National Steeplechase Association | Horse Racing Free Tips

Beverly R. Steinman Added to NYRA Steeplechase Program

The $150,000 G1 Beverly R. Steinman S., a 2 3/8-mile steeplechase event for older horses, will be held June 9 as part of the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival at Saratoga Race Course.

The race is named for Beverly R. “Peggy” Steinman, who has successfully balanced decades of ownership in both the steeplechase and flat racing worlds with stars such as Dark Equation, who captured the 2008 G1 New York Turf Writers Cup, and Colstar, a multiple graded stakes-winning filly who won more than $1 million on the flat.

“The New York Racing Association is excited to incorporate a steeplechase event into the 2024 Belmont Stakes Racing Festival,” said Andrew Offerman, NYRA's Senior Vice President of Racing and Operations. “We value the longstanding relationship that NYRA and the NSA have shared and are pleased to honor Peggy Steinman with this wonderful new event.”

Bill Gallo, the National Steeplechase Association's (NSA) Director of Racing, said the race is a welcome addition to the steeplechase calendar.

“Peggy Steinman has represented the National Steeplechase Association at the highest level for decades, particularly at Saratoga, where her presence alone, sitting in her prominent finish-line box, has reminded people in the industry, and especially at the New York Racing Association, that the traditions of steeplechasing run deep,” said Gallo. “This is a fitting and wonderful tribute to a very special person on an historic weekend in Saratoga. She is thrilled with the honor and looking forward to the Belmont at Saratoga Festival.”

The Steinman will kick off a 2024 jumps program on the NYRA circuit which includes seven races worth a total of $825,000. Four stakes will be held at the Saratoga summer meet topped by a pair of $150,000 Grade 1 events at 2 3/8-miles–the A. P. Smithwick Memorial July 17 and the Jonathan Sheppard Memorial Aug. 14.

Steeplechase stakes action on the NYRA circuit will conclude at the Belmont at the Big A fall meet with the $150,000 G1 Lonesome Glory and the $75,000 William Entenmann novice stakes.

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Steeplechasing Returns To Sunshine State With New Meet, New Venue

More than a decade has passed since the last steeplechase was run in Florida. The Little Everglades meet, in Dade City, had a checkered history, beginning as an National Steeplechase Association-assisted point-to-point in 2000 and continuing with and without sanctioning through 2009. Through its decade-long run, though, one thing was constant. The beautiful venue in sunny Florida gave horsemen hunkered down in wintry climes something to look forward to as a starting point for the season ahead.

On March 5, jump racing returns to the state in the form of a point-to-point – with backing and guidance from both the NSA and Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase Foundation – at the Florida Horse Park in Ocala. The meet is the brainchild of former NSA jockey Archie Macauley and his partner Jessica Berry. It also has generated strong support from Mason Lampton, who runs the Steeplechase at Callaway Gardens in Pine Mountain, Ga., and whose family has a rich history in the sport, along with Michael Hankin and Brown Advisory, one of steeplechasing's pre-eminent sponsors.

Tentative plans call for a six-race card, three over hurdles, with a 12:30 p.m. post time. Entries close 11:00 a.m., Monday, March 1. For ticketing and other information, visit www.Thefloridasteeplechase.com.

“We stand behind the meet and will support it in any way we can to create an exciting new event opportunity,” said NSA President Al Griffin. “The goal is to make it part of the calendar in 2023 as a properly sanctioned meet. For now, it's a nice opportunity for trainers and owners to school younger horses and for us to check out the facility.”

Berry, who serves as the meet's vice chair, said that the seeds for the event were planted when she and Macauley became friends with eventer Buck Davidson, who is on the board of the Horse Park. Davidson told the couple that the park would like to host a steeplechase and put them in touch with its director, Jason Reynolds. Reynolds invited the couple to visit. The team began putting the pieces together early in 2020, with the aim of scheduling it after the Steeplechase of Charleston in mid-November.

Then Covid struck, which put the project on hold until this past fall.

“The Horse Park had the first weekend in March available,” Berry said. “We knew it was ambitious to try and put this together in essentially three months. But we also believed that it was a good date because it fell at the beginning of the jump-racing season, it was still within the winter season of the other equestrian disciplines in Ocala, and it was just before the 2-year-old Ocala Breeders' Sale. It started to sink in that this was really happening when we launched the website in December, and from there we haven't had any time to question it because we've been flat out organizing it.”

Berry said the local community has been very supportive, as has the Horse Park itself.

“They've gone above and beyond to make this happen,” she said. “Jason and his team have used their machinery and expertise to help us design, create, and maintain the course. The Ocala Chamber of Commerce was also one of our first points of contact, and its Director of Equine Engagement Louisa Barton has been a tremendous help by introducing us to members of the local equine community and having us on her show to talk about the event back in December. The local businesses and horsemen we have spoken to are all looking forward to the event and we are hoping for a big turnout and to establish the steeplechase as an annual feature in the community's calendar.”

NSA horsemen have expressed their interest, too.

“Every owner and trainer we have spoken to so far has been supportive of the event and many have already offered to bring runners,” Berry added. “There are also some former steeplechase horsemen who live in the area who are keen to get involved and participate. In addition, we are also thankful for the support of the Temple Gwathmey Foundation, the NSA, and SOTA (Steeplechase Owners and Trainers Association).”

The steeplechase course is situated within the existing cross-country course. It's fully irrigated, about 1 1/16 miles around, and slightly undulating. It's not an oval, but there is a long straightaway leading into the stretch that offers spectators a great vantage point to view the final fence and race to the wire.

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Steeplechase Bonus Program Launched By Maryland Horse Breeders Association

The Maryland Horse Breeders Association (MHBA) Board of Directors recently voted unanimously to begin an award program for Breeder, Owner and Stallion bonuses for registered Maryland-breds at sanctioned steeplechase race meets in Maryland. The MHBA will pay these bonus awards for those participants that qualify.

Beginning in 2022, registered Maryland-bred horses that run first, second or third will receive 30 percent on purses earned at National Steeplechase Association-sanctioned meets in Maryland. This program is modeled on the current bonuses paid to Maryland-breds that run at Laurel Park, Pimlico Race Course and Timonium.

The five meets that qualify for this program this year are: My Lady's Manor, Grand National, Maryland Hunt Cup, Fair Hill, and Legacy Chase at Shawan Downs. The bonus applies to NSA-sanctioned steeplechase and flat races with listed purses at Maryland meets. Bonuses will not apply to training flat races.

“We believe this program rewards those Maryland-bred horses that have successful careers over jumps and the people who breed, own and race them here,” said Richie Blue, Jr., MHBA president. “This community is an important part of Maryland's horse industry. Much of the land that is called 'horse country' is due to their vision and efforts to preserve green space.”

The bonuses provide another avenue for owners and breeders of Maryland-breds, while also offering another incentive to campaign Maryland-bred horses in the state. Monkton-based trainer Todd Wyatt, president of the Steeplechase Owners and Trainers Association, called it a positive step for all. Wyatt won the 2015 Maryland Hunt Cup with Maryland-bred Raven's Choice, who raced for owners/breeders Cary and Ann Jackson, and won two steeplechase races with Maryland-bred Include It in 2021.

“It gives incentive to people to keep participating, there are people in Maryland who breed horses that are in steeplechasing,” said Wyatt. “It would have been very cool to have that when Raven's Choice was running. We got Include It from the Meyerhoffs and getting those breeder bonuses to somebody that might not even be aware is a good thing. It has to help jump racing, and it's a nice thing for breeders who aren't necessarily in jump racing too.”

Wyatt said owners and trainers don't necessarily count on state-bred incentives when searching for steeplechase prospects to purchase, but he could see that changing.

“If it comes down to selling a horse to someone who's going to keep the horse in Maryland or someone who is going to take the horse somewhere else, a breeder might consider selling to a steeplechase person,” he said. “And if you're looking for a horse as a steeplechase prospect, you might look start looking for Maryland-breds because of something like this.”

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COVID Concerns Prevent Keri Brion From Sending The Mean Queen Overseas For Cheltenham Festival

Expected to be named 2021 Eclipse Award-winning steeplechaser, The Mean Queen was slated to head over to Ireland early in the New Year to prep for the prestigious Mares' Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival in March, the National Steeplechase Association reported on Facebook. However, with Omicron cases on the rise, trainer Keri Brion has decided that the three-time Grade 1 winner will remain stateside.

Instead, The Mean Queen's next goal will come in spring: The G1 Iroquois at Nashville in May.

“The unknown of where Covid restrictions are heading over the next three months brought the Moorhead's (owners Rod and Alice) to the decision,” Brion explained. “It's important to them that they can enjoy the experience and with the way things are at the moment they wouldn't be able to. We had to make a decision now so that's the decision.”

If all goes well and the world returns to what at least passes for normal, Brion said The Mean Queen will again set her sights on Cheltenham in 2023.

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