Summary

I guess I feel the need to insert these occasional summaries so new readers do not have to go all the way to the beginning of the blog.

1. My horse racing experience begins in 1997 with the building of Lone Star Park in suburban Dallas, Texas. My hobbies had been golf and blackjack. I knew nothing about horse racing business until one day radio talk show host named Randy Galloway mentioned they had good food at the new simulcast facility. I was quickly hooked, and I saw my first live race when the new track opened in April.
2. It was very lucky that the marketing guys that sold our investment research had a champion filly (Biogio’s Rose) in that same year. I got to learn horse racing game from the perspective of an owner, not just as a gambler. I made a trip to Saratoga that summer, and heard Cot Campbell give a presentation on horse racing partnerships, and then watched the Saratoga sale.
3. I began to learn a little about the breeding business when Rosie was retired and my friends began to sell her babies. My main focus was on the gambling side, especially pick-6’s. I have read almost every handicapping book ever printed several times. I knew that groups like West Point and Team Valor existed, and always watched their horses with special interest.
4. In 2010 I became a part owner of Biogio’s Rose’s last two foals. Both had been RNAed after the financial crisis of 2008. Neither horse was very good, but I did get to stand in the winner’s circle at Keeneland when Biogio’s Gift won a $20,000 maiden claimer on a great ride by Julian Leparoux. We also learned it was no fun to be a 3rd tier owner in Mike Maker’s barn.
5. In 2018 I started to look at some of the partnership websites, and was getting on their mailing lists. West Point became a frequent caller, but I chose a smaller group called Dare to Dream because they had a Temple City colt for sale. I was fan of the sire, so I bought 2%. The horse was called Dynamite Answers, he had one work and developed breathing problems. He never worked again and after much medical investigation, he was called a total loss. So my first experience with partnerships was quite negative.
6. As the COVID situation began to set in I needed something to do from home. I started to write a blog about investing in horse racing partnerships on the first day of the under tack show for the main Ocala Sale (which had been postponed from April to June 1st.)
7. I started by watching the works, and then the sale itself. I selected a group of 20 “pretend” purchases, and began to track their progress.
8. My selection strategy was based on a “value” approach that I had used for 30+ years in the investment business. I was not chasing the expensive Into Mischief’s or Uncle Mo’s, but instead was looking for bargains among the Wicked Strong’s and Dialed In’s. The basic idea was to select horse with an average work, that might be expected to have a below average work because neither the sire, nor the dam, were precocious. I wanted to buy “faster than expected works.”
9. Just before the Ocala sale started I noticed that Dare to Dream was offering a “blind” partnership for a horse they would buy at the sale. I really liked the horse they had selected at the March Ocala sale, so i gave them another chance. On the third day of the sale they selected a son of Tapizar, that eventually was named Quick Tempo. The horse was a little “sprint oriented” for my taste, but he was a value selection. Tapizar was not a popular sire.
10. I also selected some pretend horses from the Fasig-Tipton Timonium sale and the July Ocala sale. From that group, s son Twirling Candy named Dream Shake has become a TDN “Rising Star”.
11. I invested in 3 additional horses for $1,000 to $2,000 each. A Super Saver filly with Pewter, a Tonalist colt with Hibiscus, and a Tapiture filly with Dare to Dream.
12. Quick Tempo won his maiden race at Arlington on August 20th, but the race was mistimed so it was difficult to tell how good he was.
13. As the summer progressed I got on the mailing list of every partnership listed on the OwnerView website. I found about 40 partnerships from Starlight all the way to one horse groups.
14. I selected a group of imaginary yearlings from the sales in September. I built imaginary groups to “compete” with Donegal, Centennial, and Ten Strike.
15. I came very close to investing with West Point on a Connect colt, and Eclipse on an Air Force Blue filly yearling.
16. Quick Tempo won his first allowance race at Parx, and then finished a good 2nd to Chad Brown’s Highly Motivated on the Breeders Cup undercard.
17. Two of the pretend horses I selected from the June Ocala sale became graded stakes winners. A Dialed In colt trained by Peter Miller named Get Her Number won the American Pharoah at Santa Anita, and $5,000 son of Wicked Strong, named Brooklyn Strong won the Remsen at Aqueduct.
18. Quick Tempo won a small stake at the Fairgrounds, and was listed as a Kentucky Derby contender for 12 hours, before Dare to Dream told us he needed surgery for a chip in his knee. he will be back in June at the earliest.
19. I came close to investing in Ten Strike’s group on 10 yearlings, but could not quite pull the trigger.
20. I bought 5% of a Point of Entry yearling from a small group called Blue Streak, and bought 2% of a Frosted colt from Pewter. I now have 6 horses and a total investment of about $10,000.
21. I have learned a great deal about all the different partnership opportunities. I am very thankful that I started to write all this down in a blog. The writing process forces me to think clearly about my choices.
22. The 2021 season is about to get underway with the March Ocala sale. I hope to get out and meet some of the people involved in this crazy business in person if COVID protocols permit.
23. I am leaning toward buying yearlings, but maybe a bargain 2-yr old will be too good to pass up.