Alberta Stallions

[Jean]

Check out the HPBA of Alberta's website www.hbpaalberta.ca and see how Alberta task Force is trying to bring in new stallions to Alberta. opinions on these plans and how they would help other juristrictions to bring in quality stallions?

[AscotStud]

It's a good "idea" and Alberta has got some pretty decent sires now. My problem with the whole thing is that they say 110 mares left Alberta. If 4 new sires come in that's only 27 mares (that would be of that quality) per new sire. Even if they pick up 20 more mares at lesser quality it makes it a very tough proposition for the stallion owner or farm paying to bring him in. The other problem is that just because a mare is bought in Kentucky doesn't mean it's any good. You get lots of mares in the last few books that don't belong in a broodmare band and if those are the mares that are brought back it isn't going to matter who what stallion they are bred to the quality of horse won't improve.

[Jean]

Only 110 mare have left out of 1000 so only 105 of the mares are leaving which is not a bad thing as wee need new blood brought into any juristriction.

[Jean]

I meant 10 % have been leaving Alberta

[barbfool]

Jean, what has Albertas foal crop numbers been over the past few years?

[Dave C]

This 3rd draft doesn't appear any different than the 1st draft that was almost universally trashed as a subsidy to a couple of rich breeders. This is trickle down economics being applied to horse racing and demonstrates why horse racing is struggling in the hottest economy in NA. This program will only attract stallions that were expensive or mid-level failures in KY and they will come to AB and be overpriced failures here.

Look at the two stallions that came to AB in anticipation of this program: Gilded Time and Cape Canaveral. Both are useful stallions if you have the right mare, but GT hasn't thrown a SW in his last 3 crops to the track, his overall percentage is only 5% and that is because he did very well in his first couple of crops when he got his best books of mares. CC is much younger but is still only a 5% SW stallion in his first crops and as we all know very few stallions don't decline with age. Where is the value with these stallions? They are both only worth 2k standing in AB.

Yearling buyers to not care what it costs to bring a yearling to the sales, they only care about what the potential earnings of that yearling may be. The only way you can raise the average prices for yearlings is to raise the earnings potential for those yearlings. This program will not do this because in the short term some people may be deluded into thinking these stallions are superior, but they will have 20 foals by each stallion to choose from, and when you have plenty of supply to meet the demand the price will not be high. Some will sell well, most will not.

I also find it interesting that a 3rd draft even exists. I had heard that the task force was ordered to diband after the first draft had been rejected. Either my source was wrong, or this is going to be implemented over the objections of the majority of breeders.

[Jean]

Apparantly the foal crops have been in the 5-600 range.

[Dave C]

The results of the public input are in and they've decided not to implement the program for 2008 because it needs more study. Ya gotta think they didn't get too many complimentary or supportive responses.

[Jean]

If the program has been scrapped does this mean the stud fees for qualifying stallions in Alberta will be reduced?

[Dave C]

The announcement doesn't say the program has been scrapped, merely that it won't be implemented for 2008, because it needs more study (how Canadian is that?). Since the program wasn't announced when Gilded Time and Cape Canaveral were imported I would think the farms would be hard pressed to reduce the fees now without making it look like this was a total scam to transfer public money to those farms.

[Tucumcari]

I think I read somewhere that Cappuchino was imported, from Empire Stud in NY, to AB as well. Is that correct?

[Dave C]

Cappuchino was moved here two seasons ago I believe. The JC says he covered 30 mares last season. They his fee for 2008 is $1750, which I think is down from the 2k or 2.5k they had been asking when he first arrived.

[reenci]

Cappuchino was moved here two seasons ago I believe. The JC says he covered 30 mares last season. They his fee for 2008 is $1750, which I think is down from the 2k or 2.5k they had been asking when he first arrived.

i saw him last fall at empire stud, NY...while checking out chief seattle.....cappuchino looked a little nuts to be blunt.

[imnumberjuan]

Dave,

I think you hit the nail on the head, with your comment on the earning potential of said yearlings. I antcipate with the dollar at close to par, and having perused a couple of american Sales results, I have noticed that "our" horsepeople have been active (whether or not potential turns into reality, who knows could be more of the same for the owners/trainers in question ).

A friend of mine has suggested an Alberta Sire series of races similiar to Woodbine's Ontario sired stakes (ok, I came into this heading looking to post on thoughts on Saint Stephen - will head it under a different topic heading).

I think the success of the mare program shouldn't be judged by the sale of their yearlings at the yearling sale, but instead in the next 8-10 years when said american sired foals have had their career, and in the case of the fillies have had a foal or two.