In the fall of 2019, Bernard McCormack took advantage of Ontario’s Mare Purchase Program to acquire Uncle Mo mare Aunty Mo at the Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale.
The mare, a $22,000 (USD) purchase, was in foal to Tourist and delivered a handsome colt in February 2020. In September the youngster was the fourth highest seller at the Canadian Premier Yearling Sale, hammered down for $120,000 to Al and Bill Ulwelling, helped along by his two-year-old full-sister Mo Touring’s first-out victory at Gulfstream Park in June.
“It’s a great program assisting our local breeders in retooling their broodmare band and bringing in some new blood,” said McCormack of the Mare Purchase Program, which provided him a 50 per cent (CAD) rebate on Aunty Mo’s initial purchase price. “The sales in Kentucky are full of mares that could do well in our program, and so when you are sent shopping with a de-escalator for cost of roughly 40 per cent, depending on the exchange rate, it pays a lot of initial bills with the new purchase.”