Postby parsixfarms » Mon Dec 12, 2005 11:54 am
NYRA's well-publicized problems, while posing certain near term issues on the racing front, are likely to manifest themselves more in terms of how the RFP process for bidders on the racing franchise (which currently expires on 12/31/07) ultimately gets resolved. Once the slots are up and running at Aqueduct, estimates are that New York purses - hopefully in 2007 - will see an approximate purse increase of 30%, which would lead to maidens running for almost $60,000, with a corresponding increase in owner and breeder awards from the NY breeding fund.
As for the NY-breeding program, its most significant problem is maintaining well-bred, popular stallions. In recent years, almost any stallion that proves commercially popular and gets a few runners is quickly whisked off to KY or some other location. Belong to Me, Precise End, City Zip and, most recently, Wiseman's Ferry are examples. Even Artax, after initially standing in NY, was sent to Taylor Made because the broodmares in NY generally lack sufficient quality to adequately support stallions with five-figure stud fees. (He is now back in NY because he generally failed in KY.)
As the owner of two mares here in NY, my research indicates that there are stallions standing in NY that are fine if one is breeding to race. If, however, one is looking to sell a foal or yearling, and wants to have a chance to make money, recent stats show that breeding to a non-NY stallion is almost imperative. In this regard, one need only look at the results of the "Preferred" Fasig-Tipton yearling sale from this past August. With the exception of the Freuds, City Zips and Wheelaways, the offspring of very few other NY-based stallions brought significant bidding. On the other hand, it was the offspring of non-NY stallions that typically were the sale-leaders.
