Get in the Game with Thoroughbred OwnerView
Million dollar babies grab auction headlines, but a good horse can be had at any price. Just ask owner J. Paul Reddam: I'll Have Another, purchased for $35,000 at the 2011 Ocala Breeders' Spring Sale of Two-Year-Olds in Training, will attempt to become the 12th Triple Crown winner on Saturday in the Belmont Stakes. His career earnings currently stand at more than $2.6 million.
Or consider retired champion Blind Luck. Trainer and part-owner Jerry Hollendorfer spotted the filly at the 2008 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Select Yearling Sale and bought her for $11,000. She went on to win six Grade 1 stakes races and to finish second in the 2010 Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic.
Zenyatta, 2010 Horse of the Year, was famously purchased for $60,000 by owners Jerry and Ann Moss at the 2005 Keeneland September Yearling Sale. She won 19 straight races — including the 2009 Breeders' Cup Classic — and, in her only loss, ended her career running second to Blame in the 2010 Breeders' Cup Classic with more than $7.3 million in earnings.
Such successes are enough to make anyone dream of what rewards might come with Thoroughbred horse ownership.
In April, the Jockey Club launched OwnerView, a resource dedicated to helping interested prospective and current Thoroughbred owners find information about owning racehorses, racing syndicates, and state licensing requirements.
The website also includes detailed trainer statistics. OwnerView visitors can view individual trainers' stats for starts, wins, and earnings, as well as graded stakes performances and average earnings per start and per starter. Visitors can compare two or more trainers, and check active trainers' records for rulings. Similar statistics are available for racing syndicates.
For prospective and new owners, OwnerView offers a "Getting Started Owning Thoroughbreds" section, which includes video testimonies from active owners and trainers. Among the topics covered are developing a business plan, selecting advisors, purchase options, and tax considerations.
The 2012 Triple Crown season is coming to an end, but all the excitement of summer racing and the fall championship season culminating in the Breeders' Cup at Santa Anita is just beginning. If you've ever imagined yourself in the winner's circle, or if you're a current owner looking for more information about racehorse ownership, take a moment to visit OwnerView from the Jockey Club.
