Agriculture & New York State Horse Breeding Development Fund
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1 Table of Contents 3 Letter from the Executive Director 63 Leading Sires of 3-Year-Old 4-6 Industry Comment Trotters, Nationally 7 Job Report/Economic Impact 64 Leading Sires of 3-Year-Old 8 2013 in Review Pacers, Nationally 65 Leading Sires, Average Earnings Accounting Per 2yo Trotting Foal, Nationally 9 Statement of Cash Flows 66 Leading Sires, Average Earnings 10 Statement of Net Assets Per 2yo Pacing Foal, Nationally 11 Statement of Revenues, Expenses 67 Leading Sires, Average Earnings & Changes in Net Assets Per 3yo Trotting Foal, Nationally 12 State-by-State Purse Distribution 68 Leading Sires, Average Earnings 13 Track by Track Purse Distribution Per 3yo Pacing Foal, Nationally 14-16 Dispersal of 2013 Fund Money 69 Leading Sires, Average Earnings In New York, By Region All-Aged Trotters, Nationally 70 Leading Sires, Average Earnings Breeders All-Aged Pacers, Nationally 17 2013 Breeders Award Program 71 Leading Money-Winning Sires 18 Breeding Statistics: Number Of 2013, Nationally of Registered Participants Through the Years 72 New York Sires 19-25 Top-Earning Breeders Performing Well in Australia 26-32 2013 NYSS Awards and Earnings, Alphabetically Miscellaneous Sales Figures 73 4-H Education and Research 33 2013 Sales Results 74-77 Scholarship Races 34-39 New Yorkers Performance: Harrisburg, Pa. 78 Equine Research Yearling Sales 79 Advertising and Promotion 40-44 New Yorkers Performance: Lexington, Ky. 80-81 Dreams Come True in New York Yearling Sales Back Page Goshen Hall of Fame 45-47 New Yorkers Performance: Morrisville, NY Yearling Sales Leaderboard 48 New York Sire Stakes Leaderboard 49-52 Top Earning Pacers and Trotters 53 Top Excelsior 2-Year-Olds Agriculture & New York State 54 Top Excelsior 3-Year-Olds Horse Breeding Development Fund 55 Top County Fair 2-Year-Olds 56 Top County Fair 3-Year-Olds 1 Broadway Center, Suite 602 57 Leading Sires in the NYSS Program Schenectady NY 12305 58 Leading Sires 59 Leading Sires of 2-Year-Olds 518-395-5484 (p) 518-347-1483 (f) 60 Leading Sires of 3-Year-Olds [email protected] 61 Leading Sires of 2-Year-Old www.nysirestakes.com Trotters, Nationally www.facebook.com/NYSireStakes 62 Leading Sires of 2-Year-old www.twitter.com/NYSireStakes Pacers, Nationally 2 Letter from the Executive Director The Honorable Andrew M. Cuomo, Governor of the State of New York Members of the New York State Legislature On behalf of the trustees of the Agriculture and New York State Horse Breeding Development Fund, I am pleased to present the Fund’s 2013 Annual Report. The Agriculture & New York State Horse Breeding Development Fund administers the New York Sire Stakes, the nation’s oldest harness racing program. The racing opportunities for Standardbred horses in New York include seven pari-mutuel harness tracks, the Goshen Historic Track and 21 county and town fairs across the state. The New York Sire Stakes has long been an essential part of our state’s fairs, which are the foundation of harness racing. Stallion fees, an indicator of the quality available at New York’s breeding farms, soared 85% from 2001 to 2013. Due to an accompanying escalation in the quality of broodmares, New York outpaced the rest of the nation in average yearling prices ($36,836) at premier auctions in 2013. As bloodstock continues to improve, New York yearlings will continue to sell for premium prices, allowing breeders to reinvest and expand their operations. This growth will continue to increase the economic and agricultural benefits the Standardbred breeding and racing provide to the State of New York. The Agriculture and New York State Horse Breeding Development Fund will continue to support the breeding of world-class horses in New York State and enhance our state’s vital agricultural community in 2014 and beyond. Sincerely, Mike Mullaney Executive Director Mike Mullaney Agriculture and NYS Horse Breeding Development Fund Executive Director 3 Industry Comment In addition the statistical and economic information contained in this annual report, the Agriculture and New York State Horse Breeding Development Fund is further directed to incorporate comments from spokesmen representing all segments of the industry as well as recommendations on preserving and enhancing the state standardbred breeding industry in this state. Comments from industry leaders follow: “New York’s support of the Sire Stakes program, and its “As a racing official at the county fairs I have seen an agricultural base has been well justified. “ increase of fans in the grandstands and a growing interest in the harness industry in general. I have been amazed at “The adoption of the VLT/Racing partnership attracted a the number of people that come up to me and ask about the higher-level stallion base to the program. New York-breds not business. only provide a competitive racing product in New York, they now excel on national and international levels. Owners paid “As an owner, driver and trainer for 30 years, the attention top dollar at the yearling sales in 2013 because of that racing that the NY-breds have been getting is very positive, but I productivity. think we need to come up with a way to spread the money around. In order for the program to continue to grow we need “But from a breeder’s point of view, owners were buying all the owners who buy NY-breds to make enough money so yearlings that resulted from a breeding decision that was that they can continue to afford buying at the sales.” made two years previous. To perpetuate the value of a New York-bred, the Sire Stakes program must ensure that the Scott Campbell, New York-based breeding and racing climate continues to be progressive and racing official and horseman appealing, such that mare owners feel confident they will have the ability to successfully raise and market desirable NY- “As a journalist who has covered the New York thoroughbred breds two years hence from the mares they will be breeding and standardbred industries for more than 25 years and has in 2014 and thereafter. reported for the New York Daily News and the New York Times, I am pleased to report that, from my perspective, the “Strengthening the Resident Breeders’ Award program to standardbred breeding industry in the state has never been incentivize mare owners to bred and board in the state would stronger. be one such avenue. It would make the NY program more competitive with neighboring Sire Stakes jurisdictions – in “Proof of that came at the 2013 Harrisburg sale, the biggest particular Pennsylvania, to which NY farm operations have lost and most important yearling sale in North America. There, the potential boarders, and encourage them to return to New York. average sale price for New York-bred yearlings was $39,667, which led all states and provinces. Pennsylvania likes to brag “It would additionally support the New York Sire Stakes’ goal that it has the best standardbred breeding program in the U.S., to maintain and increase agricultural acres. I believe New but New York-breds averaged 12.6% more than Pennsylvania- York can also strengthen its Sire Stakes program by being breds at Harrisburg. more “customer friendly” and advocate the use of technology to ensure its participants (breeders and owners) have easy “This is the direct result of the revenue from VLTs doing what access to information and online services.” it was intended to do, strengthen an industry and provide jobs to New Yorkers. The breeding farms are healthy and prospering, Jean Brown, Vice President, Operations, which means farriers are doing well, farm equipment Blue Chip Farms manufacturers are doing well, feed companies are doing well, grooms and other workers on the farms are doing well. “With the increased purses in the Sire Stakes program, I have seen our local breeding farms expanding with more horses Bill Finley, Publisher, Harness Racing Update and adding more help as they grow. (continued on page 5) 4 (continued from page 4) “At Batavia Downs we take the New York Sire Stakes seriously because it is our stakes season. It’s a fact our best handles, on “In my mind the Sire Stakes program should be a tool, not and off-track, and biggest crowds are attained during NYSS only to reward the owners and breeders, but to promote events. Because New York State is now standing some of the horse ownership and participation in the program. I don’t top stallions in the sport of Harness Racing, track records are feel we do enough to encourage new owners into the game routinely broken at Batavia Downs and throughout New York or existing owners to buy NY-bred horses. I think this idea State during NYSS events. can be advanced in four ways: “The NYSS also gives our fans a chance to watch from the 1) Spend more of the Fund’s available money on marketing, track apron some of the top drivers in the sport. In the last including promotion and advertising. two years Tim Tetrick, Brian Sears and George Brennan all competed at Batavia Downs, certainly a big highlight for 2) Encourage syndicates and group ownership. our fans. In conjunction with the NYSS, Batavia Downs holds promotions geared around the NYSS to enhance our 3) Keep the most prestigious races (the Night of customer’s experience during NYSS events. Champions) and highest purses at Yonkers. This may sound self-serving, but I firmly believe that, not only is My recommendations would be to have a uniform purse it what the law requires, it’s where the races would get structure for the NYSS at all New York State tracks so racing the most attention, in the media capital of the world, fans throughout New York no matter of location would get a and, chance to watch the best NYSS horses and drivers.