APRIL 3,
25,2016
2017
MAY
SP EC I A L
.COM
State of Racing Across America
By Ray Paulick
One recent afternoon at Keeneland, I sat in the grandstand
watching as a full field of horses took to the track for the post
parade. Skies were blue, the lush, springtime grass an emerald
green, and the grounds overflowing with an enthusiastic crowd
of horse lovers and gamblers.
All seemed well in the world of Thoroughbred racing and breeding – at least for that one moment.
But we know there are challenges going forward, just as there
are opportunities to maintain and even improve upon the popularity and economics of our game. We often hear talk about the
overall health of the Thoroughbred industry in the United States,
but just as racing is regulated on a state-by-state basis, so can
the industry’s health be measured. No two states are alike.
passed a gambling bill that would add slot machines to parimutuel facilities in eight counties. The bill also would permit
decoupling, allowing pari-mutuel permit holders with slots the
right to discontinue live racing yet still keep their slot machines.
The Florida House of Representatives wants no expansion of
gambling and the two sides have yet to reach a compromise.
Ten years ago, the average purse per race in Louisiana was
$24,364, 12 percent higher than the national average of
$21,684. In 2016, the average was nearly identical, $24,533,
13 percent below the national average of $28,307. That is not
a good trend line. Louisiana purses are largely dependent on
revenue from slot machines and Louisiana is one of the most
gambling saturated states in the U.S. Racing has traditionally
had some key allies in the state legislature, and that’s a plus.
Continued on Page 5
Let’s take a snapshot of where we are, by region:
SOUTHEAST: There are many positive things about Florida, beginning with the mild weather that turns horses and owners into
snowbirds who migrate south each winter and allows Ocala-area
horsemen and women to develop tremendous stock for juvenile
sales and the racetrack each spring. The state’s two racetracks,
Gulfstream Park and Tampa Bay Downs, are owned by people
who love horse racing, and the power play by The Stronach
Group that led to Calder Race Course surrendering its live dates
to Gulfstream has strengthened year-round racing in the state.
In 2016, the average purse per race for the 3,252 races run in
the state of Florida was $29,105. That’s just over the national
average purse per race of $28,307 (all statistics from The
Jockey Club Fact Books). The 2016 Florida average is 27 percent higher than the average from 10 years earlier. The national
average purse grew by 31 percent over the last decade, so
Florida has not quite kept pace.
There are challenges on the horizon. The Florida Senate recently
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Page 2
Stallion Spotlight
Shanghai Bobby Off to Profitable Start
By Frank Mitchell
When an unbeaten 2-year-old champion goes to stud, there is
a certain amount of fanfare, and with the retirement of 2012
Eclipse Award champion Shanghai Bobby (by Harlan’s Holiday),
who had gone undefeated in his five starts at 2, commercial
breeders were queuing up immediately to breed to the quick and
good-looking dark brown horse at Ashford Stud.
Part of the reason for their interest is the horse’s pedigree.
Shanghai Bobby is by the successful and highly popular stallion
Harlan’s Holiday (Harlan), a grandson of leading sire Storm Cat
and a factor for speed and early maturity in racing stock that made him
quite popular with buyers and breeders.
When Shanghai Bobby went to stud
in 2014, Harlan’s Holiday was receiving accolades as a sire of stallions
because of the high-class performers resulting from the first crops by
the young Harlan’s Holiday horse Into
Mischief. Further, Shanghai Bobby
is out of a good mare by champion
sprinter Orientate (Mt. Livermore). So
the champion juvenile colt unifies two
of the fast and classy lines in American
breeding: Storm Cat and Blushing Groom.
75,000
Hip 112 filly out of I’s a Fact
Worked :10 1/5 on Preview Day
The fast-acting breeders got it right.
From his first-crop yearlings in 2016, 71 young prospects by
Shanghai Bobby brought an average of $109,324 and a median
price of $85,000. Those figures represent a very healthy 5x and
4x multiple over the horse’s 2014 initial stud fee of $20,000
live foal. The first-crop yearlings sold so well
that Shanghai Bobby’s 2017 fee is listed
as $25,000, a rise of 25 percent for a
fourth-year horse over his entering fee.
That is virtually unheard of.
With the level of first-crop cash assessments that Shanghai Bobby’s yearlings
achieved, observers would have expected to see the Shanghai Bobby stock go
through the roof at the premium sales of
2-year-olds in training. That has not happened to date, with only a half-dozen sold
for an average price of $167,500 and a
Shanghai Bobby
median of $117,500. That isn’t hamster
feed, so we shouldn’t read too much into the initial figures.
Breeders were anticipating that Shanghai Bobby would get attractive foals that became irresistible 2-year-olds, and the international breeding behemoth, Coolmore Stud, acquired Shanghai
Bobby as a stallion for its Ashford Stud in Kentucky as part of their
sequential acquisition of American 2-year-old champions that include Lookin at Lucky (Smart Strike), Uncle Mo (Indian Charlie),
Hansen (Tapit), and American Pharoah (Pioneerof the Nile).
Of those, the undeniably most successful so far has been Uncle
$
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Mo, and Shanghai Bobby fit right in with the group as a fast, attractive horse who seems well-suited to the racing and sales program here in the States.
With 22 consigned to the OBS April sale, we should learn a
good deal more about how they have matured and how they
stand in the assessment of racehorse buyers from around the
world. Sixteen of the 2-year-olds worked (six were declared out),
and four sped a furlong in :10 flat. Five more went down the
lane in :10 1/5, and we can say the prospects will not fail for
lack of speed. PRS
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Page 3
Honor Roll
‘All Head, No Body’ Mind Your Biscuits
Delivers for Summers
By Chelsea Hackbarth
Mind Your Biscuits prepared well, breezing an
eighth in :10 flat the week before the OBS April
Sale. However, the colt couldn’t repeat the performance on the day of the Under Tack Show, breezing
in :10 3/5.
“Maybe thankfully that he breezed in that time because
once again he didn’t sell, and at that point I made an
offer and was able to buy them out.”
Summers then sold interests to Head of Plains Partners, Michael Kisber, and J Stables, but remained
involved as the colt took them to a second-place finish
in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint. He took over Mind Your
Biscuits’ training in February.
2013 CH/C, Posse – Jazzmane, by Toccet. Consigned by Allied Bloodstock to 2014 Keeneland
Jan., purchased by Machmer Hall for $47,000.
Consigned by Select Sales to 2014 NY Select
Yearling Sale, $47,000 RNA. Consigned by SBM
Training & Sales to 2015 OBS April, $47,000
RNA.
“Obviously, you like a horse, but to get to the level he’s
at now, there’s a lot that goes on from when we first
bought the ‘all head, no body’ horse to where he is
now,” Summers concluded. PRS
Group 1 Dubai Golden Shaheen winner Mind Your
Biscuits had a bit of a unique journey through the sales
environment as a young horse, recalls trainer and partowner Chad Summers. The son of Posse originally commanded $47,000 as a short yearling at the Keeneland
January Sale, purchased by Carrie Brogden of Machmer
Hall.
PRS
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Brogden took the New York-bred colt up to the Saratoga
Preferred New York-bred Yearling sale that fall under
the banner of her consignment company Select Sales,
but he did not meet his reserve.
SESSION
“Select Sales had a big consignment, so they thought
they’d like to put all the horses in the same barn, so
they were in a tent,” Summers said. “In there, you didn’t
really get a good look at the horses walking, stuff like
that.”
At that time, Summers and Susan Montanye were able
to purchase the colt privately, with the goal of pinhooking him through one of the 2-year-old sales.
“We got the horse and he was all head, no body,” Summers laughed. “But he was a really athletic looking
horse, and he was just a cool horse from day one. He
was going really well and I tried to buy them out in January, but they wanted too much money.”
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Page 4
Back Ring
Getting to know trainer
Peter Miller
How did you get involved in
the horse business?
My family owned horses
when I was growing up. My
first job was in the summer
of 1978, working for Hal
King, one of the trainers my
Dad had horses with. He
was one of the great gentlemen of the game. I was
under-aged, only about 12
years old at the time, but I
got to walk hots for him.
If you weren’t a Thoroughbred trainer, what would
you be doing today?
I’d be unemployed.
What is it about this game that gives you the most hope?
The beauty of the horse and the beauty of the game never goes
away, and it overcomes all the other stuff we have to deal with.
If you’re named commissioner of racing with all-encompassing
powers, what are some of the first things you would do?
I’d require a biological passport on all horses so we could set
baselines and prevent the use of performance enhancing drugs.
I’d also require microchipping of all horses and use it for all kinds
of things, from identifying them for workouts to integrity issues.
Third, I’d make sure there is more out-of-competition testing.
What’s the best piece of advice anyone ever gave you?
My first client was an accountant and he said, “Pay yourself first.”
That was the best advice I ever got. The other one was from my
father who said, “It’s not what you make, it’s what you save.”
Do you have a favorite racetrack? Del Mar racetrack. It’s home,
and it’s the best. That’s all I’ve got to say about that. I spent my
summers there as a kid, I love being there, and that’s where my
home is.
Who is the greatest horse you’ve seen run?
Spectacular Bid. His Santa Anita Handicap in 1980, carrying
130 pounds and Bill Shoemaker, was incredible. He wasn’t my
favorite, though. That would be Affirmed (who won the Big ‘Cap
in 1979 and then took the Hollywood Gold Cup carrying 132
pounds and covered 1 ¼ miles in 1:58 2/5).
Who is the greatest jockey you’ve seen?
Laffit Pincay.
What’s the last concert you went to?
I went to a comedy show, if that counts. Adam Sandler did a
Comedy Tour with Rob Schneider and David Spade. The tickets
were $700! PRS
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Page 5
Continued from Page 1
NORTHEAST: New York has experienced tremendous growth
over the last decade, with the average purse per race increasing by 46 percent, from $35,775 in 2006 to $52,136 in
2016. While the Aqueduct casino fueled most of that increase,
the New York Racing Association has strengthened its yearround racing product and maximized the revenue value of marquee events. Its new enhanced spring program for 2-year-olds,
with $100,000 maiden races leading up to the Astoria and
Tremont Stakes in June, is just the latest innovation that makes
New York racing a national leader.
A recent budget deal promises re-privatization of NYRA, which
we can only hope will allow its board and management to
undertake long overdue renovations at Belmont Park that would
permit the Breeders’ Cup to return to New York.
New York’s breeding industry has shown growth over the last
decade, in the number of foals, the quality of bloodstock and the
commercial marketplace.
Another bright spot in this region is Maryland, where The Stronach Group is in the process of remaking Laurel Park into an exciting 21st century facility management it believes will be capable
of hosting a Breeders’ Cup. Many are betting Laurel will also be
the future home of the Preakness, unless the state of Maryland
antes up a couple hundred million dollars to rebuild Pimlico.
Belmont Park
Two-Year-Old Spring Bonus Program
Wednesday, April 19
Astoria Trial A - Aqueduct Racetrack
Maiden, Fillies Two-Years-Old
Four and One-Half Furlongs - Purse $100,000
Wednesday, May 3
Astoria Trial B - Belmont Park
Maiden, Fillies Two-Years-Old
Five Furlongs - Purse $100,000
Wednesday, May 17
Astoria Trial C - Belmont Park
Maiden, Fillies Two-Years-Old
Five Furlongs - Purse $100,000
Thursday, May 25
Astoria Trial D - Belmont Park
Maiden, Fillies Two-Years-Old
Five Furlongs (Turf) - Purse $100,000
Thursday, June 8
Astoria Stakes $150,000 F2YO 5 ½ Furlongs
Purses are on the rise (up 35 percent, from $25,300 per race
in 2006 to $34,060 in 2016), and not just from Maryland casino supplements. Handle is up and will continue to rise, thanks
to a focus on quality and full fields.
Thursday, April 20
Tremont Trial A - Aqueduct Racetrack
It’s no secret The Stronach Group has expressed interest in
creating and/or overseeing a coordinated racing schedule in
the Mid-Atlantic, something the region desperately needs as
racing offices struggle to fill fields and create the type of product
horseplayers want to bet on.
Thursday, May 4
Maiden, Two-Year-Olds
Four and One-Half Furlongs - Purse $100,000
PRS
Maiden, Two-Year-Olds
Five Furlongs - Purse $100,000
Thursday, May 18
Pennsylvania tracks ran 3,710 races in 2016, more than any
state except California. Purses at Parx, Penn National and Presque Isle Downs averaged $27,762 per race, a 118 percent
increase from 10 years earlier when the average Pennsylvania
purse was $12,716. Those purses (they exceeded $100 million in 2016) are increasingly dependent on slot machines and
with each year comes more pressure from Pennsylvania legislators to use the slots revenue to plug holes in the state budget. A
reduction in racing dates must happen.
The rest of the region is struggling. Monmouth Park in New
Jersey, the only track in the region with no revenue from
gaming, still managed average purses of $31,630 (down
from $37,865 in 2006). Delaware, first in the region with
slot machines, has seen average purse per race fall from
$28,908 in 2006 to $24,504 last year. Purses at West
Virginia tracks have dropped from $28,908 to $24,504
in a decade and will only get worse as neighboring Ohio’s
casino industry grows.
Next edition: A look at the Midwest, Southwest and West Coast
Tremont Trial B - Belmont Park
Tremont Trial C - Belmont Park
Maiden, Two-Year-Olds
Five Furlongs - Purse $100,000
Thursday, May 26
Tremont Trial D - Belmont Park
Maiden, Two-Year-Olds
Five Furlongs (Turf) - Purse $100,000
Friday, June 9
Tremont Stakes $150,000 2YO 5 ½ Furlongs
Two-Year-Old New York Bred Spring Bonus Program
$25,000 in bonus money (above purse) divided as follows:
Owners - Finish Position: 1st ($9,000), 2nd ($4,500), 3rd ($2,500)
Trainers - Finish Position: 1st ($4,000), 2nd ($3,000), 3rd ($2,000)
Bonuses effective for 2017 Aqueduct Spring and
Belmont Spring/Summer meets
Page 6
Five to Watch:
A look at some of the sale’s top hips
By Frank Mitchell
Hip 17 Gray colt by Liaison x Vegas Prospector, by
Crafty Prospector: This colt is from the first crop by Liaison, winner of the Grade 1 Hollywood Futurity at 2 and
a son of leading sire Indian Charlie, like the immensely
popular young sire Uncle Mo. This colt is out of graded
stakes winner Vegas Prospector, the dam of seven winners, including two stakes-placed performers.
Hip 132 Dark bay colt by Giant’s Causeway x Ava
Knowsthecode, by Cryptoclearance: A colt with a massive pedigree, this colt is by the high-class international
sire Giant’s Causeway, the best son of the legendary
Storm Cat. The colt is a half-brother to six stakes winners, including G1 winner Justin Phillip, by the Giant’s
Causeway stallion First Samurai, and G1 winner Greenpointcrusader (Bernardini).
Hip 216 Dark bay filly by Curlin x Capote Blues, by
Capote: By Preakness Stakes winner and Horse of the
Year Curlin (Smart Strike), this filly is a half-sister to
G2 stakes winner Blues Street and stakes-placed Beale
Street (both by Street Cry). Their dam is the Capote
mare Capote Blues, who is out of G1 stakes winner
Stormy Blues (Cure the Blues), winner of the Matron
Stakes.
Hip 272 Bay filly by Ghostzapper x Class on Class,
by Jolie’s Halo: A daughter of Horse of the Year
Ghostzapper, this filly is a half-sister to a pair of
stakes winners: G2 winner Don’t Get Mad (Stephen
Got Even), winner of the Indiana Derby, Northern
Dancer Stakes, and Derby Trial; and listed winner
Barkley Sound (Dixieland Band). They are out of the
stakes-placed Jolie’s Halo mare Class on Class.
Hip 327 Bay filly by Paynter x Delizia, by Distant
View: This filly’s sire is G1 Haskell winner Paynter
(Awesome Again), and she is from her sire’s first
crop, who are of age to race this year. This filly is out
of the multiple stakes producer Delizia (Distant View),
the dam of stakes winners Zeewatt (Harlan’s Holiday)
and Henny Jenney (Henny Hughes). Delizia is also a
half-sister to three stakes winners. PRS
in just his
second start on dirt
172523-Mshawish-Half-PRS.indd 1
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