Eugene Melnyk was in Mississauga Wednesday evening to be inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame. Read more below
Terence Dulay Photo
SHERGAR CUP – EMMA-JAYNE WILSON ON DISCIPLINE AND STAYING ON TOP OF HER GAME
from UK Huffington Post
http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/emma-jayne-wilson_uk_598ad506e4b0449ed5069965?
Six races on Saturday at Ascot – Wilson goes for her 2nd Silver Saddle!
entries can be found…https://www.racingpost.com/racecards/2017-08-12
CANADIAN HORSE RACING HALL OF FAME INDUCTS EUGENE MELNYK
Wed. night ceremony honours class of 2017
EUGENE MELYNK, who built up one of the largest and most influential racing and breeding stables in the 2000s was inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame on Wednesday night.
The horse racing lover, hockey aficionado and pharmaceutical giant was understandably thrilled:
“There’s no other way to put this; this is a huge huge deal for me, there’s very little in the past that even comes close to being inducted into a Hall of Fame. I’ve never been in a Hall of Fame, I’ve seen this one, I have walked by it many times, but never been in one.
I am very humbled to be inducted among the giants, from the jockeys to trainers and other owners.
Melnyk credited many people for helping him in racing through an ad he took out in the program but he talked about three people in particular:
“Its about 3 people and a horse, the first person was my uncle Leo, who was a track rat. He’d find ways of getting out of the house on weekends
He would say ‘I am taking little Eugene to ‘High Park’ and we’d bolt to Woodbine. I’d be a little kid kid walking around, sweaty pushing people around. I cried and he took me home.
Years later he took me again and soon we went 10 times a year. By age 14 I started calling Woodbine ‘High Park’.
At that age, Melnyk placed his first bet on a horse called Royal Chocollate.
As a teenager I grew up at the track, I was there every weekend, eventually I built my offices next to Woodbine.
The next 2 people are the most important people in my horse life Bill and Iris Bristow
Bill was my stockbroker..he said ‘I got a great business you can get into’ – I’m now in the hall of fame.
But the thrill was that first group of horses – one of them, was Archers Bay. By dumb luck Iris recommends this horse to buy at the sale and one that one weekend, you can’t believe the thrill, after being one of these track people, to going to standing (in the Queen’s Plate winner’s circle)
We all know what it is, it’s the love of the horse and I’m just thrilled to be part of it”
Thoroughbred Iductees –
Toronto-born Eugene Melnyk’s, biography includes businessman, sports team owner and racehorse breeder/owner. He is the receipient of 12 Sovereign Awards including Outstanding Owner in 2007 and both Outstanding Owner and Breeder in 2009. A resident of Barbados since 1991, at the height of his career in racing and breeding, he owned more than 200 horses, mostly based in N. America. His racehorses were named after Barbados landmarks and carry that country’s national colours of blue and gold. In 1998, his colt Archer’s Bay won the Queen’s Plate and in 2007 his homebred Sealy Hill became the first filly to win the Canadian Triple Tiara which includes the Woodbine Oaks. Sealy Hill would also go on be named 2007 Canada’s Horse of the Year and was inducted into the Candian Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 2013.
Other top horses included Speightstown (Eclipse Award winner of 2004 Breeders’ Cup Sprint), Marchfield (2007 Breeders’ Stakes), Roxy Gap (multiple Sovereign Award winner in 2012), Leigh Court (Champion 3-yr-old filly in 2013), Flower Alley (2005 Travers and sire of Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner I’ll Have Another), Lukes Alley, (2016 Gulfstream Park Turf Hcp; Gr 1), Lodge Hill, Graeme Hall, and a host of other stakes winners.
Melynk’s horses won a total of 62 graded stakes and two Barbados Gold Cups.
Melnyk was also involved in many horse industry philantropic endeavours, most notably as founding donor of Anna House, located at Belmont Park, which opened in January 2003.
In February of 2013, he reduced his equine operation substantially and changed the business model from breeding to purchasing yearlings and racing those instead.
CURTIS STOCK – Originally from London, Ont., Curtis Stock’s affection for the horses, jockeys, trainers and horse people in general is reflected in his writing, He began to follow racing in Calgary during his high-school days and gained valuable experience covering racing there while attending university. That soon led to an opportunity in Toronto, working with honoured Canadian Horse Hall of Fame member Bruce Walker in the Ontario Jockey Club Publicity Department. Stock would later return to Alberta and take over publicity, marketing, and advertising at Northlands Park in Edmonton, later moving to the Edmonton Journal where he covered racing for 32 years and also plied his craft for the Daily Racing Form for 20 years. His reporting has resonated with the judges in Sovereign Award voting. His record run of Sovereigns started in 1985 and in 1993, he swept both Feature Story and Newspaper categories Stock was the recipient of back-to-back Sovereign Awards for Outstanding Feature Story in 1993-94 and took home an unprecedented eighth Sovereign Award for Outstanding Newspaper Story in Canada. Most recently Stock was the recipient of the 2015 Sovereign Award in the Outstanding Writing Category. His story, “Love of Horses”, appeared earlier that year in the Edmonton Journal. It was his 11th Sovereign Award overall; a record total. He has received this most-coveted award at least once in each of the past five decades, an achievement unmatched.
Harold Barroby a native of Ravenscrag, Saskatchewan followed his older brother Frank to Alberta, to become leading trainer in 1969 and 1970 before moving further west to British Columbia in 1974 where the great Love Your Host won 13 stakes under his tutelage and horses Pampas Host and Delta Colleen were both multiple stakes winners. B.C’s leading trainer a record 10 times and previously inducted into the B.C. Hall Thoroughbred Hall of Fame. Harold remains the all-time leader in terms of wins and stakes wins, inlcuding graded stake wins with Fortinbras in the 1986 British Columbia Derby (G3) and 1986 B.C. Premier’s Championship Handicap (G3). While he remains an active trainer, he’s operating with fewer horses these days. Harold now joins Frank as a member of the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame.
Quiet Resolve, the Sam-Son Farm homebred and Mark Frostad-trained son of Affirmed earned $2.3 million in a 31 start race career between 1998 and 2002 with a record of 10-6-4, which included multiple graded stakes wins. He was recipient of the 2000 Sovereign Award as Canada’s Horse of the Year and Champion Turf Horse, following a season highlighted by victories in the Atto Mile (G1), and the Hong Kong Jockey Club Trophy Stakes (G2). During that championship year, Quiet Resolve ventured south of the border and won the Dixie Stakes (G2) at Pimlico, was second in the Breeders’ Cup Turf (G1) at Churchill Downs and third in the Shadwell Keeneland Turf Mile Stakes (G2).
South Ocean‘s win in the 1970 Canadian Oaks and later her prowess as a broodmare in producing the sire of Storm Cat was a precious parlay. Bred by E.P.Taylor and sold through auction to his son Charles who also raced her, South Ocean’s genetic magic is still in production as this granddaughter of Bull Page wasthe dam of Storm Bird, whose son was the powerful Storm Cat. Trained by CHRHF member G. “Pete” McCann, South Ocean was a dual stakes winner, both as a 2-year-old and as Oaks Champion and top 3 year-old filly contender. That year she also placed in the five other stakes including the Bison City and Wonder Where. However, it was as a producer that she excelled. She was by New Providence out of a Chop Chop mare and her pedigree matched up perfectly with the Northern Dancer line. Hence, she was bred to that prolific sire eight times producing the great Northernette, herself an Oaks winner, Canadian Champion filly and 1987 CHRHF member. South Ocean’s impact on Canadian breeding over nearly five decades is immeasurable.
SHANNONDOE, SOUTH POINT SALES AND BERNARD MCCORMACK, HAYDEN SELL BIG AT SARATOGA
Following the huge sales by Canadians Bill Graham and Ivan Dalos on the first day of the Saratoga sale, the Everatt family from St. Thomas and Bernard McCormack and Christine and Jay Hayden sold some big priced offerings on Day 2.
The Haydens sold a Lemon Drop Kid filly for $350,000 through McCormack’s Cara Bloodstock and a Malibu Moon filly for $285,000.
Arika Everatt Meeuse, co-owner of South Point Sales, sold horses for her family’s Shannondoe Farm including a $350,000 Orb colt and a $300,000 Scat Daddy colt.
$850,000 sold to LAEL STABLE 98 C INTO MISCHIEF – VICTORIOUS AMI VICTORY GALLOP…..ONTARIO 1 WARRENDALE SALES AGENT FOR TALL OAKS
NOT SOLD $270,000 108 C VIOLENCE – WITCH’S COVEN CUVEE ONTARIO 7A-B TAYLOR MADE SALES AGENCY AGENT V
$600,000 JOHN OXLEY 111 F UNCLE MO – WITTY GAL DISTORTED HUMOR ONTARIO 9 EATON SALES AGENT FOR WILLIAM D. GRAHAM (WINDHAVEN FARMS)
$350,000 Stonestreet 139 F LEMON DROP KID BANGA RIDGE SNOW RIDGE ONTARIO 6 CARA BLOODSTOCK (BERNARD MCCORMACK) AGENT
$300,000 M. Magnier 156 C SCAT DADDY CHARMING THUNDER THUNDER GULCH ONTARIO 8 SOUTH POINT SALES AGENCY AGENT
$285,000 SGV Thoroughbreds 193 F MALIBU MOON GLOAT MR. GREELEY ONTARIO 6 CARA BLOODSTOCK (BERNARD MCCORMACK) AGENT
$275,000 Fox Hill 211 F SUPER SAVER INTENTIONAL CRY STREET CRY (IRE) ONTARIO 9 EATON SALES AGENT FOR WILLIAM D. GRAHAM (WINDHAVEN FARMS)
$350,000 Rigney Racing 224 C ORB LATTE PLEASANT TAP ONTARIO 8 SOUTH POINT SALES AGENCY AGENT
GAIL WOOD TO RECEIVE 2017 LANA HERSHELLE SNIDERMAN AWARD
LongRun’s Board of Directors is pleased to award the 2017 Lana Hershelle Sniderman Award to horsewoman Gail Wood.
This honour, formerly known as the Volterra Award, has previously been presented to Steve Stavro, Elfriede and Frank Stronach, Gustav and Anne Schickedanz, Eurico Rosa DaSilva, the Krembil family’s Chiefswood Stables, and Sam-Son Farms in recognition of their caring and ethical approach to their horses’ care, both during and after their days at the races, and their generous support of our thoroughbred retirement program.
LongRun and its 50 retirees currently being fostered are very grateful to Gail Wood for being instrumental in enabling LongRun to be able to purchase her former training facility in Hillsburgh. This 100 acre turnkey operation has enabled us to centralize most of our horses for the convenience of adopters, plus greatly expand the equine-assisted therapy programs we hold in partnership with Woodbine Entertainment and Sam-Son Farms.
We will be forever grateful to Gail for helping the horses who run for our pleasure enjoy a dignified and happy retirement from racing.
The Lana Hershelle Sniderman Award will be presented to Gail at the annual LongRun fall fundraiser, this year scheduled for Friday September 22, 2017 at Woodbine racetrack.
For more information please visit LongRun Thoroughbred Retirement Society | Help Us Help Our Horses or call 416-675-3993 ext. 3440
WOODBINE RIBFEST
The inaugural Woodbine Ribfest, presented by Budweiser, will feature mouthwatering BBQ from multiple North American award-winning rib teams on August 25-27 at Woodbine Racetrack along with access to a live viewing of the highly-anticipated Mayweather vs. McGregor fight.
Festival patrons will enjoy delicious ribs and BBQ, the Budweiser Big Rig, food trucks, live music, family fun including a children’s play area with bouncy castles, plus unique horse racing experiences all weekend long during Woodbine Ribfest. Admission is only $5 (cash only at the door) and free for children 12 years old and under. A portion of the proceeds from admission will go to Woodbine Cares charities.
Woodbine Ribfest attendees can watch the fight of the century live on pay-per-view in the Budweiser Paddock on Saturday night as undefeated boxing champion Floyd Mayweather Jr. comes out of retirement to take on UFC star Conor McGregor. Ribfest attendees will have access to the paddock viewing or tickets can be purchased for $15 after 9:30 p.m. for fight night.
“We are looking forward to hosting the inaugural Woodbine Ribfest and offering our guests this new entertainment experience,” said Daniel Caulfield, Head of Corporate Partnerships, Hospitality and Events Sales at Woodbine Entertainment. “We have some great ribbers set to join us for the weekend and would like to thank our sponsorship partners Budweiser and OLG Slots at Woodbine Racetrack.”
Produced in coordination with Ontario Festival Group, Woodbine Ribfest will showcase five top North American rib teams including Camp 31, Billy Bones, Hawgs Gone Wild, Sticky Fingers BBQ and Pistol Pete´s Oklahoma Smokehouse. These pit masters will be looking to add to their trophy collections in a taste-testing competition that will see awards presented during closing ceremonies on Sunday at 4:30 p.m. for categories including Best Ribs, Best Pulled Pork and Best Sauce.
A rib-eating competition will also be held on Saturday for both adults and kids.
