Page 114 - Speedhorse October 2018

AQHA RACING UPDATE
. . . I want you to know that every second of every day, it is our desire to better the Quarter Horse racing industry.
Janet VanBebber
After the August AQHA Racing Council meeting held in Ruidoso, I was paid a compliment that I hold dearly. A well-respected gentleman in the industry, who is himself deeply invested in our sport, sat as a guest in the gallery of the meeting and listened in. Afterwards, he said, “I wish the entire AQHA membership could have heard everything I heard today and know what you all are doing for racing!” He was referring to the entire AQHA Racing Department and the supporting entities within our organi- zation that collaborate to assist in all of our endeavors. That thought caused us to consider a monthly update in our sport’s periodicals to help keep you, our members, updated on our work for Quarter Horse racing. So here we go!
WHO MAKES UP THE RACING DEPARTMENT?
There are five of us in the AQHA Racing Department: I am the chief racing officer and I oversee the department as a whole and work hard to implement the Association’s poli- cies to better racing; Jessica Hanke, the racing department manager, manages all the details within the office; Malynda Reed, the racing challenge specialist, maintains all of the procedures required to conduct both the regional Challenge races and the Challenge Championships; Kelly Flowers,
the department secretary, primarily assists both Jessica
and myself in our endeavors, but often pitches in to help everyone; and our newest addition, Mary Ann Koontz, is the racing specialist who helps maintain data on medication rulings and other pertinent information that relate to the implementation of our policies. In addition to these ladies, we work closely with Andrea Caudill, who is the editor of AQHA’s own Quarter Racing Journal. We also combine our efforts with many people in other departments within the Association to move forward in our daily tasks. Personnel from accounting, marketing, IT, HR, international and other areas of the building are all our close allies.
WHAT DO WE DO?
Simply, we do a lot. Our responsibilities are varied, and sometimes we’re spread thin, but we give 100 percent in our efforts to help AQHA provide a value to its membership and to further the breed.
PRIMARY FUNCTIONS OF THE AQHA RACING DEPARTMENT:
• Record and maintain all official American Quarter
Horse races.
• Host the AQHA Racing Conference each year in
conjunction with the Bank of America Challenge
Championship races.
• Update and maintain racetrack information and
contacts.
• Assist racetracks with marketing and promotion of
American Quarter Horse racing.
• Manage the American Quarter Horse tattoo
program.
• Assist affiliate associations with their programs and
legislation on a state level.
• Manage awards for horses, owners, breeders,
jockeys and trainers, as established by the AQHA Racing Committee and Racing Council.
SPECIFIC TO THE AQHA RACING CHAL- LENGE, WE HAVE THE FOLLOWING DUTIES: • Manage and maintain enrollments of American
Quarter Horses eligible to participate in the Racing
Challenge program.
• Approve and schedule regional races for the 10
regions throughout the United States, Canada and
Mexico for each of the six race divisions.
• Schedule and conduct championship day races for
the horses earning a place in the race through the
regional races.
• Record and maintain entries to the regional races,
championship day and undercard races.
• Manage the awards for Challenge-enrolled horses,
including yearly Challenge champion owner, breeder, jockey and trainer, as well as other recogni- tions established by the Racing Committee and Racing Council.
• Manage and distribute monetary awards for the nominators of Challenge-enrolled horses that finish first through fifth in a regional or championship Challenge race.
SEPTEMBER 2018
AQHA Racing Update
by Janet VanBebber, AQHA Chief Racing Officer
112 SPEEDHORSE, October 2018