Horses feature: Jockey club offers hope for Quebec horse racing

A group of ten private investors in Quebec are lobbying the provincial finance minister to allow them to reopen harness racing in Quebec and to revitalize an industry that pulled up lame last October, after the last of the Quebec tracks officially closed.

Investing $100,000 of their own funds, the Quebec Jockey Club is currently seeking to obtain licences and permits from the Quebec government that will allow it to do pari-mutuel betting and to begin racing in the Montreal region.

When horse racing in Quebec stopped last October 2, so did the betting. To qualify for off-track and Internet betting, the Quebec Jockey Club needs to guarantee a certain number of races will be held in the Montreal region and that the facilities meet provincial standards.

"We're moving forward, but there are a number of hurdles to overcome," said Jockey Club member Tony Infilise. "We're starting from scratch and are planning for a rural, country setting. A fair-type environment that emphasizes family and the value of horses."

According to Infilise, the Quebec Jockey Club has created a plan that would involve racing at a former training facility located about 30 kilometres from Montreal, in St. Basil le Grand.

Established as a non-profit organization in 2009, the Jockey Club is proposing to offer about 50 live races from April to October 2010.

"There remains some margin of profit to be made by betting and that's where we expect out modest financing to come from, to pay for the purses that will support our horse racing industry," said Infilise.

The plan is to devote about 70 per cent of the purse money back to the Quebec Standardbred industry.

If Internet wagering gets approved, Quebec's live racing teletheatres could soon be up and running.

"Unless we can bring back the racing industry, and in my case, the breeding industry, it's over," said Michael Perzow, the president of the Association Hippiques des Reproducteurs du Quebec and owner of one of Quebec's largest Standardbred breeding stables. "We're keeping our fingers crossed and waiting to see what happens.

"The impact and ripple effect of the closure of this industry will be in the hundreds of millions of dollars. I can name you over 50 other trades that will be impacted, most of them already in dire straits. Grain producers, hay, veterinarians and tractor dealers will be the first to feel the impact."

If the Jockey Club succeeds in attaining licensing it will be able to tap into the approximately $136 million that was spent wagering on Quebec horse racing in 2008 and it will save some of the 3,000 jobs that are estimated to directly depend on this industry.

Ripple effect felt in Ontario

In the meantime, some of the more competitive horses are being raced in neighbouring Ontario, according to at least one racetrack.

When horse racing in Quebec began its initial decline in the summer of 2007, that ripple effect brought a "ridiculous" jump in the number of horses entering competition at the Rideau-Carleton Raceway. As many as 300 horses were racing on a draw day, said Terry Lantz, director of racing and race secretary, up from the "normal" amount of 170 to 200.

"A year and a half ago, it was tough to get a horse raced, absolutely," said Lantz. "Especially when the Hippodrome (racing track in Montreal) closed."

He acknowledged the downward spiral that has befallen Quebec horse racers since the announcement, saying many owners have "gotten rid of their horses" or sold them. Others went to race in northern New York State, some went to the east coast of Canada, while the most competitive came to Ontario.

"People came here (to Rideau-Carleton) where they said, 'Where else are we going to go?'"

Not many of the Quebec-bred horses would be eligible to race in Ontario, however, as they were simply "not competitive" and of a lower calibre, according to Lantz.

"It's just a matter of being competitive," he said. "Ontario sired racing, for two or three years now, I'd say, is the best in any province or state."