Where are the bloodstock markets heading? When will prices reach their peaks? Or have they already done so? These questions are being posed by just about everyone in the Thoroughbred industry, and they are asked of bloodstock agents, the practitioners with their fingers on the pulse of the horse business.

Today, agents are divided; some express cautious optimism, while others are cautiously pessimistic. Such was not the case last year at this time. But a different reality appears to be approaching the doorstep now, although when exactly it will march through that door remains open to question.

Still, bloodstock markets for the most part continued to boom in 2000. Keeneland sold a record $756,575,100 in horseflesh this year. Add in the figures from other public auctions, stallion seasons and shares, and other transactions public and private, and it can be stated with certainty that Thoroughbred bloodstock annually generates billions of dollars in gross revenues in North America alone.

Once again, Thoroughbred Times is profiling 12 bloodstock agents and agencies whose activities have been prominent during the previous year. Not all of them have had high sales volumes but all have been noteworthy components in the success of the bloodstock markets. Hundreds of others have also made contributions, many of them major, and they deserve a salute with those profiled on these pages.

The bloodstock business is not glamorous. Agents are not presented with garlands of flowers in winner's circles. Rarely does a national network broadcaster interview them after a race. They spend many an early morning or late evening in the office, quietly poring over breeding statistics, catalog pages, sales results, and other industry data. Their diligence is often unappreciated by the general public, but their clients are well aware of the value that bloodstock agents provide.

All of the following profiles were written by Bill Mooney, a frequent contributor to Thoroughbred Times.

Rollin W. Baugh
Principal: Rollin W. Baugh
Location: Rancho Santa Fe, California
Founded: 1968
Focus: Stallion prospects; purchases of racing and breeding stock privately and at public auctions; syndications and partnerships; insurance

"We had the same sort of year that most of the industry did in 2000, steady and solid," said Rollin W. Baugh. "Our clients, particularly people such as Gary Biszantz, who has Cobra Farms, continue to be aggressive participants. This was the first year that Cobra's retired stallion, Old Trieste, was bred. He's at Jonabell. His first crop of mares in foal sold at Keeneland in November and drew some excellent prices.

"Alex Trabek (host of the game show "Jeopardy") increased his activity on several levels this year. Marguerite Clifford is one of my new clients, and I still do lots of work for the Japan Racing Association and other Japanese clients. Yes, these are busy times."

As a boy, Baugh used to ride his bicycle to Santa Anita Park, dreaming of the day when he might become a Thoroughbred industry participant. In 1999, he became a member of the Jockey Club.

"It's been a very long path but a very pleasing one as well," Baugh said. "The bloodstock markets are hard to predict, but I think in 2001 we'll continue the path we're currently on. The appreciation in some of the prices does bother me. They can't keep on going up and up. The top of the bloodstock game is pretty darn good, but what's underneath is not, and the further underneath you go the weaker it becomes.

"I remain very enthusiastic about what the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) is trying to do, but I'm discouraged by the people who aren't aggressively supporting it. Too many of them are taking restrictive views, trying to operate in their own little niches, culling what profits they can, while thinking, 'Let the greater good be damned.' The Thoroughbred industry's been that way throughout the years I've been involved, marketing in a fragmented manner. This has got to stop."

Reynolds Bell Thoroughbred Services
Principal: Reynolds Bell Jr.
Location: Lexington, Kentucky
Founded: 1992
Focus: Advises and serves as agent for clients in private sales and at public auctions; stallion seasons and shares; stallion management

Reynolds Bell Jr. never has been big on self-promotion. Put the facts out there, let the people decide-that is his philosophy. "Sure, 2000 was a good year for us," Bell said, and one has to press him for details beyond that.

Bell has many prominent clients, Jayeff B Stables among them. "But the sand's always shifting in the Thoroughbred industry," he said. "I'm continually trying to bring in new people. Wayne Oldenburg, an industrial manufacturer from Wisconsin, is an example. I bought two mares for him in 1999. This past November, I bought two more for him at Keeneland. One of them was Tap Your Heels, whom we got for $750,000. The other was Megan's Leprechaun. We got her for $550,000.

"The bloodstock markets are strong from the middle to the top, but weak from the middle to the bottom. We're creating more product than we can use. This has happened before-in the mid-1980s, we were producing 50,000 foals a year and ran out of people who wanted them. There was a record consignment at Keeneland this past November, but things really got dead the closing days of that sale. We've set some spectacular records in recent years, but I'm not sure where we go from here."

Bell has been active with the NTRA, specifically on a committee that is trying to improve communications between that organization and owners and breeders. "We point out the accomplishments of the NTRA, what goals were set forth in its business plan, and what has been implemented to achieve those goals," Bell said. "Working toward a common good isn't always easy. In this case, some pretty diverse people are involved, and some fundamental differences have to be worked out. But racing's overall image is improving. I'm very optimistic about the sport's future."

Bluegrass Thoroughbred Services
Principals: John Stewart and Peter Bance
Location: Lexington, Kentucky
Founded: 1980
Focus: Assists clients in purchasing, breeding, and selling racehorses

"We're not a huge outfit; we annually sell about 75 yearlings for clients, but we get results," said John Stewart. "Six horses we've consigned to sales won graded stakes this year. They include Lady at Peace, Shawnee Country, Gleefully, and two-year-old winner Fistfite. For the whole of 2000, our gross sales totaled over $8-million. We sold a $1-million Seeking the Gold filly at Keeneland in September for the estate of Paul Mellon. We also sold a Carson City colt for $900,000 at Saratoga in August for Prince (Fahd) Salman's Newgate Stud. Those are solid numbers."

Stewart and his Bluegrass Thoroughbred Services partner, Peter Bance, are originally from Virginia. Bance, who is also an executive with Marsh Insurance, remains based in Richmond, his hometown. Stewart operates from Lexington. "We like to think of ours as a boutique sales agency, dealing with better than average horses for special clients," Stewart said. "Our client base is primarily in the East, people from Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New York.

"For many years, we've also been involved in raising money to purchase into stallions. We organized the sale of Lord Carson to Vinery and kept a 25% interest in the horse. It looks like he's going to be the second-leading freshman sire in 2000. We also helped with the syndication of Vicar earlier this year."

South America is another focus of Bluegrass Thoroughbred Services. "We've raced horses and have done some stallion deals down there," Stewart said. "Most importantly, we've been buying a lot of broodmares, primarily from Argentina. We personally own Esperada, who was the champion two-year-