Harness: Stage set for Standardbred Horse Sale opening day

It's that time of year again where everybody is set to trek to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, for the Standardbred Horse Sale. The first of three yearling sessions gets going on Monday afternoon (November 6) at 12 noon (EST), and it'll be yearlings-only visiting the ring through Wednesday. Following that, there are two days of mixed sale action to close out the proceedings.

While it seems like the market has cooled some from last year's soaring highs in Lexington and the various regional sales, Standardbred Horse Sales Company President and Director of Operations Dale Welk still has high hopes for what lies ahead.

"I think we've got a really good catalog, but you worry now about the way of the world. It's starting to affect some things," noted Welk. "It seems like it might have affected the Ontario sale a little bit, and I think it just affected the latest Thoroughbred sale, but I'm pretty optimistic as far as what we have in the catalog. For Black Book 1, (catalog demand) has been phenomenal. In the initial mailing we sent out around 1,400, and we've sent out probably another 1,000 since then."

Giving Welk a good dose of optimism heading into the sale is that the top-level yearlings still sold very well in Lexington, and the fact that there is plenty of depth in the catalog throughout the yearling group.

"I think what we call the high-end Monday horses are going to be fine. It seemed like up in Ontario (at the London Classic Yearling Sale) the middle got a little soft, but I think our middle is as strong as can be," he explained. "We've got a lot of great horses on Tuesday and there are some on Wednesday that could easily be Tuesday horses."

Welk has been with the Standardbred Horse Sales Company since 1989, but this will be just the third edition of the sale with him as company president. He remarked that it's been a great experience thus far and he's hoping that it continues for many years.

"I enjoy the people. I enjoy meeting some new people and seeing the people that have been with the sale for years and years and bought here. I still do all the operations, too, and enjoy working with all those guys," he remarked. "I'll be 65 years old this year, but I'm going to keep going for a little while yet, as long as things out of my control don't get me."

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Going through the catalog to find some standouts

Opening day of the Standardbred Horse Sale features the usual host of eye-catching individuals with pedigrees to match in HIPs 1-156. Here are ten colts and ten fillies that could bring impressive totals and hopefully make a big impact on the track as 2-year-olds in 2024.

HIP 5 Warrawee Memories
Sex: Colt
Sire: Tall Dark Stranger
Dam: Great Memories
Eligibility: Pennsylvania
Consignor: Preferred Equine Marketing

Bidders will want to get in their seats early on Monday for a chance to grab HIP 5 Warrawee Memories, a colt from the first crop of Tall Dark Stranger. Warrawee Memories is a brother to a host of fast and talented horses, including millionaires Warrawee Ubeaut and Warrawee Needy, 1:46 4/5 performer Warrawee Vital and 1:49 winner Big Bay Point. What is especially impressive about Great Memories as a dam is that she threw those four yearlings from four different sires.

HIP 11 Salieri
Sex: Colt
Sire: Muscle Hill
Dam: Illusioneesta
Eligibility: New Jersey and Kentucky
Consignor: Walnridge Farm

This Muscle Hill colt has dual-eligibility to two high value programs in New Jersey and Kentucky and is the first colt out of Illusioneesta, a daughter of Kadabra who earned over $269,000 and was the O'Brien Award winner for 3-Year-Old Trotting Filly of the Year in 2018. Muscle Hill continues to deliver as a sire, too, as his 2-year-olds are third in average earnings for a trotting stallion and fifth in total earnings in 2023.

HIP 20 Kobe Hanover
Sex: Colt
Sire: Captaintreacherous
Dam: KJ's Justine
Eligibility: Pennsylvania
Consignor: Hanover Shoe Farms

Two-year-olds by Captaintreacherous are leading the earnings rankings and are second in average earnings for pacers, and here is a shot to grab a well-bred colt by that standout sire early on Monday. Kobe Hanover is a full brother to Ken Hanover, whose earnings in 2023 are just shy of $400,000, and his victories include a 1:48 4/5 triumph in his Little Brown Jug elimination at the Delaware County Fairgrounds.

HIP 21 Lady Irene
Sex: Filly
Sire: Cantab Hall
Dam: Lady Winona
Eligibility: Pennsylvania and Maryland
Consignor: Winbak Farm

Right after Kobe Hanover exits the ring, in will step Lady Irene. Cantab Hall's 2-year-olds in 2023 include millionaire T C I, and Lady Irene is the third foal out of Lady Winona, a stakes-winning daughter of Credit Winner who earned over $284,000 in her career. Lady Winona is also a full sister to Jezzy, who made $834,240 in her excellent racing career.

HIP 23 She Sits Atthe Bar
Sex: Filly
Sire: Bar Hopping
Dam: Lass A Rope
Eligibility: Pennsylvania
Consignor: Northwood Bloodstock Agency

Another trotting filly, She Sits Atthe Bar is the first female offspring out of the Encore Encore mare Lass A Rope, which makes her a half-sister to Dan Patch Award winner Volume Eight. That gives the buyer the hope that not only will this horse be successful on the racetrack, but provides residual broodmare value as well.

HIP 28 Man At Arms Mearas
Sex: Colt
Sire: Chapter Seven
Dam: Live Laugh Love
Eligibility: New York and New Jersey Standardbred Development Fund
Consignor: Concord Stud Farm

Concord Stud Farm has done very well in Harrisburg lately, and here's one of their yearlings. Man At Arms Mearas is the first foal out of $281,718 earner Live Laugh Love, a half-sister to Hambletonian elimination winner Enterprise, and the family also includes millionaire and Dan Patch/O'Brien Award winner Poof She's Gone under the third dam.

HIP 33 Millie May Hanover
Sex: Filly
Sire: Bettor's Delight
Dam: Mayhem Seelster
Eligibility: Ontario
Consignor: Hanover Shoe Farms

Bettor's Delight doesn't show any signs of slowing down as a sire, and this filly has an standout pedigree as a half-sister to Mad Max Hanover, who has earned just under $725,000 to go with a mark of 1:47 4/5, and a full sister to Mirage Hanover, a 2-year-old colt who sold for $175,000 a year ago and went on to win multiple stakes events in Ontario this year.

HIP 35 Geos Lil Miki
Sex: Filly
Sire: Always B Miki
Dam: Geometry
Eligibility: Pennsylvania and New Jersey Standardbred Development Fund
Consignor: Diamond Creek

Geos Lil Miki is a half-sister to stand-out 2-year-old pacing filly Geocentric, who was nine-for-nine prior to a defeat in the Breeders Crown and a full sister to 3-year-old Horizontal, who took a mark of 1:48 4/5 at The Red Mile earlier this year. Geos Lil Miki's second dam is $1.5 million earner and multiple award winner See You At Peelers, and Always B Miki's female offspring include the dazzling Sylvia Hanover.

HIP 41 Hatfield
Sex: Colt
Sire: Cantab Hall
Dam: Nicole's Promise
Eligibility: Pennsylvania
Consignor: Concord Stud Farm

Certainly one the big attractions on Monday will be this colt as he is a full brother to T C I, who is now harness racing's all-time leading earner for a freshman trotter. The dam, the Dream Vacation mare Nicole's Promise, is seven-for-seven overall and all of her foals to date have earned over $100,000.

HIP 52 Olympic
Sex: Colt
Sire: Gimpanzee
Dam: Private Life
Eligibility: Kentucky
Consignor: Concord Stud Farm

Concord Stud Farm offers Olympic, a colt from the first crop of Gimpanzee. Since Gimpanzee stands in Kentucky, that gives his offspring more money to race for in the Commonwealth, and Olympic is the first foal out of a Muscle Hill half-sister to millionaire Dejarmbro. The 2-year-old filly from the family, Chaparmbro, made the Breeders Crown final and sold for $260,000 in Harrisburg in 2022.

HIP 56 Inner Temple
Sex: Filly
Sire: Walner
Dam: Jolie De Vie
Eligibility: New Jersey
Consignor: Hunterton Sales Agency

Walner is the top dog in the trotting ranks for 2-year-olds in 2023, leading the way in both total and average. HIP 56 Inner Temple is a full sister to Lilbitalexis, a multi-time stakes winner (including a Breeders Crown elimination victory as a freshman) with a 1:52 2/5 mark at 2 and a 1:51 1 1/5 mark as a sophomore, and a half-sister to Jack Fire, who is still active and closing in on $300,000 in lifetime earnings.

HIP 63 Stupendous Hanover
Sex: Filly
Sire: Chapter Seven
Dam: Secret Magic
Eligibility: New York
Consignor: Hanover Shoe Farms

Stupendous Hanover's half-sister Swanky Hanover topped the 2021 Standardbred Horse Sale at $700,000. They are both half-sisters to the great trotting mare Manchego ($3,144,777), and another sibling In Secret is still racing with almost $1 million earned himself. Chapter Seven 2-year-olds are second in earnings and average in 2023.

HIP 67 Stinglikab Hanover
Sex: Colt
Sire: Always B Miki
Dam: Shebestingin
Eligibility: Pennsylvania
Consignor: Hanover Shoe Farms

Here is an opportunity to purchase a full brother to back-to-back Dan Patch Award winning pacing colt Perfect Sting, who ended his career with a mark of 1:48 1/5 and earnings of over $1.8 million. The dam Shebestingin remains harness racing's all-time fastest 3-year-old pacing filly by virtue of her 1:47 performance at The Red Mile in 2013.

HIP 70 Steal Away Hanover
Sex: Colt
Sire: Always B Miki
Dam: Shyaway
Eligibility: Pennsylvania
Consignor: Hanover Shoe Farms

Speaking of full siblings, Steal Away Hanover is a full brother to the incredible 3-year-old pacing filly Sylvia Hanover, who just won her second straight Breeders Crown and is poised to collect plenty of year-end honors again. Steal Away Hanover is also a half-brother to Western Fame, a Western Ideal stallion who completed his career with $1.9 million in the bank and a mark of 1:48 1/5.

HIP 81 Banksy Monkey
Sex: Colt
Sire: Chapter Seven
Dam: Steamy Windows
Eligibility: New York and New Jersey Standardbred Development Fund
Consignor: Concord Stud Farm

This is the latest Chapter Seven-Steamy Windows offering, making this colt a full brother to Gimpanzee and Iteration. This family is always in high demand, and this will be the first Steamy Windows yearling since Iteration to 2019 to be offered in Harrisburg after they were sold in Lexington in 2020 through 2022.

HIP 83 Kiss Cam
Sex: Filly
Sire: Bettor's Delight
Dam: Stonebridge Kisses
Eligibility: Ontario
Consignor: Winbak Farm

Kiss Cam has seen her stock go up some this year as her older brother Covered Bridge has had an excellent season, including victories in the Camluck Classic, Gold Cup & Saucer, and Kane Invitational. Kiss Cam's dam Stonebridge Kisses earned $1 million in her racing career.

HIP 86 Grand Old Chap
Sex: Colt
Sire: Chapter Seven
Dam: Sweet Shirley Mae
Eligibility: New York, Kentucky and Massachusetts
Consignor: Preferred Equine Marketing

Triple eligibility should get this Chapter Seven colt plenty of attention, especially given that there aren't normally many horses eligible to the Massachusetts program. He's also the first foal out of Sweet Shirley Mae, a stakes-winning daughter of Muscle Hill who is also a half-sister to the brilliant trotting filly Snow White.

HIP 87 Royal Mission
Sex: Filly
Sire: Chapter Seven
Dam: Swinging Royalty
Eligibility: New York
Consignor: Concord Stud Farm

This Concord-consigned filly is a full sister to three horses - Ahundreddollarbill, Slay and Royal Filly - who are all stakes winners. Slay fetched a winning bid of $130,000 when he sold at the 2020 edition of the Standardbred Horse Sale.

HIP 103 Voguish
Sex: Filly
Sire: Gimpanzee
Dam: Jolene Jolene
Eligibility: Kentucky
Consignor: Hunterton Sales Agency

A Gimpanzee filly consigned by Hunterton led the Lexington Selected Yearling Sale, and we could see it happen again in Harrisburg. Voguish, out of world champion Jolene Jolene, is a half-sister to Dan Patch and O'Brien Award winner Venerable and to $528,000 and change earner Crucial, giving her that residual broodmare value that is coveted.

HIP 142 Penny Benjamin
Sex: Filly
Sire: Sweet Lou
Dam: Dismissal
Eligibility: Pennsylvania and New Jersey Standardbred Development Fund
Consignor: Preferred Equine Marketing

Near the end of Monday's action comes Penny Benjamin, a half-sister to Breeders Crown Open Pace champion Bythemissal. With his 2-year-olds, Sweet Lou is leading pacing stallions in average earnings and second in total earnings.