Off-Season and Auction

It had been quite some time since the previous visit to Lin Zhi's stable, and it was now July.

After deciding to place Shadow Hunter in Lin Zhi's stable, Lin Zhi immediately contacted the staff of the Jian'an Horse Racing Association to handle Shadow Hunter's stable admission, trainer, and racehorse registration.

However, Shadow Hunter did not enter Lin Zhi's stable right away. Since Min Province's horse racing season was in its off-season, Lin Zhi specifically discussed it with Zhang Jun and decided that Shadow Hunter would enter the stable for training after the off-season ended.

Although Huaxia had both central and local horse racing systems, with all horse racing events across the country falling under one of those two systems, the northern, southern, and central provinces still differed in how they held their races.

Based on temperatures across the country, the Huaxia Horse Racing Association divided the off-season for Huaxia horse racing—or rather, for Huaxia racetracks—into three categories.

In northern Huaxia, provinces where temperatures were extremely low in December and January suspended racing for seven weeks during those two months. The cold could affect the health of racehorses and jockeys during training and competition, so no races were held, and even the racehorses left their stables to graze on pastures.

In southern Huaxia, in provinces such as Min Province and Yue Province, temperatures exceeded thirty-five degrees Celsius in July and August. Training and racing could likewise affect racehorses and jockeys, especially horses unaccustomed to high temperatures. To prevent heatstroke among the horses and jockeys, racing was also suspended.

Provinces in central Huaxia, as well as some provinces with relatively stable climates, suspended racing in July and January, the hottest and coldest months respectively.

At the same time, a one-week break was held every Spring Festival so that jockeys, trainers, and stable staff could reunite with their families.

In other words, every racetrack in Huaxia had an eight-week off-season each year. Aside from Spring Festival, the remaining seven weeks were scheduled at different times depending on the region.

Min Province's off-season that year ran from the final week of June to the third week of August. Thus, Lin Zhi and Zhang Jun agreed that Shadow Hunter would enter the stable for training before racing resumed in the third week of August. Zhang Jun agreed.

Though both were off-seasons, local racing differed somewhat from the central circuit. Central racing was held only on Saturdays and Sundays each week, with just eighty-eight days of racing annually. Even during the Founding Celebration, when the capital's racetrack held a seven-day Founding Celebration event, that only brought the total to ninety-five days.

The remaining two hundred-plus weekdays and off-season days could be used to maintain the racetracks. Therefore, other than the off-season, central racetracks held events year-round without interruption.

Local horse racing events, on the other hand, were held on weekdays from Monday through Friday. Only Saturdays and Sundays could be used to maintain the tracks, which was somewhat insufficient for track upkeep. Holding races over long periods could worsen track conditions and lead to accidents involving racehorses during competition.

Therefore, under the three broad regional divisions, racetracks in the local racing system were further divided into groups within each province.

Take Min Province as an example. Its nine racetracks were divided into Groups A and B. After the season began, Group A held races first. Two weeks later, Group A went on break to maintain its tracks, while Group B began holding races. They switched again two weeks later.

Each racetrack could hold races for twenty-two weeks, totaling one hundred and ten race days, while also having more than two hundred days for track maintenance.

The Jian'an Racetrack, to which Lin Zhi and Shadow Hunter belonged, was assigned to Group B that year. It would begin racing in the third week after the off-season ended. If Shadow Hunter entered the stable in the third week of August, there would be a full four weeks available for training.

Moreover, Lin Zhi had already prepared several racing plans for Shadow Hunter. Shadow Hunter was set to debut in the Debutant Race in the fourth week of September, so Zhang Jun was not in a hurry about sending Shadow Hunter to the stable for training.

Meanwhile, Zhang Jun's college entrance examination results had come out at the end of June, and he had scored very well.

Having decided to focus on the horse racing industry in the future, Zhang Jun specifically sought advice from Luo Fei, Luo Yong, and the others. Taking into account the system's ability to view racehorses' breeding attributes, he applied to the equine science program at a Double First Class university in Min Province. There, he would mainly study horses, genetics, and related subjects, while minoring in management as a second degree. Most importantly, the university allowed remote study.

Luo Heng's score was nearly the same as Zhang Jun's, only one point lower. He also applied to the university's equine science program, though he did not choose management as a minor. Luo Heng's goal was only to take over his family's breeding division at the ranch; management would be handled by his eldest brother, Luo Yong.

After confirming his major, Zhang Jun studied racehorse bloodlines and horse racing at home when Luo Yong suddenly called.

Zhang Jun stepped away from his computer, picked up his phone, glanced at it in puzzlement, and answered.

"Brother Yong? Aren't you busy with the club's new horse recruitment? Why are you calling me all of a sudden?"

Luo Yong's voice came through the phone. "The new horse recruitment is more or less wrapped up. I'm calling this time because there's something important I need to tell you."

Something important? Zhang Jun straightened up as Luo Yong continued.

"Didn't you say before that you wanted to work in horse racing too, and open your own ranch? Do you know what sales channels there are for horses bred at a ranch, aside from selling them to customers who visit the ranch or handing them over to a club?"

"Auctions?" Zhang Jun asked doubtfully. "I've seen them mentioned while studying these past few days, but other than the online secondhand horse trading events held in July and August, shouldn't there be no auctions around this time? The yearling auctions don't start until August either."

"There are," Luo Yong said with a smile. "The two-year-old horse auctions end in June, but that isn't the case for horses of other ages."

"Here in Min Province, there are several auctions for yearlings. From May through July, each of those three months has one regular auction and one selected horse auction."

"You only became an owner in mid-June, so you missed the previous four. The July auction starts on the nineteenth. The first day is for viewing the young horses, and the formal auction is on the twentieth. The selected sale starts on the twenty-first and is auctioned on the twenty-second. They're all held in Mindu."

"Every year, the ranch has a batch of horses sent to auction. Though they're all for the selected horse sale, the club also visits ordinary horse auctions every year to see if it can find a bargain. Do you want to come to the auction with me? If you want to open a ranch later, you'll always need to buy a few horses at auctions to serve as its foundation. I'll take you along this time so you can gain some experience."

Zhang Jun agreed at once. "Sure. Sorry for the trouble, Brother Yong. I'll meet up with you on the eighteenth."

Luo Yong pretended to be angry. "What are you thanking me for? Our fathers were friends who'd risk their lives for each other, and you and Heng are such good brothers. I treat you like my own little brother. Keep this up, and believe it or not, I won't take you with me."

Zhang Jun could only beg for mercy and admit his mistake, swearing that he would stop being so formal with Luo Yong. Only then did Luo Yong let him off.

After hanging up, Zhang Jun looked out the window. "An auction..."

I wonder if I can find any decent racehorses...