Contender

I was never I big fan of the horse Bayern, but then I seldom cheer for Baffert. However, as a sire I had to give him a second look. He did not start as a 2-yr old, and only got good late in the year when he won the Breeder’s Cup Classic at 3. His first crop has not been successful so far, but that might be too small a sample size. I would consider him “out of favor”

Hip #1205 is by Bayern (stud fee $15,000) out of a very interesting Jeblar mare named Jera. Jeblar in now well thought of in Kentucky, but his children have won tons or turf races in Florida. Jera was a solid race hose running an Equibase 93, but she produced a multiple G1 winner Jeranimo by Congaree, and 5 other winners.

The pedigree is a little unusual, but you start shopping for discount horses, you seldom if ever find mares that produce a horse the quality of Jeranimo (who did not win until he was 3).

There was no reason to expect this horse to work quickly. Yet he went 20.4, only 4% went faster. I was not going to get way paying 4x or less for this guy. The work screamed out –racehorse! The hammer fell at $100,000 or 6.66x (yes the mark of the devil).

In the real world the buyer was a gentleman named Lance Gasaway. Mr. Gasaway came to this sale last year and paid $105,000 for a colt by the disappointing sire Looking at Lucky that worked a pedestrian 10.1. That colt was Louisiana Derby winner, and until yesterdays injury, a Derby contender, Wells Bayou.

If I could name Lance’s new Bayern it would be:

Quixote’s Contender

maybe I paid a little to much, but if that is what it takes to win a graded stakes race then so be it.