Canterbury Opens Door to Ownership

How do we get new owners in the game?  It’s a question that the industry has been asking for a long time.  Owner and breeder groups have been putting on “New Owner Seminars” for years and every once in a while a celebrity owner like Bobby Flay or Jim Rome shines the spotlight on the sport, but more often than not, all that serves to do is reinforce the image of racing as an expensive luxury inaccessible to the middle class or a mystery shrouded riddle that could only be accessed by those “in the know”.

In 2009 Canterbury Park boldly stepped out to draw back the curtain and pull its fan base into the action by forming the Canterbury Racing Club.  For $250 a person could buy into the Club and feel the joy of ownership without having to risk another dime.  The initial Club drew 60 participants and campaigned a winning filly name Tahitian Queen.  

The goal was to provide an educational experience for owners and give them the opportunity to see what it was like to own a racehorse.  A blog was created where they could follow the action and also keep track of the monthly financial transactions.  Videos from the trainer and jockey were posted to give members an understanding of what goes on during the training period between races.  It was a way to demystify racing.

 

Since 2009 the Club has more than doubled in size and has gone from a single horse to a multiple horse stable with last year’s Club topping 140 members.  With the partnership with the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community (Mystic Lake Casino) heading into its first full season the stewards of the Club the last several years, Jeff Maday and Andrew Offerman, are stretched to limit with other responsibilities.  This year I will be stepping in and managing the Club for Canterbury.  I’m looking forward to building on the tremendous success that the Club has had and we’re hoping for an even larger membership this year.

Club “graduates” have gone on to form their own partnerships and buy and race their own horses, perhaps not in overwhelming numbers, but the fact that some have, and that the club keeps growing every year, are indications that there is movement in the right direction.  Add in Canterbury’s three consecutive years of record average daily attendance numbers and there is a lot of positive going on right now at the Shakopee oval.

Here is how the Club is structured:

Each membership is $250.  No other funds will be required.  The member will receive free admission to Canterbury Park for the season and admission to the paddock and winners’ circle (these two may need to rotate depending upon the size of the membership).  When possible, we will also try and set up a reserved area for the group on race days.  We will also set up backside tours during the season to try and give members a glimpse of life on the backstretch.

The number of members will determine the number of horses we will claim.  Clay Brinson, the outstanding trainer that worked with the Club last year has signed on board for another season and, if the demand is enough for additional horses, Canterbury Park Hall of Famer Bernell Rhone will also train for the team.

Interested folks can fill out the 2013 Club Enrollment Form to get started.  We’ll be taking memberships into March, but the sooner we know the size of the group, the better we can plan our strategy. 

 

I’m very happy to be a part of the Club this year, but I’m even happier that Canterbury Park has taken such a pro-active role to get new owners into the game.  It’s a model worth emulating.

Busy Weekend On Tap

DARK STAR MEMORIAL

If you're coming down to Canterbury to watch I'll Have Another's pursuit of immortality in the Belmont stakes, try and come out early.  Track officials have announced that at 10:00AM in the paddock they will hold a memorial for the late Dark Star.  There will be plenty of stories and reminiscnences celebrating Dark's life.  It's probably fitting that the memorial be held in the paddock - that's where all of Dark's picks could win. It's a good thing, too, as his spirit probably would have had a tough time finding the winner's circle if it were held trackside!  God bless you, Drk, I hope you know how much you're missed.

NEW OWNERS' SEMINAR

The Minnesota Thoroughbred Association is sponsoring a New Owners' Seminar immediately following the Dark Star Memorial (approx. 11 AM) on the second floor of the grandstand.  There will be several speakers talking about legal issues, accounting issues, partnerships, claiming, auctions, training, vet care for the racehorse and more.  If you've ever thought about getting into the game but weren't sure how, this is going to be a great opportunity to listen to experts, ask questions and get a feel for what it's like to be a part of the game.

TRIPLE CROWN?

I'll Have Another's pursuit of the Triple Crown will end one way or another on Saturday afternoon in Elmont, NY.  I'm not sure what I'll do about placing a bet on the Belmont Stakes yet.  I really want to see a Triple Crown and am seriously thinking about purchasing a $2 win ticket on I'll Have Another and root for history.  There may very well be value in trying to bet the colt, but I can't bring myself to do it.  Those that know me know that I would bet against my mom if the line was right (sorry mom - and yes, she does read my posts), so that ought to tell you how badly I want to see a Triple Crown!

Focus

We've been all over the map in recent months getting the next group lined up and ready to go. This was mainly because interest has come from all over the country, though not enough in any one spot to make that one place a gimme for buying a horse. I think that one of the main reasons to get into a partnership is to see your horse race live, visit the barn, be in the paddock before a race. To me, all that is priceless - plus the works on the backside in the morning. That's just a slice of heaven.

However, you can't be all things to all people, so there needs to be a focus and if that keeps some folks from joining us along the way for right now, then so be it. I've decided that we're going to focus on Canterbury Park next summer and drill our focus down to a horse that can run there as well as either Tampa and Remington (if we race with Bernell) or Chicagoland (if we race with Tammy). Heck, if there is enough interest, we'll do both, but the focus is on racing in Minnesota next summer.

There are several reasons for this focus and, obviously, none of them are purse related. Of course just throwing that out there makes it seem like we race for scraps up here and that is not true. I would call our purse structure lower mid-level. We're certainly not rock bottom, but our allowances top out in the mid-twenties. As we proved with Fizzy Pop, though, you can make some money up here if you race where you belong.

Here are the reasons in no particular order:

- You have to start somewhere and rather than be scattered all over, I'd like to start building off of Fizzy with a group nearby. It's easier for me to control the day-to-day here.

- Canterbury Park itself. As many of you already know, I think Canterbury runs one of the most inventive and fun racing meets in the country. Partners that race with us here are going to have a fun summer.

- It's home. There is something about racing at home in front of family and friends that is just over the top. I've been in the paddock at Santa Anita and it's marvelous, but it's not home. Not saying I don't want to do it again, however, because I do!

- Costs. Costs are very manageable here. Training fees are fair and, more importantly, vet fees are fair. I've seen vet bills from racing in NY, NJ and CA and for the same services, you can't beat the Midwest/Florida. It simply makes fiscal sense.

There you have it. My two main requirements are that we run here in the summer and that whatever horse we claim or private purchase can compete elsewhere. I may be cutting off some folks in other locations and to them I say, thank you so very much for your interest. I hope that we'll be racing your way soon, but right now we're going to focus on methodical growth and that starts at right here at home. It's important to do things right and you can only do that if you are focused, not scattered. HBT9WWH64CZH

If you're interested, please drop us a line, I'd like to finalize the group and have a horse in training in January. It takes a while to rev up and get ready to race and trying to get something going three weeks before the meet starts is about three months too late!

Vetting

Who just loves buying a car? No one? What a shock! Well, the car-buying process is a hand me down from the horse days. You'd negotiate prices on horses just like you do cars today. Some folks were honest traders and others were snail oil salesmen. You couldn't really tell the good from the bad. Cars never became strictly commodotized like just about everything you buy in a store. You go into Target and pick out a of pants. The guy next to you buys the same pants. Guess what you both pay? What's on the price tag, of course. Another shocker. Such is not the case with cars. You and the couple four tables over may both be buying a Honda Accord but there is a damn good chance that you two aren't paying the same price. By the time all the double talk, delivery fees, dealer prep and other crapola are negotiated out of the deal, you finally get your brand new car. Instead of going home and showing off though, you have to go home and take a shower!

Now the horse business is not that bad. Check that. MY EXPERIENCE in the horse business has not been like that. I should avoid the sweeping generalization because I'm bound to get comments and e-mails from any person that ever got ripped off buying a horse. I have individuals I trust and have earned that trust over time. David Miller, Bernell Rhone, Russ Rhone, Royal Roland and others have been tremendously honest and helpful when it comes to evaluating horse flesh. To them I am grateful.

Right now I am in the process of shopping for our next horse. With the economy the way it is, there is one thing you're never short of: horses to buy. There may be a shortage of buyers (and partners, so drop me a line if your interested - we have a bit more room!), but everyone coast to coast seems to have a horse for sale and getting an accurate read on one for a private sale is brutal.

Here are a couple of horse buying stories for you among the many I have collected over the past few months. No names or locations, but the meat of the stories are what they are. Neither of these stories take place in Minnesota, thank goodness, that's not to say they could not have, but they didn't so "yay" for us.

Both horses were two year olds: one filly and one colt. The filly had some issues, but was one for one racing. A friend turned me on to her and told me what he had paid for a share of her. I went ahead and contacted the owner and inquired. I mentioned my friend (his partner!) had sent me, but not how much he had paid. It was my way of vetting the seller. How much could I trust the guy? His price to me was 66% higher than what he sold to my friend just a week before!! I worked on bargaining him down a bit, but he wasn't going to budge. I sorely wanted to tell him what I knew, even though I DID tell him that my friend had sent me, I hadn't cleared it with him to spill the beans on the price. He called me later about another colt he wanted to sell. I didn't return the call.

The second story is more of a cautionary tale rather than any chicanery on anyones part. This horse is a two year old that showed some real speed in workouts this past summer. After some extensive digging, the horse had developed some nagging injuries and, while the recent layoff probably did it a world of good, there may be some lasting damage - maybe not, but it was enough of a warning to make me pass. You can't expect perfection, but why knowingly start yourself behind the eight ball right away? Even at a low price, it makes no sense making a tough business any tougher!

So we keep looking and keep vetting. It takes an awful lot of time and research to try and get this right - and then there are still no guarantees. We'll get our horse(s) eventually. I'd rather wait a bit longer than leaping before we've had enough time to really look!