Dixon, Illinois took center stage Sunday, with an auction for the history books. Former Comptroller, Rita Crundwell's world re-owned quarter horses were auctioned off. Crundwell is accused of stealing 53 million dollars from the city. At the auction 319 of her horses were up for grabs, and bidders showed up in the thousands, both in person and on-line. Crundwell's saddles, trucks, trailers and farm equipment were also for sale.
The auction has generated a lot of buzz, because of Crundwell's reputation in the horse industry and her most valuable horse, a world champion stallion, did not disappoint, bringing in a whopping $775,000. Those with the American Quarter Horse Association said the price is no surprise. They said many predicted "Good I Will Be", would go for even more money. They said a horse like that could win back it's cost with the possibility of more world titles and by breeding.
Other horses raked in anywhere from $3,000 for a young stallion, to $50,000, to $100,000. While there were a variety of horses on the auction block, there was also a variety of people at the sale. The person that bought "Good I Will Be" came all the way from Canada. There were people from Australia and Brazil as well. From the just plain curious, to recreational riders, to horse industry leaders the auction captivated the interest of people from all walks of life.
Kathy Depper who came from Triumph, IL said she and her husband and no plans to buy a horse, but when they saw a young stallion, those plan went out the window.
"It was love at first sight," Depper said.
She said she and her husband are horse lovers, but are new to the world of saddles and stables.
"Last year my husband got my first horse for Christmas."
She said now they will have a new family member and at only $3,000 it's a dream come true. It wasn't just the Depper family who were living out dreams at the auction. Others like Valerie Stgermain, came to live out a childhood dream, although it's much different than she had always imagined.
"She was always someone growing up I aspired to be like," Stgermain said of Crundwell.
The 27-year-old horse breeder and trainer said while seeing her role model fall from grace has been hard, it's exciting to learn from what she did right in terms of breeding and creating some of the best horses in the world.
"As far as her as a role model, it's kind of sad. But it's a great opportunity for me to come out here today and sort through the horse lines, see what she has to offer genetically and definitely take advantage of some of the prospects."
The auction is unlike any the marshals service has put on. Proceeds from the sale will go into escrow until the case is done. If Crundwell is found guilty the money will go back to the city, if she is innocent it will go back to her. The auction will also be going on tomorrow. It starts at 11:00 a.m.
