NZB Breeze Ups Give Juveniles a Natural Advantage

2019 Ready to Run breeze ups. Photo: Trish Dunell

Breeze Ups for New Zealand Bloodstock’s Ready to Run Sale of Two-Year-Olds will take place next week on Monday 12 and Tuesday 13 October, commencing at 10am each day.

Held across two days at Te Rapa Racecourse, the conditions and consistent measurements of NZB’s Breeze Ups give prospective buyers a major advantage when it comes to statistical and video analysis.

All two-year-olds are Breezed Up on the same turf track over two consecutive days, with penetrometer readings taken on both days. This allows fairer analysis of the data collated for greater accuracy and fairness, unlike both Australian two-year-old sale Breeze Ups which are conducted on different track conditions, across multiple states and countries.

Bruce Sherwin from Raffles Farm acknowledges the benefits of NZB’s consistent Breeze Up measures.  

“Having the horse’s breeze on the same turf surface is a significant positive when analysing and comparing. It does take a lot of guesswork out of the process and gives added confidence.”

“It really is an excellent sale, giving a wide array of buyers a chance at all levels in the market. The results speak for themselves,” he added.

With significant importance placed on Breeze Up footage for buyers due to COVID-19 travel restrictions, NZB has made the decision of lengthen their traditional Breeze Up clip format.

This year’s clips will be extended to include additional footage from the rear 600 metre mark to capture horses before they fully extend into their gallop. As per usual, horses will also have the last 200 metres of their work individually timed.

While the Breeze Up clips themselves will be slightly longer, NZB will also be filming the mounting yard at Te Rapa, with all two-year-olds being paraded prior to their Breeze Up.

The full Breeze Ups clips and parade footage will be made available for viewing on NZB’s website by Friday 16 October, as well as streamed on Trackside in New Zealand, plus Sky Racing and Racing.com in Australia.  

The 2020 edition of NZB’s Ready to Run Sale will take place on 18 and 19 November at the iconic Karaka Sales Centre, commencing at 1pm (NZT) each day.

Due to travel restrictions enforced by COVID-19, international buyers are encouraged to participate via the new user-friendly online bidding platform, where registrations will be available soon.

NZ-based agents are also available to complete inspections on behalf of international buyers at the Breeze Ups, on farm parades and at the sale complex, with phone bidding another welcomed option by buyers to ensure they do not miss out on the opportunity to secure a two-year-old at the number one sale of its kind.

View the 2020 Breeze Up schedule here.

View the full catalogue online here.