British Columbia Increases Incentive Program

In an amazing show of cooperation and foresight, the BCTOBA and HBPA of British Columbia have agreed on helping British Columbia breeders and increasing participation of both consignors and buyers at the next two fall sales.

"We (the horse racing industry) are doing everything we can to get through 2021 and into a better 2022. Our members are resilient and we remain optimistic" said David Milburn, president of the HBPA of British Columbia, referring to the need for help in 2021 and the prospect of casinos opening and horse racing getting back to more normal racing seasons next year with the increased income from the two casinos.

According to Milburn, this plan was put together to show breeders and prospective owners that buying B.C.-breds is well worth it.

He explained that when Grant Watson of the CTHS which represents breeders in British Columbia talked about the decline in mares bred in British Columbia so far this year and the decline in entries to the fall sale people asked "how can we help". The assistance comes in the form of a five-year program starting in 2022 and ending in 2026.

First, there will be internal adjustments to the purse accounts to provide a 35% owners bonus to those owners racing a B.C.-bred in 2022 through 2026 for races which in 2021 are awarded the B.C.-bred Bonus of 25%.

"We are not adding any additional funding into the account," said BCTOBA president Ole Nielsen. "Instead, we will re-allocate some of the purse account funds to provide enough to make this increase to the B.C.-bred bonus viable".

The second part of the program will be for those yearlings purchased in 2021 and 2022 at the CTHS sale(s), having an additional 15% added to the B.C.-bred bonus for those purchases, in their 2-year-old and 3-year-old seasons, making it a 50% B.C.-bred Bonus.

"This plan makes sense and offers hope to our B.C. breeders and prospective owners in the future of this business," Watson said. "Working together we will survive and get past this COVID disaster we have all faced. I can only say to the HBPA and BCTOBA thank you for your understanding and your support as we move forward to more successful times".