Page 8 - August 2022

AQHA RACING UPDATE
“ If your jurisdiction has a concern, a lobbying effort, or needs my testimony in front of a Racing Commission to support a Quarter Horse issue, I want to help you.”
YEARLING SALE SEASON
Hello friends. Once I turn the calendar to July, I know that yearling sale season is in full swing. I fondly recollect that when I
trained, the yearling sales were of critical importance to my operation. I looked forward to them with
great anticipation. I studied the catalogue for good pedigrees that I thought would also be a good value.
I worked the barns aggressively and appreciated the professionalism in which the consignors would lead their charges to me for inspection. I used a critical eye to identify good individuals. To use a comparison to other sports, you must keep your bench filled with fresh athletes. The challenge was to find the ones that would have the ability to take you to the winner’s circle. All this to say, I truly appreciate this season and how important it is to our industry. Yes, I do miss buying yearlings; there is so much potential at your fingertips! But I am comfortable that I am serving the bigger picture in my current role, and in that capacity am focused on the potential that being your Chief Racing Officer affords me to further the industry.
As we approach the first sale, we realize that the last couple of years saw fabulous trends regarding the number of horses sold, the average price, and the record high sellers. The sales results have been nothing short of phenomenal. While we are hopeful the trend continues, concern over our economy and the rate of inflation gives us a little angst. But we should have confidence in our growing purses and expect the demand for yearlings to remain high as we embark on this year’s series of horse sales.
If you are traveling to either the TQHA Yearling Sale, the Ruidoso Select Yearling Sale, the Heritage Place September, or November Sale, look for AQHA On-Site Services at the event ready to process your paperwork or answer your questions. I will also
be on hand. We are there with the sole purpose of serving our members, so please come see us!
Wrapping up the month of June marks another occasion: I just celebrated my sixth year as your association’s Chief Racing Officer. I mentioned
last year that I embarked in the role with little knowledge of what it might entail but knew that I
could use my personal experience in racing to the betterment of the industry. In taking on the role, I would be working not just for VanBebber Racing Stables, but instead for the good of each of you. That is still my primary aspiration today.
Looking back to that first day on the job,
the objectives that were assigned to me in 2016 were straight forward: support mechanisms that enhance the integrity of the sport, lobby for uniformity in regulation, encourage the use of hair testing to guard against prolonged use of certain performance enhancing drugs, and strengthen programs that support the industry. While the journey has not been easy, we have made strides
in many of these areas. Six years ago, few states used hair testing to deter those seeking an unfair advantage. Today, most do – including all our 48 AQHA Regional Challenge Stakes that are hosted throughout the country and internationally.
But it’s grown from that. As an example, I spent Mother’s Day this year in Mexico City, helping our friends at Hipodromo de las Americas deploy hair testing as a Condition of Entry for their futurity. Other than the AQHA Regional Challenge
races, this was their first time to use the testing mechanism for their own races. We collected samples on over 200 head. Another example: Remington Park just finished their third year of Condition of Entry hair testing of all horses at their meet. AQHA appreciates such support of this initiative, and it is my honor to be on hand and help them with implementation when asked.
Speaking of the Challenge, the Bank of America Racing Challenge is a good example of programs that support the industry. Six years ago, the program suffered from overpayment of purses and we had
to reconcile the finances. Today, we have recovered from that problem and built the program back up. We have enjoyed 4 years of being fully funded and have already secured the same for 2023 when we return to Lone Star Park for the event.
Other good news: a delegation from AQHA just returned from very productive meetings in
Sao Paulo, Brazil, and Buenos Aires, Argentina. Our hopes were to learn about their needs, foster growth in the number of AQHA registered horses, and facilitate the opportunity for more recognized racing in South America. The discussions that ensued were overwhelmingly productive, and I have since sent applications for AQHA approval to tracks in both Argentina and Paraguay. We want to bring more value to our pedigrees and having recognized race results reflected in our pedigrees from these countries will help in that goal.
There are also new opportunities domestically. Just this week, I also sent an application to
the connections of Revolutionary Racing in Kentucky, so they could seek approval of their proposed racetrack.
While these are merely a few examples of good news, I am very proud of each one. It takes a village to achieve such things, and I so enjoy the collaborative effort in the pursuit.
Naturally, I prefer to focus on the good things accomplished, but I would be remiss if I did not recognize that our work is still cut out for us. Among those concerns: We remain diligent in our efforts
to deter the presence of performance enhancing drugs. Additionally, we are still worried about Federal oversight by the Horse Racing Integrity and Safety Authority and, consequently, are actively involved in a legal complaint against the Federal Government. Next, racing opportunity. We see some states offering fewer racing opportunities and want to support our affiliates in their efforts to maintain the quantity of race days. Whether it’s among these issues listed or others, know that I am indeed willing to avail myself to aid in your cause to foster Quarter Horse racing. If your jurisdiction has a concern, a lobbying effort, or needs my testimony in front of a Racing Commission to support a Quarter Horse issue, I want to help you. I am only a phone call away.
In short, your American Quarter Horse Association, its Racing Department, and Janet VanBebber are all here to serve you. We thank you for the opportunity.
6 SPEEDHORSE August 2022
August 2022
by Janet VanBebber, AQHA Chief Racing Officer