Page 16 - March 2008 The Game
P. 16

16 The Game, March 2008
EvenSteven Cont. from Pg. 15
Andy told me how a  reman  nally grabbed
Canada’s Thoroughbred Racing Newspaper
The Hail to Reason Stud Line: So much promise but ...
him and wouldn’t let him or anybody else go back in and how he was standing right beside his boss when he suffered a heart attack and died on the spot. Andy told me all about the  re of ’69 and although thirty years have passed since then as I listened I almost felt like I’d been there my- self. That night I went to sleep with the image of runaway horses galloping through the streets of Vancouver,  eeing in terror from the smoke and the  ames. The next morning I awoke with a revelation.
By Gary Poole
seven furlongs World’s Playground Stakes at Atlantic City in 1:22 3/5. When injury forced his premature retirement, Charles Hatton, the twentieth century’s dean of turf writers, proclaimed “racing’s loss is blood- stock’s gain.” In this he was prophetic.
The documents and photographs in the Thoroughbred Archives of BC will be around for a long time to come. But the living history of British Columbia thoroughbred racing resides in the stories of the people who’ve devoted their lives to the sport. Over the coming year I hope to begin documenting the stories of some of these characters before they’re lost to us forever. I invite anyone with a good story to spin about horse racing in BC to come on up and make yourself known in the coming months. A picture may be worth a thousand words, but I’ll take the thousand words any day, especially when they come wrapped in a golden oldie about life on the backstretch.
on this continent. There is the Northern Dancer tribe led by Storm Cat, Danzig, Deputy Minister etc. They are closely followed by the Mr. Prospector band of Distorted Humor, Kingmambo, Gone West and his descendants and the sons and grandsons of Unbridled. The third dominant tail-male family is that of Seattle Slew, represented by A.P.Indy, Pulpit, and Vindication with Bernardini to come in the future.
At stud Hail To Reason sired some outstanding individuals including ace handicap mare Straight Deal, Preakness champion Personality and important sire Stop The Music. However it was thru two other successful racehorses, both foals of 1969, both with quality on the distaff side of their pedigrees, that Hail To Reason had the potential to found a siring dynasty. These sons were Halo, a multiple stakes winner whose victories included the United Nations Handicap
If you browse through book one of the Keeneland Fall Sales catalogue where the cream of North America’s yearling crop are offered each September, you can quickly see that there are three dominant sire lines
There really should be a fourth line but for the combination of bad luck and the strength of Japanese industry and that country’s yen. I’m referring here to the sire family of Hail To Reason, the champion two year old of 1960. That he should found a stallion line would come as no surprise to anyone who studies his accomplishments in the only season that he raced.
He did the “unimaginable” for a juvenile, breaking Saratoga’s all-time track record in winning the six
and one half furlongs Hopeful Stakes in an incredible 1:16. In doing so he bested the times in that event of Whirlaway, Native Dancer and Nashua. He followed that with a win in the now defunct but then prestigious
and Roberto, the 1972 Epsom Derby winner who conquered the previously unbeatable Brigadier Gerard in the Benson And Hedges Gold Cup.
Halo’s most important son by far is Sunday Silence. He was exported to Japan as part of a signi cant movement of top North American bloodstock to that country. A thriving economy and some very wealthy horsemen enabled a major upgrade in that nation’s breeding stock. Sunday Silence went on to become the most important sire in the Asian country’s history.
HBPA Ontario Update
Continued Page 24 - See Hail to Reason
HBPA Administrative Of ces: 135 Queen’s Plate Drive, Suite 370, Toronto, Ontario M9W 6V1 Phone: 416-747-5252
Report from the Executive Director - Nick Coukos
This past winter, which is generally considered the “off-season” or “down time” in the thoroughbred industry in Ontario, has been one of our busiest periods in recent memory. Several important
through the HIP program. The bonus amount will be a percent of the purse which will be phased in over the next couple of years with the 2008 bonus being 10% and climbing up to 20% during the phase in period. All registered Ontario bred horses are eligible for the bonus as long as the horse has not been claimed. Previously claimed horses (2007 and prior) will be eligible for the bonus.
changes have occurred which will have a signi cant effect on the busi-
ness as we have known over the last decade. To start off with, the On-
tario Racing Commission (ORC) has introduced changes to the thor-
oughbred Horse Improvement Program (HIP) effective with the 2008
racing season. The introduction of the new program was a result of an
eighteen month extensive review driven by the ORC (with sig-
ni cant industry participation through advisory and working groups)
which sought out to ensure that the available funds through the HIP program were used to improve the competitiveness and sustainability of the thoroughbred racing industry in the Province. To understand the recommendations accepted
by the ORC, one must understand the source of revenue generated through the HIP program. In 2007, the thoroughbred HIP program generated a total of $20 million in revenues which came from wagering and slot levies. Approximately 75% of the total revenue is generated through the wagering levy and the rest is retrieved through the horsemen’s slot share. On the program (expense) side of HIP, the $20 million program in 2007 provided approximately $11 million (55%) to purse supplement, $5.5 million (28%) to stake supplements, $3 million (15%) for Breeders’ awards, and the remainder to minor bonuses including stallion awards.
The ORC is hopeful that this new HIP program will deliver the intended goal of sustaining and encouraging investment within the breeding industry. We certainly will keep a close watch on its
The major change in the thoroughbred HIP program which commences in 2008 is the redistribution of the contribution to the overnight purse supplement. With the speci c aim of generally promoting and enhancing the Ontario bred horse, the new HIP program will now reward all registered Ontario bred horses in open races who earn a purse at an Ontario thoroughbred racetrack with a bonus paid
Finally, in case you missed it, the HBPA and Woodbine Entertainment Group have extended their current contract for an additional three (3) years under
the same terms and conditions we have enjoyed since 2002. I cannot overstate the importance this extension provides to the horsemen of Ontario. Clearly, it enforces the strong will of the HBPA Board and Woodbine Entertainment to continue working towards a common goal; namely, the enhancement and better- ment of thoroughbred racing in every respect.
HBPA Trainer Testing Schedule 2008
HBPA Woodbine Backstretch Office Hours
The HBPA Backstretch of ce at Woodbine is now open Monday to Friday from 7am to 3pm. The of ce will be open seven days a week at the start of the 2008 racing season in April.
The HBPA Administrative Of ce will remain open during regular business hours throughout the winter months.
performance.
The ORC has also implemented signi cant rule changes recently designed to
“protect the health of the horse, ensure the safety of the participant, and reinforce the integrity of the horse racing industry. The measures range from new rules regarding medication and treatment regulations for the protection of the horse, safety equipment for participants, and owner and trainer responsibility.”
These measures are extremely important to all HBPA members and adherence is not optional. For a copy of the changes and rule amendments, please visit the ORC or HBPA website. Print copies are available at the HBPA of ces for your convenience.
See you on opening day at Woodbine, April 5, 2008.
Applications for Trainer and Assistant Trainer testing are due two weeks prior to the test date. Only complete applications will be accepted. Applications are now available at the Woodbine HBPA Backstretch Of ce.
May 28, 2008 - Both Woodbine and Fort Erie Racetracks
July 9, 2008 - Both Woodbine and Fort Erie Racetracks
HBPA Trainer and Assistant Trainer Testing Schedule 2008:
March 26, 2008 - Woodbine Racetrack April 23, 2008 - Fort Erie Racetrack
September 24, 2008 - Both Woodbine and Fort Erie Racetracks
For more information contact the HBPA Back- stretch Of ce 416-675-3802.
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