The principals behind a fundraiser to resurface Exhibition Park Raceway have received unexpected assistance from a number of stallion owners.

Last week, Trot Insider reported that a group of Saint John, New Brunswick horsemen and women launched a grassroots campaign to help raise money to resurface the track at Exhibition Park Raceway and are hosting an auction as a fundraiser.

"The horsemen and the horsewomen are getting together themselves," said Cindy Gunn, one of the participants spearheading the auction, "because we're in a bad situation in New Brunswick and there's just no money and nothing has been moving so we took it upon ourselves and we're doing it on our own to raise the money to get the track resurfaced."

Since that story came out, the group has received donated stallion services. Graciously, all five donors have added an extra year to the contracts so that if plans have already been made for 2015, the breeding is also good for 2016.

Those stallions include:

• any Meridian Farms stallion, donated by Meridian Farms

• Astronomical, donated by Dr. Ian Moore
  (semen collection, shipping to be paid for by winning bidder)

• Carnivore, donated by Earl Watts, Windemere Farms, Howmac Farms, Wade Pictonian, Kent Dougan

• Coastocoast Yankee, donated by Bob Gordon

• Varadero Hanover, donated by Reg Petitpas

To bid on these stallions, please contact Debbie Mahar: 506-639-4084 (c), 506-696-9115 (h) or email [email protected]. These auctions close at 11:59 p.m. (Atlantic Time) on Tuesday, May 5.

In addition, the group has created an online fundraising page at GoFundMe to allow for online donations.

The group is still seeking auction items for an auction to be held on Friday, May 8 at the Bingo Hall on the Exhibition grounds, and hope to include items such as signed driving colours from harness racing's stars.

For more information or to make a donation, contact Mahar or Gunn at 506-214-3417 or [email protected].

Organizers are hoping to raise a little over $3,000 to cover the costs of resurfacing the track to improve its safety for horses jogging and training.