By Carol Vaughn —
In the second year of holding the Chincoteague Pony Auction virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a new sales record of $420,150 was set. The figure includes proceeds from donated items as well as from the auction of 76 foals.
The highest winning bid, $25,500, was for a chestnut filly, a buyback pony.
Buyback ponies are named by the purchaser, then are returned to Assateague Island to live out their lives in the wild and replenish the herd, which is owned and cared for by the Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Company.
Two additional buyback ponies, a palomino pinto filly and a bay pinto filly, also went for more than $20,000 apiece, at $21,250 and $23,000, respectively.
The auction page, on SportHorseAuctions.com, had more than 240,000 views.
The Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Company held a watch party Thursday, July 29, at the fire station to view winning bids as the auction ended.
Mayor J. Arthur Leonard at Monday’s Chincoteague Town Council meeting spoke about the work the fire company does, much of it behind the scenes, to care for the Chincoteague ponies.
“We see the final product of a record price for ponies, but we don’t see the Mark Bowden and Bill Junior going to the beach daily to check on a horse, or feeding them in the winter, taking care of the vet, Denny going down to the carnival (grounds) every day feeding the ones down there,” he said, adding, “There’s a lot of people who do a lot of things for the ponies and for the fire company that we just don’t see, but they do it and we are grateful for them.”
“The auction was much more than we could ever have dreamed of,” said council member and Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Company spokesperson Denise Bowden.
“Not having actual carnival for two years … we’ve taken a hit,” she said, also thanking the council for approving the compressor purchase for the fire company earlier in the council meeting.
“It is greatly needed,” Bowden said.
