I doubt I'll EVER have enough money to get into breeding at the kind of level I'd want to (and after doing so much rescue I have to admit I'm REALLy picky about what horses should get bred). So this is pretty hypothetical...
But say I won the Lottery and had $2-3 million to burn.
(Hey it could happen...)
My plan (I'm in FL) would be to haunt the sales and classifieds for a couple three nice broodmares (not too young, not too old) with strong bottom lines, as correct as i could get conformation wise, pedigree wise, etc. I'd want SOUND pedigrees and some black type and winners in each generation (unless there was some good reason i.e. dam died). I'd look in the $50,000-200,000 price range.
No interest in standing any stallions, I'd rather pick and choose from the many fine stallions out there in KY and FL and get different sires for each mare each year so if I got good replacement fillies they'd not all be related as much.
Not sure I could find a trainer that would take a newbie with my philosophies (LOL calling Afleet Alex's trainer...) but I'd rather sell the colts and keep the fillies to race. Unless the colt really seemed NICE then race him and sell as a stallion prospect if he makes it, geld and sell as sport horse if not or keep as riding horse.
I'd also go to the weanling/yearling sales and try to pick up 2-4 really nice fillies with as nice a pedigree and conformation as I could afford to and either keep to race/breed or pinhook. I really kind of like the pinhooking game, esp. since pedigree doesn't seem as important as athletic ability. I abhor 2 yo in training sales though so that might be a problem. Even if I didn't sell them there my selling yearlings that might very well end up there is pretty much the same.
I have no desire to have mountains of horses. I'd rather have a VERY GOOD herd of 10-20 total then a mediocre herd of 100.
Being aware that not even great pedigrees make it on the track conformation would be as important as pedigree to me. I'd spot the pedigree but say yeah or "neigh" on the conformation unless they went DIRT CHEAP and it was something that could be worked around (Real Quiet and Easy Goer had issues and did OK with them as I recall!
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Another thing about having fewer mares to breed is that I'd be able to breed to the better stallions because I'd have more fee money to spend per mare. After reading through the stallion register last night I noticed that fee doesn't equal performance, I'd choose the stallions well first by what I could afford then rank them by % of runners from starters, winners and more importantly SWs (the average stallion is 5% or less regardless of fee, the good ones are 7-11% it seems and the great ones are 14% and up). Of course the great ones probably are WAY out of reach in fees. I'd also travel around and try to see some babies from these guys (to see if any faults were showing up consistently) and if I was thinking of selling also consider the sales figures for that stallion.
I don't have much interest in running in the claiming ranks (too risky for the heart) and doubt I'd be very successful there anyway, I'd rather race a few horses at the upper levels than a ton of claimers. And I think the only way to get them on a "budget" LOL of $3 million and under would be to get them as weanlings or yearlings and breed a few yourself. The prices for good racing prospects (proven or otherwise) would sure eat up $3 million in a HURRY with no guarantee they wouldn't break down next out.
i guess I'm much more interested in breeding good horses than in the racing end although everyone wants a winner. Every time my horse stepped on the track my heart would be in my throat he'd break down. But once sold it wouldn't be so bad. QUITE so bad...
