Month: November 2020

Rice Begins Testimony On Hearing’s Fifth Day, Characterizes Payments To Racing Office As Gifts

On the fifth day of a hearing into alleged rule violations by top New York trainer Linda Rice, Rice's attorney began laying the framework of his defense. Rice is accused of “actions inconsistent with and detrimental to the best interest of racing generally ad corrupt and improper acts and practices in relation to racing,” according to the New York State Gaming Commission. An investigation by the gaming commission determined that Rice received horse names and past performance information prior to draw time for a number of races between 2011 and 2015, and that she provided payments to members of the racing office staff in exchange for that information.

Attorney Andrew Turro, who represents Rice, reiterated his view that Rice did not violate a specific rule on the books at the time either with the New York Racing Association (NYRA) or the commission by taking the information, but also said Wednesday that Rice's payments to racing office staff weren't bribes.

“To use an overworked phrase, there's simply no quid pro quo,” said Turro in his opening statement for Rice's defense. “The evidence received today, and the evidence that will continue to be presented to this court will establish the undeniable truth — that the money Miss Rice gave to the racing office officials to the starting gate crew and virtually everyone who worked at the track were merely gestures of sincere appreciation and never an inducement to anything.”

Rice began her testimony Wednesday by going over her financial records from the time in question, showing a series of checks made out to individuals in the racing office, the starting gate crew, jockeys' valets, and chief examining veterinarian Dr. Anthony Verderosa which she wrote after winning the Saratoga meet title in 2009. Later, Rice said she gave checks and later cash to the entire racing office staff and starting gate crew via entry clerk Jose Morales. Morales has admitted to providing Rice with the information in question. Those payments were intended to be Christmas gifts, Rice said, and were typically $200 or a bit more, depending upon the number of people employed in each department at the time. Rice said she later learned there was a cap of $75 allowed as gratuity for NYRA employees after the gate crew were called before the stewards for taking larger tips from jockeys.

Also on Wednesday, Turro called trainers Jeremiah Englehart and James Ferraro to learn more about their experiences with the racing office, particularly during times when there was a shortage of horses available to fill races in New York. Previous testimony from senior racing office officials stated that entry clerks are not permitted to give out the name of a horse or name of a trainer when “hustling” entries for a race with a small field. They are permitted to divulge information about the expected pace or comparative talent of horses entered in a race pre-draw, even giving out specifics such as a rival's recent finish positions.

But Ferraro and Englehart say they have been given the names of trainers and horses pre-draw if a clerk is pushing to get a race filled. Englehart also said he uses a software program which helps him keep track of what conditions his horses are eligible for; the program also lets him review previous races with similar conditions, giving him a good idea which horses could be entered in a given allowance or claiming race. Englehart estimated that when entries are released for a race with eight horses, he will have correctly guessed the identities of five of them, on average.

Ferraro and Englehart also said they learn about the entries in an upcoming race from jockeys' agents, who may be aware of horses their clients are riding.

When questioned by counsel for Rice and the commission, Englehart seemed to have complex feelings about what Rice had done.

“I've competed against Linda for a long time and I have a lot of respect for how hard she works, how hard it is or might have been for her to rise to the place she's at right now,” he told Turro. “I think it's just not fair to think we're going to throw a career away because of a misjudgment. There's a lot of people out there that might not be good in the game and we need to focus on that.”

Under asked by commission attorney Rick Goodell whether Rice received an unfair advantage, Englehart also said this–

“If Linda was receiving emails when no one else was, and I'm not 100 percent sure no one else was, maybe it isn't a one-time happening … knowing it's frowned upon now I would say no it's not fair, but at the time I stand by what I said before and I don't know if I wouldn't have done the same thing.”

While Morales, a longtime acquaintance of Rice, characterized the gratuities and a couple of loans from Rice as consideration for the information he provided her, Turro depicted the relationship differently. Rice knew the Morales family many years and was close to them at a time several years ago when a car accident killed one of Jose's teenaged siblings.

“I knew his lifestyle was — he was having a lot of problems as far as drinking, driving, domestic issues with his wife and whatnot,” Rice said. “I felt sorry for him because his life was somewhat of a mess. I always thought I knew, possibly, why.”

Turro also laid the groundwork for his closing argument, which will be that the commission should not suspend or revoke Rice's license — both options on the table for the hearing officer according to the commission.

“I'll urge that justice be done and the nightmare my client has been living through can end,” he said. “I will urge the hearing officer to allow her to continue training without further interruption.”

The hearing will continue Thursday.

See previous coverage of the hearing here, here, and here.

The post Rice Begins Testimony On Hearing’s Fifth Day, Characterizes Payments To Racing Office As Gifts appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Analysis: Kentucky November Mixed Sales Display A ‘Hold’ Market, And That’s Okay

On the surface, the numbers were down across the board at the 2020 November mixed sales in Kentucky after a lot of people bought high on mares and stud fees in previous years, and the world is still on the razor's edge until a COVID-19 vaccine reaches mass distribution. Looking at it from that scope, it can be hard to drum up optimism for the direction of the bloodstock market.

So, why are so many buyers and sellers exiting the November sales feeling decent-to-good about where they stand? It's about the horses that didn't sell.

The bloodstock market has shown signs of wobbling toward a downturn for a few years as the whims of buyers get increasingly polarized, and the target to make serious money at the yearling and 2-year-old sales gets smaller.

Pair that with all of the sudden obstacles and uncertainties that COVID-19 brought about, and it would have been understandable if the November sales saw broodmare owners abandoning ship before the bottom fully falls out. Anyone that survived the crash of the late 2000s and early 2010s would rightfully be hesitant to hang on to stock that could produce foals worth a fraction of what they'd make in a stronger market.

Instead, the marathon Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale shrunk by two days and about 750 horses. The overall buyback rate went down, but not as steeply in the upper markets, suggesting sellers weren't going to let their better stock go if the price wasn't right.

A horse only gets one shot at a yearling or 2-year-old sale season, so they go through the ring with a sense of urgency. Broodmares will always be broodmares, and weanlings have plenty more chances to sell before they reach racing age. Patience in that segment of the market is one of the true canaries in the Thoroughbred industry coal mine.

When they had every reason to stuff the November catalogs and panic-sell, the long-term oracles of the bloodstock market have elected to “hold.” That's not necessarily a sign that an upswing is magically on the horizon, but it does suggest the market is viable enough for breeders to stick around for the next year or two and see what happens. In these uncertain times, that's about as ringing an endorsement as you're going to get.

“When we were looking at our entries for the November sales, we certainly found a tentative attitude from breeders and owners in general who said, 'Look, I don't want to sell into a down market,'” said Tony Lacy of consignor Four Star Sales. “I found this to be a strength. If people are willing to hold on to their stock, and not be in a position where they have to sell, that's actually okay. In the last downturn, people had to sell, so we had an abundance of product with a lack of demand. That exacerbated the weak position our industry found itself in for those three or four years.

“In the last downturn, it was unnerving because not only was there an economic downturn, there was a lack of confidence, and it was globally,” he continued. “There was also just a pure lack of money. This time, it's not a lack of money, I think it's confidence, and I think we're so far into the pandemic, we've learned this is just the way we have to operate now. From that standpoint, I think people sort of got into a rhythm.”

Of course, this is far from an “everything's fine” report to focus on the silver linings of a market that saw a drop of about eight percent in average and median sale prices during the Keeneland November sale. The auction market will still enter 2021 with a lot of the same questions and potential rough spots it had in 2020, and a deeper market correction certainly wouldn't be outside the realm of possibility. What's fortunate is the market largely exited the November sales without adding any new questions.

A common note among buyers and sellers exiting the November sales was a general scarcity for weanlings, and in turn, quality weanlings. Geoffrey Russell, Keeneland's director of sales operations, confirmed that fewer weanlings went through the ring this year, with some owners deciding to wait for the yearling season, which made for a smaller margin for defeat when it came to bidding.

Conrad Bandoroff of consignor Denali Stud said the weanling market still had a few of the trappings of the yearling sales in terms of what buyers were looking for.

Much like how a rocky 2-year-old auction season this spring and summer had a bearing on the ensuing yearling season when pinhookers came back to re-stock, Bandoroff said he noticed some trepidation in the weanling-to-yearling pinhook market after their calendar saw some major shuffling due to COVID-19 and results were mixed during the yearling sales.

“I thought the weanling market could be described as a little tough, but coming off the heels of what was a difficult yearling sale season, you'd expect the weanling pinhookers were going to be careful,” Bandoroff said. “They were just very selective, and it was kind of just feast or famine.”

Adrian Regan, who bought as agent and sold under his Hunter Valley Farm, also noticed the pinhooking presence seemed a little light this year, but the ones that hit the marks brought serious money.

“We thought there were a few faces missing in the pinhooking market this year,” Regan said. “The pinhookers were more cautious about what they were spending on foals, but it seemed maybe a little more polarized than in other years, much the same as the yearling market. Everybody seemed to be falling on the same ones, but in saying that, it was a pretty good market overall.”

Russell noted that the buyer's bench for weanlings has shifted in recent years, which also might have had an effect on how pinhook buyers approached the November sales.

“With several major end-users now participating in the foal market, it pushed pinhookers back, and they probably haven't fulfilled their needs, so hopefully they'll came back in January and fill their requirements,” he said.

In comparing the September and November sales, Bandoroff said the November sales did a better job maintaining their momentum throughout the duration of the auction. In comparison, the upper-middle market of the yearling auctions was tough sledding until it reached the portion of the catalog supported by buyers who needed to purchase horses to make a living – namely, pinhookers and trainers – at which point, the market solidified again.

There was still some of that during the 2020 November sales, but Lacy said the clientele for the mixed sales, particularly the broodmare market, tends to be a more reliable buyer because it's the one staring in the mirror.

“As we got into the middle markets, I felt there was a lot more stability,” Lacy said. “You could value a horse more accurately, and I thought there was more confidence in the middle markets. In all essence, it's trade. We're trading amongst ourselves, and I felt like the confidence internally in the industry was probably more buoyant than we all expected.

“I think we've got to look at ourselves as farmers, because that's essentially what we are, and in any form of farming, in any year, no matter if the crop is a massive success, or if it's a disappointment, the farmer still has to put the plow in the ground, and I saw a lot of that,” he continued. “People were trying to upgrade some of the stock, what they felt might be perceived as value, when in actual fact, I thought a lot of the breeding stock was selling better than it was last year.”

Bloodstock agent Hanzly Albina, who made 14 purchases under the Sallusto & Albina Bloodstock banner, said he found a sense of optimism in the results and the activity on the grounds at a level he did not expect going into the season.

That was a common refrain among many on the sales grounds – uncertainty and concern followed by expectations being exceeded. Most, including Albina, said it could have been worse, and the fact that it wasn't is a victory in and of itself.

“Competition was pretty strong,” he said. “Obviously at the very top end, with a few of the larger groups spending more money than they previously had, that definitely pushed other buyers further down the catalog. I think that really helped everyone. It was tough to buy really nice mares. The prices were pretty consistent on the cheaper side. I did not feel like I was getting a 50 percent discount on the cheaper stock, and if I did, it would be an indicator of buyers' apprehension, so that was encouraging.”

The major Kentucky auction calendar is through for 2020, but the mixed season itself will have a couple more stops in the Bluegrass in January at Keeneland and February at Fasig-Tipton. Neither auction will have the depth or seven-figure magnitude of its November predecessors, but the world can change so drastically in two months' time that it will still be a necessary temperature check of market confidence.

Judging by the size of the Keeneland January catalog, sellers will remain in the “hold” position. Russell said the auction will be a four-day affair when it spanned five days in 2020, and the catalog will slim down from about 1,800 entries to about 1,600.

The market crash wasn't that long ago. We all remember what a fire sale looks like, and breeders know when it's time to start selling off major branches of the factory to stay in business, or in the debt collector's good graces. Right now, we're not seeing that. A lot can change, but the fact that the alarm hasn't been sounded should provide a bit of hope that whenever things go back to something approaching normal, the climb back up the hill won't be as long.

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Partnership Formed To Accelerate Advancements In Equine Musculoskeletal Health

Together with MARS Equestrian, the University of Pennsylvania's School of Veterinary Medicine (Penn Vet) has launched an innovative educational research program dedicated to advancing critical frontiers in equine health.

At its core, the MARS Equestrian Early Career Investigator program is providing aspiring veterinary researchers with an exceptional, multidimensional mentorship experience guided by a team of leading Penn Vet researchers and animal health experts from MARS Equestrian and the WALTHAM Equine Studies Group.

Sarah Ciamillo, DVM, of Boonton Township, NJ, has been selected as the first Early Career Investigator for the newly minted program. “As a long-time equestrian, equine advocate, and new equine veterinarian, there is nothing more important to me than the future health and welfare of the horse,” said Ciamillo.

In her role, Ciamillo is refining a set of comprehensive skills necessary for a burgeoning career in veterinary medicine research, from data collection and analysis to stewardship and public service. The most compelling element of the Early Career Investigator program, however, is the immersive opportunity to assist in developing novel and transformative clinical techniques.

Specifically, Ciamillo is assisting a team of Penn Vet New Bolton Center researchers in a dynamic, first-of-its-kind study assessing equine bone characteristics and limb biomechanics using New Bolton Center's advanced diagnostic imaging technologies–including its revolutionary standing robotic computed tomography (CT) system.

Ultimately, the researchers hope to use the findings to understand bone and joint injury in horses and develop preventative tools that would improve the health and well-being of equines across all discipline spectrums.

Penn Vet's Dr. Kyla Ortved, assistant professor of large animal surgery at New Bolton Center, is serving as the primary mentor and lead researcher for this Early Career Investigator project. A clinical expert in equine orthopedic surgery and sports medicine, Ortved's research program seeks to better understand attributes of the equine joint in order to improve clinical outcomes associated with osteoarthritis following injury in horses.

“Mentorship is a cardinal element of individual career success, particularly in the veterinary medicine field,” said Ortved. “The MARS Equestrian Early Career Investigator program's unique platform will provide junior researchers with an unparalleled learning experience while simultaneously fostering fundamental discoveries in vital areas of research that will unequivocally improve the lives of our equine partners.”

Ciamillo also has the opportunity to work alongside other leading Penn Vet faculty including Dr. Dean Richardson, chief of large animal surgery at New Bolton Center; Dr. Darko Stefanovski, associate professor of biostatistics; and Dr. Andrew van Eps, associate professor of equine musculoskeletal research.

“The MARS Equestrian Early Career Investigator program is more than just an immersive experience into a practical and applicable learning environment,” said Dr. Bridgett McIntosh, Director of MARS Equestrian. “By coupling New Bolton Center's prowess as an innovator in equine health with MARS Equestrian's commitment to enriching lives through equestrian sport, our hope is to make a lasting impact on equine health through future generations of veterinarians, ultimately creating a better world for our horses.”

Dr. Pat Harris, head of the equine studies group at the WALTHAM Petcare Science Institute and Director of Science for MARS Horsecare shared “I am incredibly excited to be part of this important initiative championing the development of new researchers whose work will be vital in helping to advance frontiers in equine health and science.”

“Through this extraordinary opportunity to work alongside trailblazers in various facets of the animal health field, we hope to inspire more young people interested in pursuing a career in veterinary medicine and research at Penn Vet's New Bolton Center, these budding veterinarians will be at the nexus of creating the clinical solutions of tomorrow, for some of the most complex and challenging conditions facing our equine partners,” said Christa Schmidt, who presently serves on Penn Vet's Board of Overseers.

“The MARS Equestrian Early Career Investigator Program is providing crucial training in research areas that are fundamental to advancing the field of equine veterinary medicine,” added Ciamillo.  “I am incredibly grateful to my mentors at New Bolton Center and to MARS for this unique opportunity to play an integral role in this field of research, develop critical thinking and benchtop skills, and as a result, contribute to my ultimate career goal–to make a lasting difference for horses and humans alike.”

For more information about MARS Equestrian's commitment to improving the lives of horses, pets and the people who love them, click here.

For more information about Penn Vet, click here.

Read more here.

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