The ABC Weekend Question – Will Malabrigo Go Undefeated?
Horsetalk
By
Hal Hennessey
Speculation mounts; Will Malabrigo be Horse of the Year? Kyle Burton Photos
To begin, here’s a quick look at the Atlantic Breeders Crown Weekend schedule.
Friday’s the yearling sale in Crapaud – more on that follows below. Saturday Post Time
is 1 PM at the ‘Charlottetown Driving Park’ and the card will feature the ABC
consolation races. Sunday’s the big day, with the best colts in the Maritimes facing off
against each other in the various Crowns. Feature races on the card include, The Metro
Building Supplies Thanksgiving Invitational and the Meridian Farms sponsored Island
Pacing Championship Final. Still, I have no doubt the race drawing the most interest will
be the 3YO fillies starring Malabrigo. Owned by the Buntainwood Farms of Brackley,
trained and driven by Marc Campbell, she’s simply been overpowering in her division
since stepping on the track as a two year old. Last year in 11 starts she went 7 –3 - 1, took
a mark of 1:56.4 and has earned over $51,808. This year she’s undefeated in 14 starts,
equalled her 2 YO record and has banked over $62,000. As I said, all eyes will be on her
race Sunday. Should mention as well the Breeders Crown reception and banquet at the
Dutch Inn Saturday night.. And if you’re up early enough, you can take in the Pancake
brekky at Turfs Bar & Grill Sunday AM, to be followed by a Fan Seminar in the
Simulcast Room. Big week-end and all the racing can be found online at;
http://redshores.ca/livevideostream.php .
-----------------------------------.
As you know the Atlantic Classic Sale is this Friday at the Crapaud Exhibition Grounds.
Start time is 2 PM. No need to give you my synopsis, as Freddy the Fiddler already did
the job recently, with his great roundup of the cross section of colts on offer. I did have an
interesting exchange over the last few days with a horseman close to the sale though.
Despite the fact there are 15 ‘outs’, the good news is that there’s still 96 of the best in
Maritime breeding going under the auctioneers’ hammer. 5 of those out had vets
certificates and 10 others were sold in advance. Now that’s something of a plus in my
estimation. It’s unfortunate that buyers won’t get to see all the yearlings that were on
offer, but it speaks well for the quality being offered. I’m also told that 7 of them went to
a single buyer or partnership group and this again says a lot about people being willing to
invest good money in the Maritime industry. Very positive indeed! I think it’s fair to say
though that the sales committee, or at least some on it, are aware that changes may have
to be made. It does take something away from the proceedings when not all colts are
available to the buyers. It also indicates lack of a full commitment to the sale by some
breeders and failure to think long-term. There’s always the danger that more and more
buyers, scared they’ll miss out on a colt, will start purchasing pre-sale and then it will fall
apart. Still, I’m looking forward to this being a success. There’s some great looking, wellbred colts on offer, check them out here;
http://peiharnessracing.com/atlantic_classic.html.
It’s a very uncertain time in racing, but as you will see in the following piece, things
could be on the move in the Maritimes. Hopefully the sale results will reflect that.
---------------------------------Word came last week that an understanding had been reached between the Woodstock
First Nation and Harness Racing New Brunswick about a new racing initiative.
Indications were that this was a positive step towards some kind of partnership and many
think it may be the saving of the Harness Racing industry in that province. It couldn’t
come too soon. Sources in NB, (who wish to remain anonymous!), have told us that
recently spokesmen for HRNB have indicated to their members, that the organization has
lost in the neighborhood of $5 Million dollars over the past 3 years. Obviously this
couldn’t go on. The government had already indicated their support was coming to an end
and that racing would have to depend on the bet and the VLT machines they had been
allotted. Not a very good option, in that those machines have not all been deployed and
the bet has gone to hell in a hand-basket. So the proposed partnership looks like a life
saver. Interestingly enough, some folks that I’m talking to say this is not a racino project.
They say it’s a bingo hall – VLTs – track proposal and speculation is they’ll locate the
new operation in Quispamsis or Hampton NB. This is all guesswork and I’ll be the first to
admit it. More importantly, whatever the plan, it’s great news for NB racing and by
extension the whole of the Maritime industry. That’s good enough for me.
------------------------------------It seems my little survey on Meridian Farms sponsorship of the Island Pacing
Championships garnered some attention. You’ll recall there was some criticism about
them entering their own horses and protecting their own interests, yadayadayada. They
had 3 starters in fact, but none made the Final. As it was, the two eliminations only had
17 entries. Without Meridian it would have been 14. Most fans who wrote me said they
didn’t care how many Meridian entered, long as it was good racing. One email summing
up said, “The Andrews Boys are doing a great job, and are contributing above and
beyond the call of duty to promote the standardbred industry in the Maritimes, to the
bleeding hearts and whiners ye need to tune in Murray Mclaughlins' Farmers Song ye
should pay real attention to the line (These days when everyones' taking so much
somebodys giving back in) Cause not all that many are stepping up like them, except for
their paychecks.” – end of quote.
Pretty neat eh?
--------------------------------Not too many CDP winners of interest for you local folks from last week. None on
Thursday at all. Saturday’s card there were only two. Mike Slana had a win with his 2
YO Bonanza Banzai in 2:01.3. Kathy Furness’s Jdf was also a winner in 2:01.1. Sunday
in Summerside Sean MacSwain’s Huey’s Boy got home in 2:01.1. The Meridian Island
Pacing Championship Final should be a dandy. Two newcomers won the elims on
Saturday, Frank Dettore’s Eagle Luck and the Poulton’s IDK. Set’s up for a great race
this Sunday.
Post Time is 1 PM.
---------------------------------Horses For Courses
Carl and Marg MacKenzie stakes for three-year-old colt raced last Sunday at Truro.
Island colts Mr. Thompson (1:56.4) & Dukes up (1:57.2) were winners. In the filly
division Malabrigo (1:59.1) was the only winner from PEI.
This past week at Georgian Downs Bob Gordon’s Elm Grove Commander won in
1:56.2, Doc Moore and partners Spinarama in 1:52.2 And the Revingtons’ (Brett & Gary)
Addys Way in 1:53.3. At Flamboro Don MacRae’s Terem Up Louie stopped the clock in
1:56.4., while in Sudbury Tyler Moore won the Remember Sudbury Stake elimination
with GC&S winner Eighteen. That mile was in 1:55 flat.
-----------------------Tip O’ The Whip;
Wally Hennessey – Keys to the City eh? That’s pretty cool.
----------------Questions/Comments? hal.al@sympatico.ca
The Post Script
First a few notes about the Crapaud Classic Sale on Friday. Let’s bear in mind that a
knowledgeable breeder tells me it costs about $4,000 to raise a colt in the Maritimes. And
that doesn’t even include all the staking fees. And also let’s remember you can’t really
trust the result numbers being thrown at you. For instance when the sale committee tells
us the average was about $3900 last year, we have no way of knowing if some bidders
were shadow buyers purchasing the colt for the breeder. After all that’s a standard
practice at some sales, as is the proxy bidder who drives up the price for the owner.
Lately though I’ve noticed that doesn’t work as well as it used to. So let’s assume last
year’s average was $3900 and that’s the benchmark for this year. Looking at some recent
sales and what’s been happening – the recent Standardbred Canada yearling sale was a
complete failure by anyone’s measurement. The average there dropped by about 50%
from the previous year. This year it came in at approximately $8,000, last year it was $16
K and a bit. In the 2011 Alberta Sale the average price per yearling was $5,804, this year
$4756. And in the first sale of the year in the U.S. which was held at Morrisville College
in New York, the average dropped from $9,458 in 2011 to $8,879. So what am I saying?
Basically, you shouldn’t let anyone pump sunshine up your arse about sale results and
you should cast a jaundice eye at all the numbers. Given what’s happening in Ontario
particularly, this is a tough year. On the other side of the coin, as I said above, good news
out of NB, may be the saving factor for breeders in the short term and the regional
industry as a whole long-term. We shall see.
------------------------------------Speaking of NB – no doubt you’ve notice I’ve picked up another anonymous fan in the
person of a relatively new HD poster named Trillium. LOL. I’m told he’s close to
Harness Racing New Brunswick’s management and very upset that I’ve made a point of
the fact that the organization has managed to lose $5 million dollars of tax payers money
over the past 3 years. Mind you a loss was expected in the early going. I for one was a big
supporter of HRNB, when it first came on the scene and was given funding and VLTs to
help it get NB racing back on track, pardon the pun. Under the original group in charge, I
thought they had an excellent chance to get the job done. Since then, there have been any
number of changes and a revolving door at the organization. The results are as you see.
Now come a new chance with the MOU between HRNB and the Woodstock First
Nation Economic Development Corporation. Lately I’ve heard that the new facility might
not be at the current EPR location and that negotiations were under way for a piece of
land at the Downey Farm, located between Quispamsis or Hampton. As I understand it,
the Woodstock First Nation will underwrite the capital costs of constructing a new
grandstand and entertainment centre, while administering the gaming aspect of the
facility. Horse Racing New Brunswick would presumably handle the harness racing side,
as they do now. But, as I said above in the column, even though everybody is tippy –
toeing around this, it is supposedly not a racino, but rather a bingo hall with machines and
a race track. All well and good. However, I’m very doubtful if First Nation money is
going into this, much before they have a long hard look at HRNB management personnel
and business practices. That’s where I’m told the rubber will meet the road.
-----------------------------I recently received the following note. The portions in red are where I’ve removed parts
to protect the anonymity of the senders.
Hi Hal
Just thought I'd drop you a line to thank you for your insightful articles concerning
harness racing. I fully support your efforts to try to eliminate the drugs from the racing
scene. I noticed one of the drugs recently used on these magnificent animals was
EFFEXOR. I was on Effexor for 5 years due to( personal medical issue), it is called the
happy drug as it is also an anti-depressant. It is one of the most horrific drugs to withdraw
from. This year I stopped taking it and thought I'd die. The symptoms of nausea, sweating
and dizziness did land me in the Emergency Hospital. If you type Effexor Withdrawal
under Google you will read terrifying articles about this dangerous drug. The poor horses.
My husband and I own (horse’s name ) and 3 other Standardbreds and we are so turned
off racing at (Track), we have packed it in ---We are so fed up with the mentality of some of the trainers and the poor management
practices of the folks in charge. Keep fighting for the horses. We love the sport but not
the cruel, criminals who ruin it for everyone.
Sincerely,
Names withheld to protect senders identity.
Personally I think this letter personifies what good ordinary folks are thinking. The kind
of people everybody claims they want to be part of Harness Racing. They are not rich,
they are not shady, not ‘operators’ and they certainly don’t cheat their fellow horsemen or
post all over the Internet trying to protect crooks. Their letter speaks volumes as to why
we are losing good people from this game. If you’re part of the slugs and thugs crowd, it
perhaps doesn’t matter to you. But it should matter to someone!
----------------------------------Finally it’s ABC week-end. Great colt racing and a couple of nice big races as well. I’m
looking forward to Meridian’s Island Pacing Championship Final. I’ve had lots of
discussions with folks about the controversy surrounding it and the online chat it’s
engendered. One of the most telling comments, that none of the PooBahs have been able
to respond to is this one, from a well-known bettor and handicapper:
“for those that think these PEI harness racing industry experts/advisors are doing such a
great job give your collective heads a shake. Improving the bet at the SRW and CDP
should be the number one priority and these people have no clue on how to do that. The
CDP has not reached $20000 the past 4 cards and Summerside is struggling to bet
between $12000 and $15000. Meanwhile Northside Downs has cards where their wager
is right between the 2 multi-million dollar properties. Northside Downs is doing a
tremendous job and should be commended. Charlottetown and surrounding areas should
be betting 3 times what Summerside bets based on population alone. Throw in the extra
promotions and top classes they get week after week perhaps 4 times the wager is what it
should be - but it's not. If you build it they will come - but how do you get them back a
second and third time? “
This is worth a much more in depth discussion and a public one, not just on the Post
Script. You can look forward to some columns dealing with this issue shortly.
Have a good week-end at the races.