I was cruising through the photos online of the OBS sale ( http://www.obssales.com/augpreview/ )... which is a really great idea btw... and The SPANISH STEPS really caught my eye. I looked further and saw he was UNRACED! I have never really seen an unraced Sire of consequence before. I find it remarkable that folks breed to unraced sires (I can kinda understand the unraced mares). Is that common practice?
I know nothing about him... Any thoughts on SPANISH STEPS?
Spanish Steps
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Hold Your Peace
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It gets better - his fee was $10,000 and his first yearlings at the OBS sale just averaged $80,000 (7 sold) including one who sold for $200,000.
That said I think people paying this kind of money for a Spanish Steps (unraced full brother to Unbridled's Song) are nuts.
As are the people who bought the first crop yearlings by City Place (Storm Cat - Glitter Woman), another unraced sire whose first crop of yearlings were in the OBS sale, they averaged $76,000 (5 sold) including one for $145,000.
I will say for Spanish Steps that his owner Eddie Martin has put his money where his mouth is (pretty much had to as hardly any outside breeders were going to pay $10,000 to go to Spanish Steps) and he acquired some extremely nice mares to breed to Spanish Steps and then he also offered an incentive where I think he said if you didn't sell your Spanish Steps as a yearling for $20,000 or more then he'd buy it for $20,000.
A few years back people at OBS went nuts for the first crop of Tiger Ridge too (raced, but unplaced, Storm Cat - Weekend Surprise stallion) and I think he's now in South Africa after not making a lasting impression here.
I can also remember several well respected agents who swore up and down a few years back that the Cahill Road's looked better than the Unbridled's (his full brother). Cahill Road was a Grade I winner as well so I could see folks supporting him at least, but if his foals did outshine Unbridled's that just proves that racing ain't a beauty contest because Unbridled did just a little bit better than Cahill Road as a stallion don't ya think?
That said I think people paying this kind of money for a Spanish Steps (unraced full brother to Unbridled's Song) are nuts.
As are the people who bought the first crop yearlings by City Place (Storm Cat - Glitter Woman), another unraced sire whose first crop of yearlings were in the OBS sale, they averaged $76,000 (5 sold) including one for $145,000.
I will say for Spanish Steps that his owner Eddie Martin has put his money where his mouth is (pretty much had to as hardly any outside breeders were going to pay $10,000 to go to Spanish Steps) and he acquired some extremely nice mares to breed to Spanish Steps and then he also offered an incentive where I think he said if you didn't sell your Spanish Steps as a yearling for $20,000 or more then he'd buy it for $20,000.
A few years back people at OBS went nuts for the first crop of Tiger Ridge too (raced, but unplaced, Storm Cat - Weekend Surprise stallion) and I think he's now in South Africa after not making a lasting impression here.
I can also remember several well respected agents who swore up and down a few years back that the Cahill Road's looked better than the Unbridled's (his full brother). Cahill Road was a Grade I winner as well so I could see folks supporting him at least, but if his foals did outshine Unbridled's that just proves that racing ain't a beauty contest because Unbridled did just a little bit better than Cahill Road as a stallion don't ya think?
Last edited by Hold Your Peace on Mon Aug 20, 2007 8:24 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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kimberley mine
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Dray, I have no comments about Spanish Steps but I do have a couple of reasons folks might breed to unraced stallions.
Alibhai was unraced and he was a heck of a stallion. That said, he outworked several older companions as a 2yo and double-bowed before starting.
Manshood (GB), the sire of Ipi Tombe (Zim) bowed in training and was sent to Zimbabwe. Somebody there found him a great deal--a world class pedigree and good conformation at a bargain bin price. He's since moved to South Africa and his first crop of South African breds are running now.
http://www.freemanstallions.co.za/manshood.htm
Alibhai was unraced and he was a heck of a stallion. That said, he outworked several older companions as a 2yo and double-bowed before starting.
Manshood (GB), the sire of Ipi Tombe (Zim) bowed in training and was sent to Zimbabwe. Somebody there found him a great deal--a world class pedigree and good conformation at a bargain bin price. He's since moved to South Africa and his first crop of South African breds are running now.
http://www.freemanstallions.co.za/manshood.htm
I had asked the question a long time ago, and no one could seem to come up with any recent prominent stakes horses who were by unraced stallions. So...
It's late & my brain is toast, but recently there was a hot horse of discussion (filly?) who was by an unraced stallion... (bangs head with hand)... anyone remember???
Dangit... 
Going to sleep now...
It's late & my brain is toast, but recently there was a hot horse of discussion (filly?) who was by an unraced stallion... (bangs head with hand)... anyone remember???
Dangit...
Going to sleep now...
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springboro
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skeenan wrote:I had asked the question a long time ago, and no one could seem to come up with any recent prominent stakes horses who were by unraced stallions. So...
It's late & my brain is toast, but recently there was a hot horse of discussion (filly?) who was by an unraced stallion... (bangs head with hand)... anyone remember???
Going to sleep now...
Are you talking about the Danzig horse out of Tilt My Halo? He had only about 20 foals, but there was a graded stakes winner and almost 100% winners from his foals. His name was Tilt the Stars and he was shipped to South America.