The
Seventh Annual Tosai* Auction - June 6, 2009
Chair:
Bry Bateman
*What is a Tosai?
It's a one-year-old Koi. The purpose of this
auction is to buy quality baby fish in bulk from their breeders, then make
them available to our club members at an affordable price. Their new owners then
get to grow them up big and beautiful and bring them to the Koi and Goldfish Show.
As a matter of fact, we give a prize each year to the best fish from that year's
tosai auction. This is a Members - Only event,
but you can join up right there at the auction if you wish. How
we got the fish for this year's TOSAI AUCTION! Bry
and Bay Bateman traveled to Hammock Koi
Farm near Knoxville, Tenn to help harvest some mud ponds 
and to select some special koi for this year's Tosai auction, to be held at the
Batemans' home on June 13. Since Shiro Utsuri are the specialty of the farm, it
was decided that 10 of these would be selected to be offered on a pre-reserved
basis as done in past years. 
The one-year (tosai) shiro utsuri pond was harvested on Friday, April 24, and
approximately 1000 koi were pulled from the pond. Of these, about 200 of the best
were selected, with the remaining 800 either released to their private lake or
put aside for sale to garden centers at reduced prices. 
To
put this in perspective, the 1000 koi represented only about 2% of the original
spawn! According to Mike Hammock, the breeder and owner of the farm, only about
15% of any given spawn will yield shiro utsuri, even though both parents are shiro
utsuri. That's just how the genetics of koi breeding works. This means that the
final 200 represent the top one-half percent of the original spawn. 
Mike Hammock next selected the very best of these
200 to be placed back in the mud pond to grow another year - these fish are not
for sale at this point. Of the remaining 150 or so koi, the Batemans were allowed
to select ten for the MPKS Tosai auction.
In addition to the Shiro Utsuris, a very nice collection of Yamabuki Ogons was
on display which had been recently harvested from a different pond. As the Shiro
purchase left some in the budget, it was decided to select six very nice Yamabukis
to add to the fun. These are absolutely top-notch specimens and will be offered
on a pre-reserved basis also. Five of the six are pictured. 
All
16 of the koi were bagged and transported to the Batemans home, where they will
be treated and quarantined until the June 6 sale. In
addition to the special sale koi, we are fortunate to have another 30 koi
currently in quarantine at Koi Acres in Minnesota.
These are Japanese imported tosai koi and include many different varieties. Mike
Swanson has informed the Batemans that they are doing very well, and he has agreed
to bring them to the Louisville
Koi Show over the weekend of May 23-24, where they will actually be entered
in the show and judged. These koi will be auctioned
off by our resident auctioneer, Bob Passovoy, who will be aided by AKCA Judge
and Koi USA Editor Steve
Childers, whose commentary and explanations of each koi being auctioned is
both entertaining and educational. If you would like
to reserve either a shiro utsuri or a yamabuki ogon, you can do so by sending
an email to the Batemans at bryzkoi@aol.com. The cost of the Shiro Utsuris is
$75.00 each and the Yamabuki Ogons is $125.00. The Shiros range form 6 to 8 inches,
and the Ogons are approximately 12 inches. Numbers will be drawn at the auction,
and the koi will be selected based on the number drawn. The auction will begin
at noon. Food and refreshments will be served. This event is for MPKS club members
only.
We hope you will all be able to stop
by on June 6th at the Batemans' house for this annual fun event (all proceeds,
as usual, support the MPKS general fund) Even if you don't plan to bid, come on
over and enjoy the ambiance, eat a dog or two, and mingle with your fellow club
members. It's a great time to be koi (and goldfish) kichi! When:
10 AM - Noon- Previewing of Fish. The special fish drawings will be at 11:00 or
when everyone involved is present and accounted for. The regular auction will
begin at noon. Steve Childers will be available to answer questions, talk koi
and filtration or any other topics with folks.
We will be serving hotdogs
with the trimmings and refreshments. Where:
The Batemans'
245 Middaugh Rd.
Clarendon Hills, Il 60514
phone: 630-325-6351
email: bryan@mpks.org How: From I-294, exit
west on Ogden Ave (Rt. 34). Continue west through 5 stop-lights (approximately
1-1/2 miles) to Stonegate. Turn left (South) on Stonegate and go two blocks to
the end. Turn left on Naperville Road and go to the first stop sign (Middaugh
Rd.). Turn right on Middaugh and go two blocks. Our house is on the south-east
corner of Middaugh and Walnut. NO PARKING ON THE WEST SIDE OF MIDDAUGH OR ON THE
NORTH SIDE OF WALNUT.
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