Page 170 - June 2017

notice: hialeah update
AQHA Statement Regarding Hialeah Races
May 26, 2017--AQHA release--The race meet at Hialeah Park near Miami, scheduled to begin May 31, will not be recognized by the American Quarter Horse Association.
According to Hialeah Park’s website, the track is scheduled to run races twice a day Wednesday through Sunday beginning on May 31 and closing on June 25.
AQHA has sanctioned previous meets
at Hialeah, beginning in 2009 and running through 2016. These meets met AQHA’s guidelines, set forth in the AQHA Official Handbook of Rules and Regulations, to approve official American Quarter Horse races.
“AQHA’s mission statement holds the welfare of the American Quarter Horse at the top of our priorities,” said AQHA Chief Racing Officer Janet VanBebber. “Consequently, the racing rules and regulations of our Association, and that of our affiliates, exist to protect the safety of the animals and the integrity of the sport. We have no evidence that these rules and regulations will be followed or promoted by Hialeah Park or by the South Florida Quarter Horse Association, a newly formed group that is not affiliated with AQHA. As such, we are concerned for those who are participating in the races and for the wagering public.”
Given these concerns, AQHA will not recog- nize these races unless the guidelines are clearly satisfied. AQHA will continue to work with officials, including AQHA affiliate the Florida Quarter Horse Racing Association, to facilitate the return of official Quarter Horse racing in Florida.
Florida QHRA President Ron Smith Issues Open Letter
The letter regards the upcoming unrecognized Hialeah Park meet and the future of Quarter Horse racing in the state
May 28, 2017--Florida QHRA release- -Florida Quarter Horse Racing Association president Ron Smith has issued an open letter to the industry regarding the future of Quarter Horse racing in Florida.
Ron Smith, president of the Florida Quarter Horse Racing Association Inc., has issued the following letter (dated May 29, 2017) regarding the upcoming Hialeah Park meet, which is not recognized as official by the AQHA, and the future of Quarter Horse racing in the state:
“Since October 2005, FQHRA has used our mission statement as our guide in decision making. Our mission statement says “FQHRA was formed to represent the people who have an interest in racing the American Quarter Horse in Florida
in matters pertaining to business, property, and activities of the association. One of the primary goals of FQHRA is to ensure that the welfare of the American Quarter Horse is paramount and
that every American Quarter Horse at all times be treated humanely and with dignity, respect and compassion. FQHR A is committed to promoting American Quarter Horse racing in Florida along with providing beneficial services to its members and to serve as a positive link between the members of the FQHRA and the AQHA.” FQHRA is the state racing affiliate of the AQHA and we conduct our business with that very important fact always in mind. We are working with AQHA to make sure the Florida comeback is a solid one.
“FQHRA worked in the legislature from 2006 through the 2009 legislative sessions to bring AQHA racing to Hialeah from November 2009 through March 2016 with meets reaching 40 days of straight AQHA racing and more than $5.6 million in purses per meet. Many of the year end Champions started their rise to the top at Hialeah. FQHRA has overcome significant obstacles in
those 7 race meets and each time we persevered. We fought for and after 4 years of work along with the FHBPA and FTBOA, we got the ARCI rules passed legislatively in Florida. FQHRA eventually worked to get new stalls put in for the horses at Hialeah so that the horses would be safer and more comfort- able. I could go on and on about the amount of work it takes to have 40 days of racing for the members of FQHRA and AQHA. The majority of the work is the 325 days surrounding the 40 days of racing.
“In the 2010 legislative session, Hialeah was given a gaming permit in exchange for racing a full schedule of live racing of American Quarter horses. The intent was a partnership which would make money for Hialeah and also serve as an economic driver for the agricultural industry of the state of Florida. Each horse on a race track provides 7 jobs ranging from veterinarians, to farriers to CPA’s, to construction workers, to truck and trailer sales and manufacturing and lots of lawyers. Hialeah appears to have decided to attempt to renege on the partnership with
the horsemen and people of the state of Florida and to keep the majority of the benefits of its Quarter Horse based gaming permit to itself.
“The current license was actually given to Hialeah in March 2016 and was based on their purse agreement with FQHRA that was in place when they made their 2016/2017 racino/slots license application in January 2016. Hialeah was actively holding a FQHRA horsemen’s group meet at the time the license was submitted so FQHRA was obviously the group that represented the horse- men at the track. However, on the eve of the license renewal on March 15, 2016, Hialeah formed the South Florida Quarter Horse Association and that is the “group” that is representing the horsemen at the meet that begins this week. Until just recently, the SFQHA only had one member and that was a lobbyist/lawyer for Hialeah. The original President
and Vice President resigned last summer. “Florida rules state that at least 5 horses must
enter a race. Hialeah is reportedly entering 5 horses, scratching 3 and having a 2 horse match race for 110 yards. This is done 8 times to complete one performance or day of racing. The 8 races are then repeated to complete to 2 days of racing in one after- noon. 2 performances per day for 20 days equals
40 performances. We do not know if the horses get tested or what, if any, safety precautions are in place for the horse and rider. There will be win betting only for obvious reasons. Reportedly Hialeah has all the races filled until the end of the meet and no one else is allowed to enter or join SFQHA.
“All that being said, this is just one more obstacle FQHR A plans to overcome. Hopefully when we look back a few years from now we can say that Hialeah showcasing fake racing actually helped shine the light on the sham horse racing that is trying to take over legitimate horse racing, not only in Florida but it is in the works in other states. Florida is the testing ground. Our plan is to solidify legitimate AQHA racing in Florida for many years to come. Regretfully the 2017 season is dead. We do have plans to secure the 2018 racing season. In the meantime, anyone who entered the 2017 or 2018 Sunshine State Derby will receive a check by June 20 for the entire amount paid in. This includes those who had dropped out way back before any of this happened and were not currently nominated anyway. The entry form says that a 10% admin- istrative fee can be subtracted from any refunds. However, there will be no administrative fees subtracted. When we get 2018 and many years in the future secure, we will open up those races again and the plan is for them to be bigger and better.
“There are plenty of naysayers out there and that’s just the way they are. They like to see their name on social media and these are the type of peo- ple who actually hurt our industry. FQHRA appre- ciates all of you who truly understand the business of putting on a quality race meet. Thank you for your support and for your patience. FQHRA will be working just as hard for you in 2017 and 2018
as we were back in 2006 through 2009 when there had been no AQHA racing in Florida since 1992. We got it done then and we will get the job done now. It’s not an overnight process so please continue to bear with us. What is happening here will affect the whole country as pertaining to horse racing.
“In the meantime, appreciate and take the best care possible of these great horses we have been so blessed to breed, own and train and don’t take the opportunities that you currently have for granted. Also, let’s remember to honor our military service men and women today for allowing us to have the privilege of having horse racing as one of the things we think about most. Life is not so simple for much of the world.”
168 SPEEDHORSE, June 2017
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