Page 36 - NMHBA Spring 2020

environment within the industry. That’s a definite negative. I know too many people, right now, who are talking about getting out. All of these factors are like straws and everyone has
a straw ‘weight limit.’ No one knows when the straw that breaks someone’s back will hit.
“We need a re-structuring of our state’s supply and demand. There’s a larger supply of Quarter Horses, but the demand for them is kept low because of that 60/40 split. There is a low supply of Thoroughbreds, but the demand is kept high because of that same split. It needs to be reversed and we’d all benefit.”
There’s an especially interesting comment
in Saunders’ statement. She says the split
numbers should be reversed and Don Cook, long-time General Manager at Albuquerque,
agrees. “We have far more Quarter Horses than
we do Thoroughbreds,” he said, “but we have significantly fewer Quarter Horse races than we do Thoroughbred races. It needs to be reversed.” Yet, Albuquerque is happy with their 11-day cut; even though both breeds were cut and even though the Quarters needed adding to rather than subtracting from. Once again, it all goes back to that handshake.
There’s something else that goes along with that handshake. For years and years, we’ve been told one of the main reasons for having more TB races is because they draw a bigger simulcast handle. The truth is the contribution of simulcast revenue is quite small. The loss, if any, would be covered by the increase in wagering generated by full fields.
One other item to keep in mind: It costs much less in time, money and effort to maintain a slot machine than it does to maintain racehorses.
W.L. Mooring
Double LL Farms/Bosque, NM
There are 10 stallions at Double LL, seven Quarters and three Thoroughbreds.
There are few people in the industry, especially in the southwest, who’ve never had the pleasure of meeting Mooring. He’s been around for a lot of years and knows the correct definition of success. He also has a straight eye for a horse and has a knack for latching on to the right ones for his farm.
As a rule, Mooring is sincerely outspoken but there comes a time when......
“I’ve kinda thrown up my hands,” he said with a chuckle. “It’s like nobody listens. So, I decided to mind my own business and let other people mind theirs – at least for a while.
“Sure, the cut in dates will trickle down and hurt breeders; maybe not this year and maybe not even next year but, eventually, it’ll get to us.
“Most people don’t realize how important
it is to have a good racing secretary when it comes to filling races. There was a day when the secretaries knew every horse on the grounds and how many times they’d run since getting there. That’s no longer the case, even though technology such as computers makes it much easier to keep up with everything.
“Here we are, finally getting our New Mexico sales back to where they should be and we don’t think twice about jeopardizing them. That’s crazy.
“We’re not using our resources the way we should. We have so many more Quarter Horses than Thoroughbreds, but Sunland Park runs Quarters only on Fridays. None of that makes sense.”
Mary Capp, DVM
Mountain States Equine/Hobbs, NM
Capp runs a multi-faceted business. As a well- recognized veterinarian, she directs a large portion of her time and efforts to the medical duties connected with breeding mares to her Quarter Horse stallion, Fine Oak Corona. She also invests a huge number of hours providing embryo transfer services and, of course, there’s sale prep to take up any slack.
Capp is still feeling the excitement of her 2019 breeding season.
“It was great,” she said. “I came out of
it thinking I needed to build another barn because I had to turn away 10 mares last year because of lack of space. Then the race days were cut, and some people say they may be
cut even more for 2021. I decided it might be smart for me to hold off on another barn, since I have no idea how this may affect breeders.”
So, here is a clear illustration of the “trickle down” effect. If Capp opts out of her new barn, that affects folks who supply lumber and hardware as well as contractors and workers.
It may be a small chink but, nonetheless, it’s a chink in the state’s economic armor.
“Breeding trends are down nationwide,” continued Capp. “We don’t need anything to make them go lower.
“There have been short TB fields in New Mexico and other southwestern states for years. One of the elements affecting Thoroughbred breeding numbers is that so many Thoroughbred owners have their own stallions. That means they don’t take their business to outside stallions.
“To me, it’s logical to correct our field shortage problem by reversing our 60/40 numbers. They’re backwards. Right now, we’re fueling a lack of confidence in the industry and that’s dangerous.”
Mac Murray
MJ Farms/Veguita, NM
Mac Murray and Janis Spencer Murray, DVM, left Utah several years ago and threw all
of themselves into the New Mexico racing and breeding industry. They established the beginning of their legend while still in Utah. Now, in New Mexico, they’ve ascended to the status of iconic.
MJ Farms stands three Quarter Horse stallions and offers frozen semen for Jesse James Jr, also a Quarter Horse.
“Almost anything that happens in this business, sooner or later, affects the breeder,” said Mac. “With this one (date reduction), we’ll have fewer days, larger purses, but fewer opportunities. I haven’t really decided but I think we’ll be okay, provided they remain reasonable in all this.
“I honestly believe the easiest and most effective change that can be made is to equalize the races between the breeds. Why do we give more races to the breed with the lower numbers and then complain about short fields?
“Most of the money for our purses comes from the slots. Those machines don’t know if the money they’re fed is intended for Quarters or Thoroughbreds. It’s the humans who make that determination. We’ve also been told for years that tracks can’t sell a Quarter Horse signal out-of-state. Even if that’s true, it makes very little difference because the money we get from simulcasting is so slight.
“With all that said, Janis and I feel we have another excellent breeding season headed our way.”
34 New Mexico Horse Breeder