John Freeman – ten days in Joburg!
I know that I am going to get shot for having my say about the present dual-sale issue. What I feel about it is of little consequence. Me and my team get our act together and do our job. But I have to speak for those who don’t care to say what they feel, writes South Africa’s leading stallion manager John Freeman in his latest newsletter.
Frankly it’s tough on buyers. I don’t get 10 days holiday at one time most years; so the idea of being trapped in Jhb for that long at horse sales pushes the limit. At the end of that marathon session we are all thoroughly wrung-out!!
Having sales clash like that is an issue aside, the competition between two sales companies has seen the whole market take a step up in organisation and class. That’s the good side. Competition is always a good thing – but do the two sales have to clash like that? I can’t see how this can last!
My measure of the quality of any yearling auction is the percentage of horses I shortlist. 10% is about the average. I actually had 18 of the 150 lots at the CTS sale shortlisted – a good sign.
So I went in fairly optimistically armed with a few live buyers as well as my usual “take a risk and spec” attitude. I thought I might bag a few and having secured solid support I even thought I had a lively chance of securing the top colt.
I pushed really hard in the ring and got bombed on 12 of my 13 top bids – at one point in time auctioneer Andrew Miller announced that he thought I was becoming a professional under-bidder having lost 4 of 7 lots in a row.
There was loads of cash in that ring.
