we have to pay dearly," said Bell.  "As good as Captain has been to us, we have to pay the price because he's been so successful.  He's the best pacing stallion to come along in my lifetime.  "That's why they hold auctions.  Auctions make surprises.  We're always going to be prepared for surprises.  Sure I'd like to buy him for half the price, but if you're going to go in, you've got to pay the price." Bell and Captains Court also shelled out $350,000 for fifth-highest seller In Reality Hanover.  In Reality Hanover, a Captaintreacherous colt who sold as HIP from the Hanover consignment, is a full brother to the good 2-year-old from this season Captain Trevor ($131,904). "They were the two best colts that Hanover Shoe Farms had, and we were very fortunate to be able to buy HIP 47 and HIP 60," Bell added after purchasing In Reality Hanover.  "When you get on stage, you better perform, so the Captain is under pressure.  Now everybody expects that every Captain out there is going to be a world champion, which we know cannot happen.  When you breed a good mare to Captain, and they present themselves like these two colts, I think we have a fighting shot." Tony Alagna, who trained Captaintreacherous and is now training and buying many of his best babies, said while that going home with many "Captains" is great, it's not necessarily the be-all and end-all when he's going to the sales. "The horse got so many great mares, and we're looking at great families that we buy," Alagna offered.  "They just happen to be Captains, so it works out well.  We just bought the Somebeachsomewhere colt (HIP 173 for $250,000), but it's out of the family of Stay Hungry, so even though it wasn't a Captain we bought him because we want to focus on great maternal pedigrees first.  A lot of the mares happen to go to Captain, so it's just a double bonus for us. Alagna also remarked on the hike in prices for Captaintreacherous yearlings this year, saying, "Everything you do, you can either do it on the front side or the back side, so we happen to be doing it on both sides as far as Captain because of the fact that we created our own mess, which is good.  Last year I bought Tall Drink Hanover for $35,000, and I'm buying Captains for $350,000 now because the horse had a great first year.  So, yeah, we made the product go up, so we have to pay more, but it's a good thing because it's our product.  It's exciting. "The brother to Captain Trevor was very much like Captain Trevor, just had a little more leg and a little longer body, but Captain Trevor was $75,000 and this colt was $350,000.  They were very similar in body style, just happened that the Captains hit this year, so it made everything worth more money." In all, eight yearlings sold for $300,000 or more and 21 fetched $200,000 or more.  Those numbers left Spears in awe of what had transpired. "It started strong from the very beginning and never let up," he said about the day.  "A lot of enthusiastic bidding.  It wasn't just two bidders pairing up and fighting it between themselves.  A lot of the higher-priced horses had a lot of action right up until the very end.  It's all just part of the enthusiasm." Spears is also looking forward to the rest of the yearling portion of the sale coming up on Tuesday and Wednesday. "We're well-above (last year).  The overall average appears to be about $93,500 for the day.  We hope for a strong day tomorrow and Wednesday," he relayed.  "We have a very good catalog tomorrow and a good catalog Wednesday.  I think there will be more strong days to come.  The economy is good, people are feeling good, and they're having a lot of fun." HIPS 180-497 will go through the sales ring in Harrisburg on Tuesday, and the session begins at 10 A.M.  For full results of today's action, click here.