(TRENTON) – Yearlings from New Jersey sire Walner led individual sales at the Lexington Selected Yearling Sale in Kentucky last week. Walner led all stallions in gross sales at almost $7 million with 60 of his offspring sold. Two other New Jersey Sires were among the gross sales leaders with Muscle Hill’s 38 offspring going for just over $4.7 million and Tactical Landing’s 54 offspring going for more than $3.5 million. Walner, Muscle Hill, and Tactical Landing, each stand at Southwind Farms in Pennington in Mercer County.

“The yearlings for our New Jersey-bred horses are in high demand and the results at this prestigious sale continue to prove their value,” NJDA Secretary Douglas Fisher said. “The thriving horse industry here supports many agriculture-related businesses.”

Muscle Hill led Day 1 of the sale with 17 yearlings going for a total of just over $3.5 million, while Walner was third with 16 yearlings at slightly more than $3 million. Walner led Day 2 of the five-day event with 35 offspring going for almost $3.4 million. The Walner-sired Awaiting, out of Lonely Lady, and the Muscle Hill-sired Stardust Volo, out of Starling Volo, tied for the fourth highest selling price each at $525,000. The top seller from Tactical Landing was Fala, out of Swing it Cathy, for $375,000.

Overall, Muscle Hill offspring sold for the fourth-highest average at $124,158, while Walner’s average was sixth at $115,817.

The totals for the week were 886 yearlings sold for a total of $65,289,000, an average of $73,690 per horse.

Concord Stud, based in Cream Ridge in Monmouth County, was third among consignors in average with $108,714 for 14 yearlings. Concord Stud Farm is operated by David and Robin Meirs and their family and is comprised of the 249 acres.

Walner was the 2016 2-year-old Dan Patch Award Trotter of the Year, when he won 9 of 10 starts, which included a win in the Breeders Crown. In 2017, he won the Stanley Dancer Memorial Division at the Meadowlands. Walner is out of Mission Brief, a daughter of Muscle Hill.

Muscle Hill, recognized around the world, sired 2020 Hambletonian winner Ramona Hill. Muscle Hill was the 2009 Horse of the Year and was the Trotting World Champion as a 2-year-old and a 3-year-old. Muscle Hill also had a streak of 20 straight wins and set a single year winnings record at nearly $2.5 million.

Southwind Farms’ General Manager is Laura Young and her husband, Chris Pazdan, is the Farm Manager. Along with the 235 acres at the horse facility, they also farm about 800 acres in hay and grain in Hopewell Township. A second Southwind Farms equine facility is in Gilbertsville, N.Y.

The success of New Jersey race horses has led to an increase in the amount of mares that are bred here each year. The number has risen by more than 500 since 2017, reaching nearly 800 in 2021.

For more information about the Standardbred Breeders Association of New Jersey go to http://www.sboanj.com/

###

 To learn more about the New Jersey Department of Agriculture, find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/NJDeptofAgriculture and www.facebook.com/JerseyFreshOfficial or Twitter @NJDA and @JerseyFreshNJDA.