The Silver Cup Sale is this weekend. I love going to horse sales, but this one makes me crazy and here's why:
They almost caused this big moose to kill my groom.
Our friend/owner and I at the sale last year. Okay, so as far as the social part goes, the sale is fun.
I miss Phoenix.
1. Most of the yearlings aren't very sales prepped. I think half of them are barely halter broke. For example, my groom is just getting ready to put Nelson on the walker today and about gets killed as some idiot leads, I should say tries to lead, a horse by. Oh, I should mention, instead of walking on the dirt where it's safer and quieter, this person is letting the horse run circles around her on the pavement. Does she have a chain on it? Of course not. Chances are it has no idea what a chain is, but wouldn't you think it would be a good idea to get them used to one before they bring them in for a sale? Usually horses prepped for sales like Keeneland, Barrett's, Fasig-Tipton, etc. are some of the easiest to start because they've been handled so much. That is rarely the case here. *I feel really sorry for my vet and my shoer right now.
2. What some of these horses go for is ridiculous. Typically, you can go to one of the bigger sales and get something with similar breeding for about half the price.
3. Half of the horses aren't ever actually going to be for sale. People just run them through so that they are eligible for the Silver Cup sale.
4. They put the yearlings behind us on the other side of our barn. Where we are at is usually fairly quiet. That's why we like it. Now we have a barn full of yearlings screaming their guts out and trying to bust through the gates (one actually succeeded this morning) and we have three horses in this weekend, one of which that freaked and got his leg over his gate. They make ace for a reason people! Use it!
5. Everyone comes over and looks at our horses, trying to find the yearlings that are for sale.
6. They park out where I usually ride and it just rained. There goes my plans for riding anytime soon unless I feel like jumping ruts every stride.
Anyway, it's a giant pain in the ass and I'm already done with it. At least they have a bar up during the sale though.
Man that does sound like a PITA.
ReplyDeleteIt totally is.
DeleteHow obnoxious! The bar seems to be a valuable asset during all this though. :)
ReplyDeleteFor sure!
DeleteHad no idea not all yearling sales were created equal. Love learning more about this side of horses!
ReplyDeleteThey are definitely a lot different. The smaller ones like this tend to be more of a party than professional.
DeleteThat sounds pretty horrible... Minus the bar and that bay (who is gorgeous btw).
ReplyDeleteThanks! He's a good looking moose :)
DeleteI love that moose!!!
ReplyDeleteMe too :) He's only three and is just a big old pet. He's more like dealing with a high energy warmblood than a thoroughbred.
DeleteOne more week, right? Hang in there!
ReplyDeleteOnly one more week :) I'd be okay with that fact if I didn't have to go to ABQ after all of this is over....
DeleteI remember the weeks of work that went into sales prepping yearlings while i was at uni. I helped out at weekends and got to go to a couple of sales - which were awesome!!!
ReplyDeleteCan't imagine taking the poor babies to a sale set up with little to no handling! Cray-cray!
Some of them look horrible. Pot bellied and no muscle. More like weanlings than yearlings. I love the babies, just not all of the commotion that comes with them.
ReplyDelete"That is rarely the case here. *I feel really sorry for my vet and my shoer right now."
ReplyDeleteAmen.
They definitely have it worse than I do :)
ReplyDeleteOh man. This sounds like when the horse show people would invade Saratoga. All sorts of snobby rich girls meandering through our shedrows on their horses or (even worse) ponies, completely ignoring all the signs that said "No show horses in the race barns!"
ReplyDeleteThe horses were broke, but I don't think their riders were. ;)
I think I would completely lose it in the situation. People definitely have a tendency to be a bigger pain in the ass than horses.
DeleteOh jeez. What a pain in the butt.
ReplyDeleteA huge one!
Delete