TOMORROW – BIG RACES FOR CASSE in New York/Kentucky, STEALCASE in the Gotham takes on HANSEN and DYNAMICAL in tiny field in Battaglia in Kentucky…
TODAY..off to Woodbine! oh and HAPPY 50TH JON BON JOVI!!
The industry is banding together and crossing their fingers that, come the budget announcement in a couple of weeks, horse racing will be left alone. It is a scary time for everyone.
Incredibly, despite the litany of letters and comments this corner has received, there are still people out there who make money in this business who are oblivious to what has been written and what is going on. The TORONTO STAR has had no less than half a dozen stories in about the racing and breeding industry’s place according to the Drummond report and this site has covered our battle from Day One.
If you are in the industry and want it to thrive, you best get on board and be aware. This should be front and centre in racing news in Ontario right now – let’s keep at the government and make sure a successful win-win for everyone program stays intact.
Read the entire Star story from YESTERDAY, focusing on the breeders at the bottom of this post.
JUNGLE WAVE – 2005-2012
Norm Files photo
DEATHS OF SAND COVE, JUNGLE WAVE
Thanks to the newsbreakers – the Thoroughblog fans and commenters – who go tthe news out that champion SAND COVE has reportedly died.
The son of Bold Executive had just entered stud at Shannondoe Farm in St. Thomas, Ontario and was getting much action for his $5,000 fee. Owned by Ralph Johnson and trained by Roger Attfield, Sand Cove was bred in Ontario by the Everatts and their daughter, Arika Everatt-Meeuse, won at 2 and was a stakes winner in each of the next four years while racing for owner Ralph L. Johnson. Trained by Roger Attfield, the son of Bold Executive was voted Canada’s champion older male of 2010 after winning four stakes, including the Seagram Cup Stakes (Can-III) and the first of two runnings of the Steady Growth Stakes. In 2008, Sand Cove set a track record of 1:49.38 in the 1 1/8-mile Ontario Derby at Woodbine.
Campaigned exclusively at Woodbine, Sand Cove won 12 races and placed in a dozen more from a total of 36 starts while earning $1,029,631. During his career he captured nine stakes and placed in nine others.
Sand Cove was produced from the winning, multiple stakes producing Mythical Ruler mare Mythical Status, whose dam is a half sister to two stakes winners including grade II winner Hidden Trick.
More details to come
JUNGLE WAVE, winner of the Grade 2 Play the King Stakes 2 years ago for Tucci Stables, died from colic in Florida recetly. The 7yo won 9 of 31 races and $689,291 and was one of the bravest and tough geldings on the circuit. Nick Gonzalez had been training the horse in Florida and the horse had made one start in January when a troubled 10th. The Kentucky bred was a son of Hold That Tiger.
Sand Cove 2005-2012
Norm Files photo
KADRYOV/BROWN HIT WITH CANNON
horse was last in International, same interests as Maritimer
chart courtesy Thoroughbred Daily News
19.05, Meydan, $150,000, Hcp., NH4yo/up/SH3yo/up,
2000m (AWT), 2:04.24, stn.
BRONZE CANNON (h, 6, Lemon Drop Kid–Victoria Cross {Ire} {SP-Fr}, by Mark of Esteem {Ire}), who bagged the 2009 G2 Jockey Club S. and G2 Hardwicke
S., started out for new connections with a last-of-16 effort in the Oct. 16 GI Canadian International at Woodbine. He fared no better when last of 10 in a course-and-distance handicap on seasonal bow Jan. 20, but showed a glimpse of his old self when fourth going 11 panels here last time Feb. 9. Restrained in midfield
until stoked up on the home turn in this one, he was driven to the front approaching the final eighth and surged clear to defeat Sarrsar (GB) (Shamardal) by 2 1/4 lengths. Sales history: 85,000gns RNA yrl >06 TATOCT; 45,000gns RNA 2yo >07 TATA
Lifetime Record: MGSW-Eng, 25-8-1-4, $488,545.
O-Ramzan Kadyrov; B-Hascombe & Valiant Studs;
T-Herman Brown.
BREEDERS IN ONTARIO RE-THINKING…?
from TORONTO STAR MARCH 1, 2012
The breeding season in Ontario is well underway but business is already being negatively affected by the uncertainty caused by the Liberal government’s apparent plan to review the successful racetrack slots program, says David Willmot, owner of famed Kinghaven Farms in King City, Ont.
“There are already decisions being made, right now, to withdraw investments from the industry,” said Willmot, who is also chairman of Woodbine Entertainment Group (WEG). “No matter what happens now, owners and breeders locally and in the U.S. are cancelling stallion and mare contracts and rethinking investing in Ontario’s breeding industry.”
Horse racing and breeding has been left in the dark in the weeks following the Drummond Report’s inclusion of a review of the racetrack slots program among its recommendations for cutting the province’s deficit.
Instead, comments and ad campaigns by Premier Dalton McGuinty’s government, deemed “reckless” by Willmot, have the rocked the industry.
Recent radio ads claiming that the program in place is a “secret subsidy for a few, very wealthy racetrack owners” severely misrepresent the program and are unfounded attacks on a business plan that has been a boon for the province, said Willmot.
“All we have seen is a confounding, vociferous attack with no details on what the government plans to do,” said Willmot. “If they have specifics (on plans for a review of the slot program) they better tell us soon because there is already a loss of economy coming.”
Willmot was instrumental in working with the Conservative government of former premier Mike Harris in 1996 to put slot machines in WEG’s two racetracks, Woodbine and Mohawk. Today there are slot machines in all 17 of Ontario’s tracks.
“This program was always about government revenue,” said Willmot. “It is a bilateral, commercial contract agreement that has made the province some $15 billion since its inception.”
The revenue-sharing program allocates 10 per cent of slot revenue to the racetrack, 5 per cent to its horsepeople and another 5 per cent to the community where the slots are located.
“We based the deal on the notion that horse racing would get the same commission on a dollar bet on a slot machine as it would on horse racing and that the revenue impact on breeding and racing would be neutral,” said Willmot. “If the size of the revenue pie got bigger, that would be great and that is what happened.”
read the rest here:
http://www.thestar.com/sports/horseracing/article/1138889–plan-to-review-racetrack-slots-program-called-threat-to-horse-breeding-industry
