I have decided to respond to this week’s announcement by Pepper Tree Farm & Alabar Farm.
That as from this coming Breeding session all Pepper Tree Stallions “will be marketed under the Alabar umbrella”. I have put together my views in response to the number of calls I have taken on this issue.
Before I outline my initial thoughts I need to make it perfectly clear on a few of the points / issues that have been expressed to me over the last couple of days.
- The 1st point being Rob & Julie Vandyke are completely within their rights to do whatever they feel is best for them, as such I truly wish them all the very best on whatever their involvement is with our industry & in life generally with their future endeavours. Rob & Julie have had a massive involvement within our sport / industry that has been of enormous benefit to all of us over many years. For this I have thanked them personally on many occasions & wish them all the very best moving forward.
- Point 2 – is that until we all know exactly the final details on this merger it is extremely difficult or in fact impossible to set out how it will finally impact our state & individual breeders accordingly.44
- Point 3 – is in response to why the Board & Management of HRNSW has not come out & officially responded to this announcement. From where is sit the answer is very simple:-, knowing John Dumesny, as I do, he will not enter the thought of undertaking anything without knowing all the facts, so as he can then present a levelled response / position to our Board of HRNSW. To debate and find a set plan that will then allow him and his team to develop and work through same. The last thing any of us in the industry needs at this point in time is having management go off & respond prior to completely understanding the relevant issue / issues needing to be resolved. As such I give him and his board total credibility for working through whatever needs to be resolved on this major issue. We should not set any time frame other than what is needed to be done prior to & well in advance of our next Breeding session.
- Point 4 – Why HRNSW did not do something about this issue, when some people within our industry knew this was going to happen 4 to6 weeks ago. Let me just say I heard about this being a possibility around that time period, however it was just a rumour and I was asked to keep it to myself. I did not then set about propagating this rumour & no one should respond to industry rumours & innuendos.
Now my view on how this announcement will affect our State;
- Based on all the Stallions residing in Victoria, will see our “Blue Series” fail due to the lack of eligible Horses being able to compete within this great concept. So this will require HRNSW & NSWHRC to work together on best outcome for owners and Breeders that may have targeted this series down the track.
- As in any industry that takes a service component out of one state & replants in another. will obviously takes away massive dollars, services and employment out of our state &out of regional areas of NSW, as such this is not good for NSW people and our economy.
- Major reduction in competition. Heading into the future it would or could take out a major player that imports and shuttles overseas stallions. It is very much recognised that Rob – Pepper Tree Stud have lead the way in NSW in acquiring the best available stallions that ultimately stand within our great State. This will greatly affect our State unless we can nurture & assist others to step up and fill this massive hole.
- Massive repositioning of Stallions Standing in NSW. I personally feel NSW has through the current & previous three or four boards of management have made enormous inroads into turning around the number of quality stallions standing in NSW. Now in one hit we have probably lost all the gains HRNSW has made over the past 6 – 9 years.
How I see the way forward;
- In any Business a perceived negative today can be your strength of tomorrow. What is needed is to fully recognise the issues and then set up a plan of attack that will address & build our port.
- I personally see this as a catalyst in changing the total dynamics of how our state can assist the develop & ultimately grow our Breeding numbers & quality of foals moving forward in NSW. This decision by Pepper Tree has bought us to a critical at this point in time. What has been thrust upon us now enables John Dumesny& his team to look at a total revamp of our Breeding initiatives that are funded by HRNSW. This is a massive opportunity that without this change taking place would never have allowed such an opportunity to eventuate.
- HRNSW in developing the pathway forward can now effectively segregate each section of our breeding industry for the overall betterment of our sport. What I am trying to say or highlight is the need to clearly understand what is critical to each organisation that is providing a service to our Breeding industry; On Farm stallions – standing at studs / semen transfer farms / permeant mares based on farms / yearling / weaning’s being looked after on a farm. Each part of this ends up providing our end product, that of a race horse.
- What I firmly believe is that we need to recognise and deliver is a breeding platform that fully recognises the fact we need to turn around and develop a pathway that incorporates the following.
A pathway that enables all sections within our Breeding Industry to grow the quality of our foals and the foal numbers to eliminate wastage.
Holds our dollars generated from providing services in our breeding industry to be retained within NSW & Australia in general.
Clarity on how to develop a pathway to develop colonial bred stallions
Finally what everyone needs to understand in my opinion, as we stand today looking at our sport is that;
- Inextremely difficult times NSW over the past breeding sessions as shown the least decline in foal numbers. This issue is worldwide and ultimately has a impact on our field sizes in years to come.
- Over recent times we have seen changes forced on leading Breeders such as the Lamb’s, Gibson’s, Moore’s this has placed pressure and changes around these great farms that have produced a great number of horses and champions of our sport. Will the changes affect our foal numbers into the future, well only time will tell us this.
- Our Sport of Harness Racing has the greatest level of integrity& day to day management structure of any sport within Australia &possibly the World. We just have to take a step back and see what has unfolded around us after going through some of the major hurdles we as an industry face and have to deal with. Without the management & there team we have in place, one could only dread what position we would be in to day without them.
- NSW Harness Racing is the most financial of any of our brothers& cousins both in Australia & overseas. With one exception- the French. But in straight out Harness Pacing Racing we are the best positioned of all moving into the future
- Our Metropolitan Club, TAB Corp Park Menangle, is also just structured to deliver the optimum results both to members & that of our industry. I do not know of any other sport with funds & assets ,for us all to benefit from in coming years.
The greatest disappointment I have on it all is just in how this news was delivered to the industry.
Without doubt the biggest client either Pepper Tree &Alabar have is that of HRNSW in providing Breeders / Nominators /Owners Bonuses. To think HRNSW found out, just like the rest of us by reading on the net. I don’t understand from a purelybusinessacumen or lack of it why not inform the governing body of the industry, furthermore to my knowledge, HRNSW management are still waiting on a phone call from either Stud.
I do not understand how this will benefit Alabar other than being the largest collector of Stallions possibly in the World. As a person fortunate enough to have two (2) commercial stallions standing in Caribbean Blaster atYiiribee Stud Wagga – Wagga & Renaissance Man in Western Australia I would personally dread having to have my stallion just another number on the collectables list of stallions and found somewhere out the back.
I can see a posable advantage to Alabar in taking out a major competitor should another opportunityarise in getting the next big thing from Overseas.
Is this good for the industry, personally I think it will eventually be a massive positive based on how HRNSW handle the critical next stage of our breeding platforms. Having said this I do have a great deal of confidence& trust in this happening.
I am sure all us within our industry look forward to HRNSW platform to address the best way forward. But for this to eventuate,we must all give them some time to undertake & develop our next structure in developing a better Breeding set up for us all in NSW.
All the Best & don’t forget to keep on Breeding.
Robert Nalder
Approved By Dean Baring www.harnessbred.com
Driving The Future Of Harness Racing
