A Clear Sign: The End is Near

The Boniface family, owners of Bonita Farm in Darlington, have all but thrown in the towel on the horse industry in Maryland. Bonita Farm boasts the finest facilities around: a 5/8 mile dirt track, 1/2 mile turf course, nine paddocks, and an indoor track, as well as a 30-foot wide turf course around the entire farm. This sounds like it would be a thriving operation, right? Not anymore!

J. William Boniface, the farm's general manager, has planted 2,800 merlot grapevines over the past few weeks. The grapes will take around four years to grow. The plan is for the family to distribute the grapes to Maryland wineries, which could result in $20,000 to $30,000 a year, said William's son, Billy, a partner in the farm.

"We're horsemen," Billy Boniface said. "Anything to stay in business and use the land."

The Bonifaces' move comes at a time when Maryland's horse industry is facing stiff competition from emerging industries in neighboring Pennsylvania, Delaware and West Virginia. Those states have slot-machine gambling that help fund their horse racing industries -- a strategy many Maryland horse industry insiders say could help this state's sagging business.


As the amount of mares that board annually at the farm continues to slide, Billy Boniface said the family has began to plan for the future and find other ways to use their nearly 400-acre Harford County farm in case the horsing business doesn't pick up soon in the state.

The Bonifaces also planted 1,400 Christmas trees, which will take up to six years to produce.

"Rather than selling and moving out of the state, [horse breeders] are looking to add something," said Cricket Goodall, executive director of the Maryland Horse Breeders Association. The Bonifaces "are dedicated to this industry, and I think it's painful for them to see this happening."

Billy Boniface said that a new fencing project on the farm for its horse boarding business may result in cows being housed on-site in the future.

"I'd much rather have that barn full of six stallions breeding mares and having the mares coming in here," he said. "But they're not coming. I still got to stay in business and keep the farm mortgage paid." Baltimore Biz Journal

Sunday - Quick Hits

- Nice story from the DRF about Rock Slide and the Maryland Stallion Station. This is a feel good story!

- The Baltimore Sun had a full page article about Gulfstream Park. The article really concentrated on the fact that you can have slots and horse racing. To me this seemed like a very expensive advertisement in the Sunday paper. Did Magna pay for this?

- Dr. Dean Richardson and jockey Edgar Prado will be presented with the Special Award of Merit as part of this year's Preakness media awards during the annual Alibi Breakfast at Pimlico Race Course on May 17.

- Stay Close wins the Henry Clark Stakes at Pimlico yesterday.

- Your Flame In Me wins the Xtra Heat Stakes at Pimlico yesterday.

Laurel (Winter) Meet Comes To A Close

Real busy racing weekend here in Maryland. The Laurel winter meet wraped up, and I think I am the only person excited for the Pimlico spring meet (starts Thursday). Here are a few updates from this weekend:

- Trainer Rodney Jenkins filly High Moment, pulled off a nice upset win in the 60,000 Dahlia turf stakes at Laurel Park. High Moment paid $36.60 on a $2 bet. Jenkins plans High Moment's next start will come in the Grade III $100,000 Gallorette Handicap on May 19 (Preakness undercard).

- Horacio Karamanos recorded his 1,000th win of his North American career. Karamanos, 33, won nearly 1,500 races in Argentina before moving to South Florida in 2001. Congratulations Horacio!

- The 15-week Laurel Park winter meeting ended Saturday (racing was cancelled on Sunday due to a crazy storm) with Jeremy Rose (jockey), Scott Lake (trainer), and Robert Cole (owner) winning individual titles. The 71-day meet started on January 1.

Weekend Wrap Up

- Ah Day, far back most of the way, rallied on the turn and finished third behind Silver Wagon and Diabolical in the Grade I $300,000 Carter Handicap on the Wood Memorial undercard. Silver Wagon, who won the General George Breeders' Cup Handicap at Laurel Park in his prior start, ran the seven-furlong race in 1:21.46

- My Sister Sue beat the favorite and then survived a claim of interference on her way to a driving victory in Saturdays feature at Laurel, the $100,000 Primonetta Stakes for fillies and mares. My Sister Sue ridden by Katie Lee crossed the finish line first by 4-1/4 lengths and Homesteader rallied to nip Coli Bear by a head to take second. After reviewing the race replay and interviewing the riders, the Laurel Park judges allowed 1-2-3 order of finish remain as it was. The winning time for the six furlong distance was 1:10.71.

“She has a lot of idiosyncrasies but with Katie’s help we got it worked out,” said winning trainer Flint Stites. “She’s on the top of her game right now. She doesn’t like the whip and she doesn’t like to get caught behind horses. She’s got to be outside.”

The win was the first stakes victory for Lee.

“Very exciting,” added Lee.“Flint has helped me out so much ever since I had the bug at Penn National. He has taken good care of me. This is wonderful."

The stewards also entertained a claim of foul against La Chica Rica, the fourth place finisher, who was disqualified for interference and placed fifth behind Scheing E Jet.

This win is a shock to me. When I see a Flint Stites horse ridden by Katie Lee, it is almost guaranteed not to win. We'll I guess they caught lightening in a bottle yesterday. Enjoy....It will probably be another 200 races before you two see the winners circle again!

Maryland Update 4/7

Jeremy Rose will also be out of town Saturday as Laurel’s leading rider will ride a pair of stakes races at Keeneland. He will be riding Call Me Clash, who won the Horatius Stakes at Laurel last month, in the Lafayette Stakes for trainer Scott Lake and Silver Knockers in the Grade I Ashland for Hall of Famer Nick Zito. Rose leads the jockey colony with 69 trips to the winners’ circle, 20 more than Pino with six days remaining in the winter meeting.

King Leatherbury has registered 6,184 victories but just two have been of the Grade I variety. On Saturday, the 74-year-old conditioner will send Ah Day to Aqueduct for the $300,000 Carter Handicap. The Grade I test has attracted six other top older horses at seven-furlongs.

In his last start, the son of Malibu Moon finished a game second in the Grade II General George Breeders’ Cup Handicap at Laurel to Silver Wagon, the likely favorite in the Carter. The race also features Diabolical, who was second in the Grade I De Francis Dash, multiple graded winner Latent Heat and Keyed Entry from the powerful Todd Pletcher stable. Ah Day has won nine of 19 career races for more than $560,000. After capturing six added money races as a three-year-old a year ago, the Leatherbury homebred was an impressive winner of the Fire Plug Stakes on January 20 with Mario Pino, who will accompany the gelding to New York.

Who is this horse ?????

- Trainer Scott Lake sent a 3-year-old gelding named Call Me Clash to Laurel Park on Saturday. The horse shipped in from Philadelphia Park for the $90,000 Horatius Stakes. Call Me Clash led the entire way to beat five others and win by three lengths. In the winner's circle, Lake's Laurel-based assistant Hugh McMahon was asked about the horse, and he said, "This horse shipped in today. I don't know anything about him." McMahon was the trainer of record when Call Me Clash won a 5 1/2 -furlong race on Jan. 5 at Laurel Park......Hmmmmm. Jockey Jeremy Rose, however, rode Call Me Clash in both races.

- The slots bill proposed by Senate President Mike Miller goes to committee tomorrow, but Millers weekend quote was "I predict the bill will pass eventually -- just maybe not this year." - Oh well!

- The rumor around Maryland is that New York and New Jersey will place restrictions on horses from Maryland. The spread of herpes may be a little greater than the press is reporting. Many Maryland owners and trainers are sending horses out of state in preparations for a quarantine.

Valentines Day - Quick Hits

Valentines Day....The "Official" start of breeding season. At least for those that have not gambled on having a foal born on December 31st. Valentines Day and the start of breeding season, so romantic. When that beautiful young mare is brought into the breeding shed, held in place by four to five handlers, a 1500 pound beast jumps on her back and bites her until he is finished. So romantic!

General George (GII)- Well, I guess I will not get to see Sweetnorthernsaint and Ah Day go head to head in the General George."

Sweetnorthernsaint is going to pass on this weekend," said trainer Michael Trombetta, who had nominated the horse to the General George and Saturday's $115,000 John B. Campbell Handicap. "Our plan all along was not to rush him, and I've only had a chance to breeze him once since we shipped him back from Florida."

Laurel Park - canceled racing Wednesday due to two solid inches of ice on the track. This is the first time a day of racing during the winter meet has been canceled since 1995.

Winter Sprintfest

The Maryland Jockey Club has released the list of nominees for the three stakes that make up the "Winter Sprintfest". The seven-furlong Grade II Barbara Fritchie Breeders’ Cup Handicap and the 1-1/8 mile John B. Campbell will be run on Saturday, February 17. The seven-furlong General George (GII) is slated for Monday, February 19.

The highlight on the cards for me is the General George. Two Laurel Park based four year olds stars, Sweetnorthernsaint, and Ah Day will go head-to-head. In addition to the local stars, Bishop Court and Diabolical have also been nominated.

The Maryland Jockey Club has added some promotions to help lure the fans to the track for the weekend of racing. Autograph Sessions, Preakness ticket drawings, and a special winners circle presentation to last years top Maryland jock, Rosie Napravnik. For the kids, they will have face painting, family fun games, and a free sports bag.

It is sad when you need to run promotions on a day when you have some of the best horses in the country running at your track. Does free admission, a free sports bag, and face painting really bring more people to the track?

"Ah Day is a freak"

"Ah Day is a freak, he moved up from college to the NFL and proved it wasn’t a problem. My horse was just beat by less than three lengths in the Grade I De Francis Dash and ran a perfect race. Ah Day ran by us like we weren’t even running.” - Ryan Fogelsonger, who rode the place horse in the Laurel Fire Plug Stakes

After winning six stakes during his three-year-old campaign, the son of Malibu Moon ended 2006 with a sad performance in the Northern Dancer Stakes. Trainer King Leatherbury gave the gelding two months off and saw Ah Day return the favor with a easy 3-3/4 length victory under jockey Mario Pino.


Leatherbury plans on running Ah Day is the General George Breeders' Cup Handicap (Grade II) at Laurel on February 19.

I watched this horse break his maiden back in November of 2005, and he was so impressive that day, that I made sure to add him to my virtual stable. I have been following his career ever since. He probably will not be the favorite on February 19, so he may be worth a few dollars at the window.

Horse Racing Game

It's too late for the Holiday gift giving season, but I just came across a great game at this British web site. You can choose the weights of the jockeys and and the speed of the horses. Don't go too fast, or your jock will fall off. I can definitely see my gang throwing back some Guinness and doing some of our own pari-mutuel gaming. Look how excited the people in the picture are. It must be good!

Marketing 101 (For Owners and Breeders)

NAMES
1. Don't give your horse a name that is only funny to you, your family, or friends.
2. Your colt may stand stud some day. 20 years from now someone may say "My filly is 3 by 2 Green Monkey"
3. If you are going to name a horse after a person, make it flow.
..........Examples that work: Stevie Wonderboy, Declans Moon, Giacomo
..........Examples that do not work: Pretty as my Lucy, mysonjackstoy

SILKS
1. KEEP THEM SIMPLE
.......Lime green, lavender, and red do not look good together
.......No pictures...I think I saw the Mona Lisa on the back of a jockey at Charles Town

ADVERTISING
1.Don't take out a full page ad in the Bloodhorse with photos of poorly confirmed foals.
2.Don't forget the following info on stallion ads: Name of farm, name of stallion, address, phone, website, price.
(I can't tell you how many adds I see that are missing important information)
3. If you stand the leading stallion in Maine, don't advertise nationally. Nobody in Kentucky, or California, or even New Jersey is going to send you a mare. Save your money and advertise in the PennySaver.

I can go on for days, but anymore info is going to cost you!