CTHS Sale Opens Strongly

A full-brother to Canadian champion Pender Harbour (Philanthropist) sold for C$325,000 (US$299,065) to top Tuesday’s selected session of the Canadian Thoroughbred Horse Society’s Premier Yearling Sale at Woodbine. Figures for the session rebounded strongly from the 2013 and 2012 renewals of the sale, which were held amidst the uncertainty surrounding the slots at racetracks program. During Tuesday’s select session, 135 yearlings sold for $4,466,000. The average rose 50.9% to $33,081, while the median was $25,000, a 56.3% increase. In all, six horses brought $100,000 or more during the session, up from two in 2013. 
“Our local breeders have struggled for the last couple of years and it is with renewed optimism and well-deserved success that those who persevered through these trying times have finally been rewarded as a result of faith and confidence, now prevalent in our Ontario-Bred/Ontario-Sired program,” said Yvonne Schwabe, Sales Chair and Director of the Ontario CTHS. 
John LeBlanc, acting on behalf of a syndicate, made the winning bid on the session’s top lot, hip 194. The Philanthropist colt is out of Uproar (Hail the Ruckus) and was consigned by Mapleville Farms as agent for his breeder, Dr. Moira Gunn’s Paradox Farm. In addition to millionaire Pender Harbour, the yearling is a half to stakes winner Silent Course (Trajectory). 
The sale concluded Wednesday evening with 74 yearlings catalogued in an open session. Complete results will appear in Friday’s TDN.