WHEN I first started working at Goffs almost 30 years ago, the only breeze-up sales in England were at Doncaster and Ascot. Others have got in on the act since but the sale at Doncaster is the only one to have continued in an unbroken run since 1977.

In 2016 four graduates of the sale won at Royal Ascot which, make no mistake, would be a remarkable achievement for any sale, most of which offer a much larger number of horses annually.

With such results on the track, plus a team invigorated by new managing director Tony Williams, there was every reason to hope for an improved demand at this week’s sale after a somewhat lukewarm renewal last year.

That optimism was temporarily suspended when I checked into the Earl Of Doncaster.

As the hotel receptionist was cheerfully telling me that they had hosted three different funerals that day, the piped music started playing the 1980s the Cutting Crew, “I just died in your arms tonight”. Talk about attention to detail.

Luckily the atmosphere at the Goffs UK sales complex was far more upbeat, where the team’s hard work was rewarded in no uncertain terms as turnover rose 53%, the top price of £360,000 was a new record and some great individual results were achieved.

These included a More Than Ready colt that cost $5,000 last September in Kentucky making £200,000, and another USA purchase, a colt by Lonhro, rising from $17,000 to £210,000. Interestingly, the sale-topping Kodiac colt, that cost €68,000 as a foal at Goffs, could not attract a bid of the same amount as a yearling.

It’s amazing how, for some vendors, the right things happen for the wrong reasons. Another great result was a Tamayuz filly that cost €12,000 at last autumn’s Goffs Open Yearling Sale and made £140,000 on Wednesday.

This is definitely the sector of the thoroughbred market that best understands some wise words of George Soros that were in Tuesday’s Irish Times, “It’s not whether you’re right or wrong that’s important; it’s how much you make when you’re right and how much you lose when you’re wrong.”

Breeze-up vendors are the bravest of any sector in the market. In another life many of them would have made excellent mine-sweepers or city traders but this is their chosen profession.

For those who have never attended a breeze-up sale, each horse is basically asked to gallop two furlongs on the afternoon before the sale at the adjoining Doncaster racecourse. This is not as simple as it sounds as there is a pool of fewer than 20 jockeys for 140 horses so the running order is largely determined by their availability. The team at Goffs UK ensured that the “breeze” was accomplished in 2¼ hours.

Since the first breeze in 1977, much has changed. At that time there was no big screen (nor reviewable video footage afterwards) and horses breezed in twos and threes rather than singularly as they do today.

Also, there was not the array of timing equipment used by several buyers. These times have a huge bearing on the prices achieved which, needless to say, are greeted warmly by those with fast times and not by those who are down the list.

For my part, I still cannot understand how these times are assessed against the weight of the riders, if indeed they are at all. The range of riders’ weights may well be similar to a decent sprint handicap.

One less technical difference between the sale of 2017 and 1977 is that the inaugural sale was sponsored by Playboy, who had two bunny girls in place to accompany each lot around the ring.

I am not sure that would be seen as an entirely appropriate addition these days.