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Report: Corniche to Freshen at WinStar Before Returning to Baffert

Presumptive 2-year-old champion male and GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile hero Corniche (Quality Road) will be freshened briefly at WinStar Farm in Kentucky this winter before returning to Bob Baffert's barn, according to a report in Daily Racing Form. Marette Farrell, who purchased the $1.5-million colt for Speedway Stable, said Corniche was sent to Kentucky last Wednesday.

“It's time to give him a little bit of a break,” Farrell told DRF. “Speedway likes to use WinStar for lay-ups. He can be turned out, graduate to a paddock, and they have a track, too. It's important to get a break mentally. A change of scenery is good for all of us.”

The ongoing subplot regarding Corniche and Baffert's other potential GI Kentucky Derby contenders is what the respective ownerships will do with their horses as the Derby, now a little over five months away, inches closer on the calendar. Baffert was suspended for two years from running horses at Churchill Downs after his Medina Spirit (Protonico) tested positive for an overage of betamethasone in this year's Derby.

If that suspension holds, it would likely prompt owners to move their horses from Baffert in time to run in the May 7 Derby. But for now, Peter Fluor and KC Weiner's Speedway is staying loyal to Baffert, as Farrell said the plan is to return Corniche to Baffert's barn at Santa Anita after his freshening.

“Peter wants to be loyal,” she said. “Corniche won the Breeders' Cup, and he's a possible 2-year-old champion. No decisions have been made–there hasn't even been any talk about another trainer, or who he'd go to if he needs to go to another trainer. If the time comes that a decision needs to be made, if it needs to be that way, we'll put our heads together and make a decision.”

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Former HOF President von Stade Dies

John T. Von Stade, the longest serving president of the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame from 1989-2005, passed away Nov. 25 at his home in Lutherville, Maryland. He was 83 years of age.

Born June 28, 1938, in Old Westbury, New York, von Stade graduated from St. Paul's School in Concord, New Hampshire, and Harvard University, pursuing a passion for music while participating in and managing the choir at St. Paul's and the glee club at Harvard. After attending the Aspen School of Music and a stint in the Army Reserves, von State spent some time in the world of banking before opening the Essex Gallery of Sport in Far Hills, New Jersey.

Von Stade's father was a founder of the National Museum of Racing in 1950, president of the National Steeplechase Association and the final president of the Saratoga Association, which owned and operated Saratoga Race Course. In his youth, John von Stade drove a tractor at the track.

For a half-century, von Stade served as co-chair at Far Hills, helping to grow an event that early on attracted a few thousand spectators to the country's richest day of steeplechasing.

After serving more than a decade as a trustee of the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, von Stade was elected as its president in 1989, succeeding Whitney Tower. During his tenure, von Stade oversaw an $18-million project that modernized the institution and increased the size of the facility to better than 45,000 square feet. In 1995, von Stade was the recipient of the F. Ambrose Clark Award, the highest honor in steeplechasing, given periodically to an individual who has done the most to promote, improve and encourage the growth and welfare of American steeplechasing.

Von Stade is survived by his wife, the former Phyllis Kaltenbach DuVal; his son, John von Stade Jr. and daughter-in-law Ann von Stade; Phyllis's daughters and son-in-law Anna DuVal, Olivia Duval and Joseph Cutrone; and six grandchildren. He was also the uncle to many nephews and nieces, including the opera singer Frederica von Stade.

Services will be held Sunday, Dec. 19 at 2 p.m. at St. Thomas' Episcopal Church in Ownings Mills, Maryland.

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RTIP Global Symposium to be Streamed Live

The 47th annual University of Arizona's Race Track Industry Program (RTIP) Global Symposium on Racing, to be held in Tucson Dec. 6-8, will be streamed live online for the first time. Roberts Communications Network (RCN) will make the live streaming package, which will include archived sessions of each panel, available for $195 on Racetrack Television Network (RTN), with all proceeds from the sales going back to the RTIP.

“We are thrilled to stream the symposium to a global audience for the first time,” said RTIP Chair Robert Hartman. “While there will be a huge turnout of industry attendees, we also understand that travel may not be possible for some, and felt it was important to make these panel sessions available to everyone. We are very appreciative of RCN's help in this endeavor and especially their generosity in donating all of the proceeds back to the program.”

The agenda for this year's symposium includes panels on and/or reports from the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA), industry leaders sharing their three-year plan, ways to increase field size, seizing the fixed odds and sports betting opportunities, growing sponsorship revenue, and more.

For more information on the symposium, including a full agenda, visit ua-rtip.org/symposium.

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Lukas to be Keynote Speaker at HBPA Convention

Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas will deliver the keynote address at the National Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association (HBPA)'s annual convention in March. The conference will be held Mar. 1-5 at Oaklawn Park's new hotel overlooking the first turn.

“When we seek out our keynote speaker, we look for inspiration and passion,” said Eric Hamelback, CEO of the National HBPA. “Not only do we get that in spades with D. Wayne Lukas, but his overall legacy is unmatched in horse racing. Yet it's not only that Wayne has impacted so many aspects of racing with his well-known accomplishments and vision. He also has been an extraordinary ambassador for our industry in so many unpublicized and behind-the-scenes ways. There's no telling how many little kids will become diehard racing enthusiasts because D. Wayne invited them into the winner's circle after one of his victories.”

Lukas, 86, will give his address Wednesday, Mar. 2. The convention will also include legal topics and discussions centering on the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA); crisis-management recommendations; ideas for creating positive interactions with local, state, and federal representatives; ways to utilize the guest-worker visa programs; fixed odds' place in American racing; and the annual Kent Stirling Memorial Medication Panel addressing the need for screening limits. Other speakers will include Louis Cella, president of Oaklawn Racing Casino Resort.

For more information, visit nationalhbpa.com.

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