Wearing a Hawaiian shirt, the chairman of television syndication concern King World stormed out of the sales pavilion when the bidding reached $1.8 million.

Construction of the building, which will serve as a sales pavilion, as well as construction of model houses, will start at the end of the summer.

Horse traders being, well, horse traders, Mr. Waldman recommends that neophytes exercise caution as they approach the sales pavilion.

"So instead of building just the models and a sales pavilion, I started the job by building the models plus 40 homes," he said.

And as the packed sales pavilion on Saturday morning attested, the annual auction of the grand champion steer is no ordinary event in Houston.

Like a doting grandfather, Senor Luro will be there this week in the sales pavilion down the street from the race track where he claimed Princequillo for $2,500.

Some participants journey in on their private 747's, which park at Lexington's Blue Grass Airport, across the road from the sales pavilion.

Lukas won his turn before a full house in the sales pavilion two blocks from the Saratoga Race Course, which is marking its 131st year of racing in the Adirondacks.

But there is one opportunity to pass among them, at the annual yearling auction, held early in the season by the Fasig-Tipton company, in a special sales pavilion near the track.

To gain entry to the small ultramodern sales pavilion, you must be an accredited buyer.