Saturday, May 27th will mark the start of the 2017 Alberta Sire Stakes program. Eliminations for the Alberta Princess for 3-year-old fillies will be followed a day later by the eliminations for the Alberta Plainsman for the 3-year-old colts and geldings. The top horses from the eliminations come back a week later in a couple of $50,000 finals. The Alberta Sire Stakes are the crown jewel of harness racing’s domestic development program in the province. They are the cornerstone of the Alberta breeding industry. They feature the top horses that are produced in the province. And those horses are the result of a three-year process that begins the moment of conception.
Most stables will have at least a couple of candidates for the Sire Stakes, usually bought out of the ASHA yearling sale. It’s like building any sports team. You start with some homegrown talent and then you add a potential star or two to try and create a championship stable. In these times of a high American dollar and a severe shortage of quality stock across North America, only an elite few can afford to try and build a winner any other way.
At the start of 2017, there were 278 mares owned by Albertans and registered in the province. Over the past five years, an average of 302 mares were bred each season and 172 foals were registered. That’s about a 57% average. It doesn’t seem very high for a process that can build costs fairly quickly, beginning with the stallion fee. The gestation time is eleven months. From the time the foal is on the ground to the moment when it gets to the starting gate is at least two years. In that time, the owner of the animal should be prepared to incur a few costs just to keep the animal healthy.
Few people associated with the industry want to talk about why the number of registered foals isn’t higher than 57%. It could be bad luck. It could be that the mare is turned out once she has conceived and isn’t kept under close scrutiny to ensure that she and the foal she is carrying are in good health. It could be that the baby is lost or that it is delivered with some type of ailment that precludes it from having a racing career. A bad leg or a bad foot is hard to turn into an asset on the racetrack. If that’s the case, an owner may choose not to register the animal, knowing that there is no point in incurring additional costs for a horse that is not going to be able to deliver a return.
Whatever the reason, an industry that wants and needs to feature home grown talent and wants to thrive as a business needs to look at 57% and say we can, and must, do better. The mare bonus program, which pays a dividend to owners of mares with horses that finish in the money in their 2, 3, and 4-year-old racing seasons, is one way to reward breeders, and get them to keep investing in the industry. That pool of money was about $400,000 in 2016. That’s half what it was some years ago when the Alberta industry was stronger than it is currently. The funds come out of ASHA’s share of pari-mutuel revenues, and so rebuilding those revenues is critically important to the future of the industry.
That’s the story in the breeding shed. As the foals are born and begin to develop, additional costs are incurred and additional time is spent in the handling and training of those horses that have racing potential. Along the way are such mileposts as the ASHA yearling sale which this year, will take place on Sunday, Sept. 10th at the Olds Regional Exhibition Megadome. There are 71 horses registered to be auctioned at that time. By this time, most of the animals will be used to being handled and will have started to learn some manners. That’s important because the level of training for the racetrack will pick up after the sale as they are prepared to begin their racing careers sometime during the 2-year-old season. Of course, any hiccups along the way will delay the start of racing, and potentially, add to the costs for the owners.
Those costs include subscription fees for programs like the Alberta Sire Stakes. The initial payments are paid by breeders. The owners take over the payments when they acquire an animal. This year’s 2-year-old class consists of 87 fillies and 81 colts and geldings for a total of 168 horses. Foals must be nominated in their yearling year and sustaining payments must be made in their 2 and 3-year-old year to remain eligible. The monies collected become part of the purse. The 2-year-old Alberta Sire Stakes calendar begins with the Alberta Starlet for fillies on August 19th and the Alberta Rising Star on August 20th.
Which brings us to the 3-year-old season which is about to get underway. The Alberta Princess and the Alberta Plainsman are the first series of Sires Stakes events for this age group. They’ll be followed by the Alberta Diamond and Alberta Marksmen in July and by the Alberta Marquis and the Alberta Maverick in mid-October. Those series will conclude with the Super Finals to be held this year at Northlands Park in Edmonton on Oct. 28th. There are 65 fillies and 51 colts and geldings who have been kept eligible for the 3-year-old Alberta Sire Stakes program. That’s 116 horses, compared with the actual number of foals born and registered 3 years ago which was 191.
And so, when the pacers line up behind the starting gate for the eliminations of the Alberta Princess on May 27th and the Alberta Plainsman on May 28th, marvel at their beauty and skill. Make a wager and cheer on your favourite. And take a moment to salute the breeders and owners who have invested time, money, and prayer in the development of the racing industry in Alberta. Only one horse per race gets its picture taken in the winner’s circle. But without the investment and the work of a lot of people, there would be no race at all.
Most stables will have at least a couple of candidates for the Sire Stakes, usually bought out of the ASHA yearling sale. It’s like building any sports team. You start with some homegrown talent and then you add a potential star or two to try and create a championship stable. In these times of a high American dollar and a severe shortage of quality stock across North America, only an elite few can afford to try and build a winner any other way.
At the start of 2017, there were 278 mares owned by Albertans and registered in the province. Over the past five years, an average of 302 mares were bred each season and 172 foals were registered. That’s about a 57% average. It doesn’t seem very high for a process that can build costs fairly quickly, beginning with the stallion fee. The gestation time is eleven months. From the time the foal is on the ground to the moment when it gets to the starting gate is at least two years. In that time, the owner of the animal should be prepared to incur a few costs just to keep the animal healthy.
Few people associated with the industry want to talk about why the number of registered foals isn’t higher than 57%. It could be bad luck. It could be that the mare is turned out once she has conceived and isn’t kept under close scrutiny to ensure that she and the foal she is carrying are in good health. It could be that the baby is lost or that it is delivered with some type of ailment that precludes it from having a racing career. A bad leg or a bad foot is hard to turn into an asset on the racetrack. If that’s the case, an owner may choose not to register the animal, knowing that there is no point in incurring additional costs for a horse that is not going to be able to deliver a return.
Whatever the reason, an industry that wants and needs to feature home grown talent and wants to thrive as a business needs to look at 57% and say we can, and must, do better. The mare bonus program, which pays a dividend to owners of mares with horses that finish in the money in their 2, 3, and 4-year-old racing seasons, is one way to reward breeders, and get them to keep investing in the industry. That pool of money was about $400,000 in 2016. That’s half what it was some years ago when the Alberta industry was stronger than it is currently. The funds come out of ASHA’s share of pari-mutuel revenues, and so rebuilding those revenues is critically important to the future of the industry.
That’s the story in the breeding shed. As the foals are born and begin to develop, additional costs are incurred and additional time is spent in the handling and training of those horses that have racing potential. Along the way are such mileposts as the ASHA yearling sale which this year, will take place on Sunday, Sept. 10th at the Olds Regional Exhibition Megadome. There are 71 horses registered to be auctioned at that time. By this time, most of the animals will be used to being handled and will have started to learn some manners. That’s important because the level of training for the racetrack will pick up after the sale as they are prepared to begin their racing careers sometime during the 2-year-old season. Of course, any hiccups along the way will delay the start of racing, and potentially, add to the costs for the owners.
Those costs include subscription fees for programs like the Alberta Sire Stakes. The initial payments are paid by breeders. The owners take over the payments when they acquire an animal. This year’s 2-year-old class consists of 87 fillies and 81 colts and geldings for a total of 168 horses. Foals must be nominated in their yearling year and sustaining payments must be made in their 2 and 3-year-old year to remain eligible. The monies collected become part of the purse. The 2-year-old Alberta Sire Stakes calendar begins with the Alberta Starlet for fillies on August 19th and the Alberta Rising Star on August 20th.
Which brings us to the 3-year-old season which is about to get underway. The Alberta Princess and the Alberta Plainsman are the first series of Sires Stakes events for this age group. They’ll be followed by the Alberta Diamond and Alberta Marksmen in July and by the Alberta Marquis and the Alberta Maverick in mid-October. Those series will conclude with the Super Finals to be held this year at Northlands Park in Edmonton on Oct. 28th. There are 65 fillies and 51 colts and geldings who have been kept eligible for the 3-year-old Alberta Sire Stakes program. That’s 116 horses, compared with the actual number of foals born and registered 3 years ago which was 191.
And so, when the pacers line up behind the starting gate for the eliminations of the Alberta Princess on May 27th and the Alberta Plainsman on May 28th, marvel at their beauty and skill. Make a wager and cheer on your favourite. And take a moment to salute the breeders and owners who have invested time, money, and prayer in the development of the racing industry in Alberta. Only one horse per race gets its picture taken in the winner’s circle. But without the investment and the work of a lot of people, there would be no race at all.
RSS Feed
