Fasig-Tipton Digital Platform An 'Evergreen' Opportunity For Walden

Fasig-Tipton has catalogued 94 entries for its May Digital Sale, which opened for bidding Thursday. Amongst the full catalogue, which may be viewed online here, is the five-strong consignment of Tessa Walden's Evergreen Equine, including an exciting 2-year-old maiden special weight winner from Keeneland in Blessed Flyer (Dialed In) (hip 1).

“It's hard to get them to races this early and he did it very effortlessly,” Walden said. “There were some bullet works in there and some other flashy moves but the best move he made was when he won. I think he's the full package. He's a good-sized horse, around 16 hands. He's super strong. Looks like he's still got some growing to do even on top of that.”

What impressed Walden the most from Blessed Flyer's Apr. 16 debut was not so much that he won, but how he did it.

“It was a much larger field than some of the other 2-year-old races we saw, which were maybe five or six-horse fields. This was a 10-horse field,” said Walden. “And then on top of that, we got to see a horse that showed diversity in his first start. So many of the 2-year-olds that are impressive at this time are year are horses that leave the gate and never look back. But what this horse did was he left the gate and found himself mid-pack. He took dirt, and he didn't like it but he pinned his ears and instead of basically wussing out, he ran up between horses and then targeted the leader and ran that horse down and beat him on the wire. And then he continued to gallop out. It was this huge, mature move that is so much greater.”

“The last thing I want to see in a 2-year-old race, when you're looking towards the future, is a horse that runs to the wire on the lead and then stops. They've got to have continuance. It's the most important ingredient for a horse that's going to develop into being something good, and this horse has it. He's by Dialed In, who is a good, proven, blue-collar stallion. There's a lot to be excited about with this horse.”

Now in its second full year of operation, Evergreen Equine brings in a diverse slate of horses from across the country which Walden specifically points through the Fasig-Tipton Digital Platform.

“Anything that's a racehorse is going to sell well, especially if it has conditions,” Walden said. “I have four horses from California this time. They're all horses that are actively racing. One of them, Sterling Sea (Union Rags) (hip 16), just broke his maiden May 1 for $50,000 [at Santa Anita].  And he'll be a great purchase now being starter eligible. Then I have a couple that'll be fresh for turf season that are more turf-oriented. [Turf horses] are a hot commodity right now [ahead of the racing season] with Colonial Downs, New York and Laurel Park, and then Ellis Park and Kentucky Downs too.”

Walden acknowledged the ease of which Fasig-Tipton allows consignors the opportunity to market a horse from its stall over two thousand miles away all while saving prospective buyers money.

Tessa Walden | Sara Gordon

“In reality, someone isn't going to try to arrange a situation where they can claim a horse out there unless they're local to California and specifically looking for that horse,” Walden said. “[Fasig-Tipton] has created a really good, easy way to move horses who may stay [where they are]. I would say probably 50% of the horses I've sold that reside in California have stayed there.”

The Digital Platform afforded Walden an opportunity to sell horses on a flexible schedule as she kicked off on her own after nearly 10 years working under the tutelage of trainer Brad Cox.

“[Brad and I] talked a lot about bloodstock throughout my last six months of working for him,” Walden said. “And Carrie Brogden [of Machmer Hall] was the main person who told me, 'You need to do these digital sales. This is going to be amazing for you as a mom with your schedule.' She's the one that really pushed me and I'm so glad she did because it's really opened up a whole new realm of things that I can do. And the more you do it, the more momentum you get.”

“I'm so passionate about bringing [2-year-olds] along. What are their strong points? What are their good qualities? I think Fasig's provided a great platform for 2-year-olds especially that people maybe didn't want to push into the 2-year-old sales and they want to do something a little more laid back. This platform has grown and grown and I'm really blessed that I get to do what I do because it's been amazing.”

In addition to Evergreen Equine, the Fasig-Tipton May Digital Sale features offerings such as:

• 40+ horses of racing age
• Broodmares in foal to Drain the Clock, Early Voting, Mage, Munnings, as well as first season sires Barnes, First Mission, and Il Miracolo.
• Mares with foals at foot
• 2-year-olds in training
• Yearlings

“We're coming off a great April sale and an exciting weekend which saw Digital grads win two stakes on the Derby undercard,” said Leif Aaron, Fasig-Tipton Director of Digital Sales. “Despite the short turnaround from the April sale, which ended less than two weeks ago, we have a significant catalogue of horses of racing age, breeding stock, two-year-olds in training, and yearlings on offer.”

To create an account or register to bid for the May Digital Sale, prospective buyers should click here.