This year marks the 30th anniversary of New Zealand Bloodstock’s highly successful Ready to Run Sale and it’s a formula that continues to impress.

With three new Group 1 winners last season alone from a tally of 10 in just the last four years, the NZB Ready to Run Sale is the dominant market leader in Australasian Horses-in-Training Sales.

The 2010 Sale is looking to continue a buoyant trend, and with 494 lots, 200 more than last year, the sale is celebrating its largest catalogue since 2001.

With the distinct attraction of having the horses prepared and ‘Ready to Run’ as soon as they hit home soil, combined with the remarkable record of successful graduates, the sale has garnered a loyal following of local and international buyers.

Australian buyers have been steadily on the rise at the Ready to Run Sale and in 2009 were the second highest by sale aggregate purchasing 37 horses for a total of $3.12 million.

Ready to Run graduates to list success at the highest level across the Tasman include Rockdale (Danroad), winner of the Group 1 TJ Smith Stakes, dual Group 1 winner of the Coolmore Classic Eskimo Queen (Shinko King), and recently the promising Group 2 winner and Group 1 placed Linton (Galileo).

Prominent Australian owner Nick Williams, a regular buyer of two-year-olds at the Ready to Run Sale, says that the sale has been a reliable source of top performing horses for him.

“The New Zealand Bloodstock Ready to Run Sale has been a good sale for us and we have a lot of success from its graduates including Perlin and Linton.

“A large part of our success comes from winning middle distance and staying races and there are always plenty of horses offered in the New Zealand Sale that are tailor-made for these longer distance races.

“The two-year-olds offered there have had more time to mature and come sale time have developed into very nice horses.”

Amongst the selection are more than 40 full or half relatives to stakes winners, 10 half-siblings to Group 1 winners and progeny from 125 stallions throughout Australasia.

Catalogued lots include four entries by New Zealand’s Champion Sire and sire of 41 individual Group 1 winners Zabeel. Waikato Stud’s O’Reilly and Pins are well represented with 13 and nine entries respectively, and Rich Hill Stud’s Pentire, sire of nine individual Group 1 winners including last season’s Group 1 Doncaster Mile winner Rangirangdoo, has four entries.

Australia’s Champion Sire of the 2008/2009 season Encosta de Lago is represented with three colts, along with Coolmore’s Fastnet Rock and up and coming sire Starcraft.

First season sires also figure prominently in the sale. Darci Brahma, New Zealand’s Champion Two-Year-Old and Three-Year-Old Colt and the leading freshman sire at Karaka in January has 14 entries and Brighthill Farm’s first season sire Perfectly Ready has 12.

Other stallions that feature in the line up of 125 include Commands, Exceed and Excel, Flying Spur, Hussonet, Keeper, More Than Ready, Not a Single Doubt, Stravinsky and Volksraad.

With just over two months from the date of the sale until New Zealand Bloodstock’s one million dollar Karaka Million Two-Year-Old race for sale graduates, the Ready to Run Sale is the last opportunity for buyers to secure a horse already carrying race eligibility, with 38 Lots able to be nominated.

New Zealand Bloodstock’s Ready to Run Sale will be conducted at its Karaka sale centre in Auckland on 16 & 17 November. The Breeze Ups will take place on 18 & 19 October with DVDs of the breeze ups available from 26 October.