One of Texas’ biggest and most important racehorse buying events of the year is here
March 24, 2022 -- Thoroughbred auctions are free to attend, providing an engaging experience for horse and sports enthusiasts. The public can watch this important segment of the horse racing industry up close (just not too close, unless you intend to bid!). To buy a horse, you need to establish a line of credit in advance. There also is online bidding if you cannot attend the auction in person.
The Texas Thoroughbred Association’s Two-Year-Olds in Training Sale begins at 12 noon CT on April 6 in the Sales Pavilion at Lone Star Park in Grand Prairie. The under-tack show, called the Breeze Show, starts on the main racetrack in front of the grandstand at 10 a.m. CT on April 4. The public is invited to attend both events and admission is free.
The Breeze Show is a highlight of the Two-Year-Olds In Training Sale.
For those who sell horses for a living, the TTA sale is among the pivotal days of their work year. But while hundreds of people are hard at work, the auctions also are a festive time for the racing community - a time where every horse sold and every horse purchased can foster dreams.
Two-year-old sales are unique because the horses are actively in training, with under-tack shows in advance of the auction. Those involve the young Thoroughbreds working (also known as breezing) at full speed for an eighth-mile or sometimes a quarter-mile so prospective buyers can view the horses’ stride and mechanics. Not all horses have a timed work; some consignors opt to instead have their horses gallop.
Buyers definitely gravitate to horses with the fastest breeze times; for instance a horse working an eighth-mile in 10-seconds flat sold for $150,000, tying for the second-highest price at last year’s TTA Two-Year-Old In Training sale. However, the $240,000 sales-topper galloped, as did a horse fetching $100,000.
Gary West, a nationally prominent turf columnist and racing analyst, will provide expert commentary during the Breeze Show at 10 a.m. April 4 in Lone Star Park's third-floor Silks dining area. West will also discuss horse ownership and how to get in the game. The event is free by signing up here.
The TTA’s Texas Summer Yearling is Aug. 29 at Lone Star Park.