For the past three years, Canadian standardbred racing has been a tough place to be if you’re an optimist. In race paddocks, at training centres and on turnout farms, positivity had been met with an awful dose of “reality” medicine.
“The little guy is getting killed.” “The sport is dying.” “We can’t survive.” If you’ve been around harness racing, you’ve heard these lines, and worse.
The number of people in the industry dropped, and the number of horses being bred tumbled. Participants ran from the industry, or sought shelter in American jurisdictions that appeared to be more stable. But racing in Canada persevered, and there are some clear signs that those who stuck around appear to be being rewarded.
At this year’s Canadian Yearling Sale, the average was $21,350, up 69% over last year’s $12,614 average, and up 156% from the $8,329 brought in 2012. That 2012 sale took place months after the Ontario government made its bombshell announcement about the end of the Slots at Racetracks program. This year, with the yearling crop reduced, the sale average soared to numbers dramatically higher than we saw even during the Slots at Racetracks program in Ontario. Demand appears to have caught up to supply, and we can likely expect increases at this year’s Forest City Yearling Sale on October 25 as well.
Of course, averages are a funny thing. As the number of horses available drops, averages rise. But more importantly, despite only 119 horses selling this year at the Canadian Yearling Sale, the gross of $2,540,700 was also up 30% from 2014 and up 24% from 2012, when 246 horses were sold for a gross of $2,048,950. With more American faces in the crowd this year, it’s likely that the high U.S. dollar also played a role in driving up prices this year, but so did Ontario’s government actions, and a sense of optimism.
As for the number of mares being bred in this country, the statistics are also improving, albeit at a slower rate. This year, 2,910 mares were bred to Canadian stallions, an increase of 12% over the 2604 mares bred in 2014. Among Ontario stallions alone, the leap was more dramatic, increasing 21% from 1,719 in 2014 to 2,077 in 2015. These numbers are still well shy of the 3,771 mares bred to Canadian stallions, and 2,897 mares bred to Ontario stallions in 2012. But there is reason for optimism.
Should this evidence convince people that all is well in Canadian standardbred racing? Absolutely not. Hopefully though, it serves to urge us to be bullish about the industry and invest in its future.
We need to invest in new ownership and breeder programs, invest in fan and customer development, and make sure that we turn small increases into a new resurgence across this country, and around the world. We need to bring back the idea of setting money aside to build horse racing, and make sure that we all play a role in its growth.
The future and health of this industry is not solely reliant on any one group, whether it be racetracks, horsepeople, breeders or government. And it is not solely reliant on any single act, like what type of integration programs are announced by the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation. Horse racing’s future is dependent on dynamic vision, co-operation and hard work. Let’s not squander the opportunity we have.
Darryl Kaplan
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