Ocala sale grows sluggish

The Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's spring juvenile sale hit the brakes in its two later sessions after enjoying gains during its first two days.

On Thursday, the fourth and final day of the sale, a handful of horses brought six-figure prices, but about 26 percent of the session's first 225 horses were withdrawn, a sign that a number of sellers expected to face poor bidding for their stock.

The top price at 5 p.m. was $190,000 for colts by Greenwood Lake and Siphon. William Condren bought a Greenwood Lake son of Fortune Forty Four from Farnsworth Farms, and trainer Steve Klesaris purchased the Siphon colt out of House Dressing on behalf of Puglisi Stables.

Wednesday, the four-day auction's third session, was the first to post declines in revenue. The third session sold 196 lots for a total of $5,515,000, down 15 percent from the equivalent session in 2004. The average price fell 13 percent to $28,138, and the median decreased 20 percent to $16,000. Not surprisingly, the buy-back rate rose sharply from 17 percent last year to 28 percent in 2005.

Wednesday's session-topper was Hip No. 889, a $260,000 Prime Timber colt that Amerman Racing bought from Terry Oliver, agent. The bay colt is a son of the Ogygian mare Cracker Night.