Page 12 - November 2020

AQHA RACING UPDATE
You roll up your sleeves and do what it takes to get the job done. The show must go on... and it did.
AQHA CHALLENGE CHAMPIONSHIPS AMIDST COVID-19
Hi friends. When I thought about what to write in this report, I imagined hav-
ing run the AQHA Bank of America
Challenge Championships at the Downs at Albuquerque with a COVID-compliant capacity crowd on hand, after having completed an in- person, socially distanced Owner’s Recognition Brunch and a gathering of the AQHA Racing Council meeting.
The Governor of New Mexico has been among the more restrictive state leaders since the pandemic hit, and she stayed true to form in the days leading to our event. Ten days preceding the Champion- ship races, she mandated that all people travelling from out of state must quarantine for 14 days, or be in the state by Oct. 16, be tested, and thereby exempt from the 14-day measure (the option I chose). Such a measure impacted most of our own- ers who wished to be there. To protect the Downs at Albuquerque from potentially being scrutinized, even closed, by government authorities, I promptly emailed participants and advised them of the Governor’s increased restrictions. We cancelled both the Owners Recognition Brunch and the AQHA Racing Council meeting. I was extremely disap- pointed to do so. The owners are the backbone of the program, and I always look forward to express- ing our appreciation of their support during this gathering. And, after all other in-person meetings this year have been replaced by conference calls, I was looking forward to engaging with the AQHA Racing Council in a meeting room. Call me old school - but for me, looking people in the eye leads to more productive business. My primary concern
was to protect our gracious host, The Downs at Albuquerque, from facing any retribution, and we were successful in doing so.
Moving on to the main event: The AQHA Bank of American Challenge Championships. Since 1993, this program has distributed over $86 million in purses and nominator’s awards. Addi- tionally, 10 of the last 27 AQHA World Champi- ons won Challenge races during the campaign that earned them the prestigious award (I was lucky to train a couple of those!). So, given the importance of the races, we pushed forward and conducted a fantastic card of races. Each participant was hair tested as a condition of entry, and a few horses were denied the opportunity to compete. We had tested “also eligibles” who were happy to have a gate, and the races were offered with very full fields. I was proud of the card, and appreciate both Malynda Reed, AQHA Race Department Manager, and the staff at the Downs for the collaboration that led to such a fantastic offering of races.
I thought I could breathe a deep sigh of relief once the draw was over, but the impact of the pandemic endured right up until post time. On the day of the races, we learned that some of the racing officials had been exposed to individuals that had COVID, and it would be mandatory for them to self-isolate. Regulated races cannot run without officials, but as luck would have
it, I attended the Racing Official Accreditation Program’s long school and passed the steward’s accreditation test a few years ago. Consequently, I was able to step in and fulfill this role. I was happy to do it, believing you roll up your sleeves
and do what it takes to get the job done. The show must go on... and it did.
The races were fantastic, with some close finishes and dead-heats. I think a blanket finish in a stakes race is evidence of a field that is balanced in quality. Such representation of quality speaks volumes about the AQHA Regional Challenge races, and the integrity measures AQHA has implemented to keep a level playing field. We look forward to seeing similar quality fields when we return to the Downs at Albuquerque for the 2021 Challenge Championships!
That sums up my report on the Challenge Championships, and at this juncture I have nothing to report regarding the AQHA Racing Council meeting. We rescheduled the meeting for the Tuesday following the Championships, but mother nature infringed upon those plans. An ice storm in Oklahoma and resulting power outage impacted three of us planning on participating in the meeting, and we chose to defer to a later date. So, look for more about that later.
In other news, we are in the homestretch
of our efforts to keep federal legislation from negatively impacting our industry. If you have a strong relationship with your Senator, reach out to me. I would like to impose on you to assist in expressing our concerns.
We are also in the homestretch of 2020, and if you are like me, I am looking forward to getting the year behind us and geting a fresh start in 2021. Let us pray things turn around soon. In the meantime, I hope both you and your horses are staying well.
November 2020
by Janet VanBebber, AQHA Chief Racing Officer
The races were fantastic, with some close finishes and dead-heats. I think a blanket finish in a stakes race is evidence of a field that is balanced in quality. Such representation of quality speaks volumes about the AQHA Regional Challenge races, and the integrity measures AQHA has implemented to keep a level playing field.
10 SPEEDHORSE November 2020