Auction opens Nov. 15 and ends Nov. 21.
The Rheinland Pfalz-Saar International is excited to announce their 1st Annual Online Select Foal Auction, with bids opening Nov 15th and closing Nov 21st. The auction offers 25 Select section foals and 22 Open section foals. The quality of foals, as well as the variety in types, bloodlines and talents, is truly outstanding. The auction is now online at: http://rhpsi.hibid.com/auctions/current
Select foal auctions have traditionally been the method-of-choice in Germany for selling collections of top foals. The German verbands, or registries, host and/or support these auctions as a way to help breeders market their foals and breeding programs, as well as the registry itself, and thus continue breeding.
We think the time has come in North America for breeders to enjoy some of the same marketing benefits as their European counterparts. The tricky part of organizing a successful auction in North America, though, has always been the huge distances and travel time, as well as lack of centralized organization and infrastructure for putting on live events.
Now, with the availability of the internet, and the rising popularity and success of online auctions, the time has come.
An informational webinar and Q & A with RPSI judge and Stud Book Director Otto Schalter is scheduled for Saturday, November 16th at 12:00 noon CST. This webinar will offer information on pedigrees and explanations of each selected foal’s attributes from the judge himself, as well as a chance for one-on-one questions. This is an opportunity for breeders and buyers to hear first-hand from someone who sees and evaluates thousands of warmbloods every year, both in Europe and North America.
How is a select sale different from any other auction? As in Germany, a select sale means that the foals are individually evaluated before being selected and invited to participate in the auction. This ensures a standard of quality for the buyers, and a chance to view some of the top representatives of that registries foal crop and breeding programs, year after year.
Of course not every top foal is for sale, and some of the year’s top foals are sold well before the fall foal auctions – so the auctions are not an absolute indicator of what is hot in a particular registry, but the auctions and the auction-marketing process certainly puts the spotlight on the presented foals, their breeders and the organization, and gives an idea of how the current year’s foals are looking. It also helps establish a base-line value for warmblood and riding-pony prospects for the industry in general – which is also something we are lacking in North America.
Buyers will appreciate the chance to see a collection of foals in one place, for comparison and browsing, as well as know that the Select section foals have already been pre-selected for quality. Also, each foal will have a vet exam completed before the auction begins, and results will be made available to buyers.
Perhaps the most important difference, though, is the direct involvement of registry officials in the marketing process, such as judge and stud book director Otto Schalter’s scheduled webinar. This is an unprecedented opportunity to hear from the horse’s mouth, so to say, information on each selected foal, as well as Otto’s ideas on the future direction he’d like to see for breeding in North America.
The RPSI has added an Open Section to this online auction as well, for foals scoring Silver or Gold Premium, to open this opportunity to more breeders and foal owners.
The RPSI has some exciting new programs for 2014 and are looking forward to supporting our breeders and owners in marketing their RPSI horses and breeding programs, now and in the coming years.
The auction has Warmblood foals consigned by an excellent selection of stallions, including Damarco, Wild Dance, Bon Balou, Chicardo, Banderas, Dream Along, Justice, Eclipsed by Color, Redwine, For Play, Rosenthal, Ruben O, Fabriano and more. German Riding Ponies and Kleines Deutsches Reitpferd foals are on offer sired by Benno’s Dream, Beaujolais, Nemax, Linaro, Smoke Tree Snapdragon, FS Daily Hero, Le Mode, among others.
We encourage everyone to get involved by visiting the auction site and attending the online webinar. Please visit our website (www.rhpsi.com) for more information on joining the webinar. We look forward to an exciting first Select Online Foal Auction in 2013, and the prospect of more new programs for the future.
Get ready for the first annual foal auction!
