Page 19 - Speedhorse June 2019

AQHA RACING UPDATE
and thereby have a positive impact on racing’s future. Do we need to raise funds and have
a professional entity do “crisis management”
to assist us with public relations? Maybe so. I know that we need to do something, and we better do it right. My efforts as your Chief Racing Officer of the American Quarter Horse Association won’t be waiting until October, but I do believe the AQHA Racing Conference will provide an opportune venue to host a discus- sion, and a strategic plan. Right now, I think we need to focus our efforts at the grass roots level in the communities where we live, race, and train. Then, after establishing a strategic plan, we can support the grass roots effort with a bigger movement to reach someone who has never touched a horse, filled a water bucket, or even been to the races.
This is serious stuff, and I hope you un- derstand the potential implications. The ac- tivists are gaining ground, and we must take notice. I will work on the above referenced round table discussion. If you’re interested in this endeavor and have some thoughts
to contribute, let me hear from you. In the meantime, if you’re given an opportunity to highlight the strengths of our sport, remem- ber the following bullet points*:
• The health and safety of our human and equine athletes is our highest priority. We are striving to prove it every day through our actions.
• Horse racing in the United States and Canada is one of the most highly regulated sports in the world, with tens of millions of dollars spent annually to ensure the highest degree of safety and integrity.
• Despite the progress, the industry is com- mitted to doing even more to protect the safety of our human and equine athletes.
Specific industry health and welfare actions undertaken include:
• In April, the NTRA announced a $100,000 gift to the University of Ken- tucky to go toward the establishment of an Equine Surfaces and Safety Laboratory. The laboratory will allow UK to further scientifically examine racing surfaces
with the express purpose of enhancing racing safety. Within weeks, a number of other major racing organizations contributed more than $1.5 million toward safety research.
• We are engaged in a Quarter Horse-specific Equine Injury Database, established so
that the industry can benchmark itself and identify ways to reduce equine injuries going forward.
• A Racing Surfaces Testing Laboratory (RSTL) was established to create a Main- tenance Quality System that utilizes both daily measurements and enhanced tech- niques and technologies to manage racing surfaces with a goal of creating a consistent and safer racing surface.
• State regulators have adopted, or are in the process of adopting, uniform medication rules in jurisdictions representing some 90% of the pari-mutuel handle. There is considerable uniformity.
• Pre- and post-race drug testing have made huge strides in accuracy and proficiency and an accreditation system has been established for virtually all of our sport’s world-class drug testing laboratories.
• The creation of the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium (RMTC) at the turn of the 21st century has led to numerous advancements in safety and integrity, par- ticularly in the last decade. The RMTC has worked tirelessly to develop and promote uniform rules and testing standards at the national level; coordinate research and educational programs that seek to ensure the integrity of racing and the health and welfare of racehorses and participants; and to protect the interests of the racing public.
*offered by our friends at NTRA (National Thoroughbred Racing Association, who advo- cates for the betterment of racing for the benefit of all breeds)
I implore you to be ready at all times to be an ambassador for our industry and defend the level of care offered to our equine ath- letes. Be the change. While you are out in the trenches, know that I’ll be working on a con- certed effort to champion our cause. I’ll be in Washington, D.C. in June, and you can rest assured that this will be a prevailing theme of discussions during all of my engagements – after all, the claims that we are not appropri- ately guarding animal welfare are underlying arguments for the proposed federal oversight of racing. Look for a report regarding that important trip upon my return.
“I implore you to be ready at all times to be an ambassador for our industry and defend the level of care offered to our equine athletes.”
SPEEDHORSE, June 2019 17