When Beachy Girl was confirmed in foal to Mach Three in the spring of 2015, Sanford and Jan Zimmerman enrolled her in the Ontario Resident Mare program. Two years later, they sold the resulting colt, named Century Farroh, at the London Selected Yearling Sale for $17,000.
A winner of $66,733 and the Ontario Sires Stakes (OSS) Grassroots championship at two, Century Farroh had a standout sophomore campaign this season. Five wins and one third from six OSS Gold Series starts saw him top the three-year-old pacing colt division with earnings of $396,200. Wins in his Somebeachsomewhere division, the North America Cup consolation, his Simcoe division and the Jennas Beach Boy added $323,251 to his sophomore earnings for owner Ratchford Stable NS.
As a result of Century Farroh’s season-long success, the Zimmerman’s Century Spring Farms will also see a boost to their bottom line in 2019. Beachy Girl’s enrollment in the Ontario Resident Mare program made her resulting foal eligible for a share of $3.04 million in breeders’ rewards through the Standardbred Improvement Program.
“It’s a pro-rated thing, so it’s hard to tell exactly how much it will be, but somewhere around 20 per cent of what they’ve made (in eligible earnings) would be close anyway,” said Sanford Zimmerman of the breeders’ rewards Century Farroh accrued for Century Spring Farms in 2019.
“There’s so much money for it and then there’s how many horses win, and if they aren’t off resident mares then they don’t get the money, it gets thrown back in and gets divided up amongst the ones that are,” Zimmerman continued.
Of the $3.04 million available in breeders’ rewards in 2019, Century Farroh earned Century Spring Farms a pro-rated share of the $2.41 million keyed to Ontario Sires Stakes results. His success in the Somebeachsomewhere and Simcoe Stakes also gives the Gorrie, Ont. nursery a pro-rated share of the $130,000 keyed to eligible open stakes events. Finally, as the top money earner in the division, Century Farroh contributed $25,000 toward Century Spring Farms’ total rewards.
“I think it’s money well spent,” said Zimmerman of the $100 fee to enroll each mare in the Ontario Resident Mare program before foaling. “It can certainly be a good windfall down the road. He wasn’t a real expensive yearling, but you can recoup some of that later on. They don’t all work out that way, but it gives you another avenue to be able to.”
Participating in the Ontario Resident Mare program, which requires the mare to reside in Ontario for a minimum of 180 days surrounding foaling, gives breeders access to rewards for both Ontario-sired and out of province-sired offspring.
The $2.41 million keyed to Ontario Sires Stakes results and the $400,000 allocated to the top money earners in each of the eight OSS divisions ($50,000 per division split 50 per cent, 25 per cent, 12 per cent, 8 per cent, 5 per cent) require the Ontario Resident Mare’s offspring to be Ontario-sired, but the $130,000 keyed to open stakes events is available to horses sired outside the province.
In the three-year-old pacing colt division, Century Farroh, B Stoney, Bronx Seelster, Dreamfair Moxy and Sportsline finished first, third, fifth, seventh and eleventh in the money standings, respectively, and their breeders will share the $50,000 division leader bonus thanks to their participation in the Ontario Resident Mare program. The horses finishing second, fourth, sixth, eight, ninth and tenth were not out of Ontario Resident Mares.
In the three-year-old trotting filly division, American-bred Only Take Cash won her Casual Breeze division, finished second in the Elegantimage and fourth in the Breeders Crown Final. Breeders Robert McIntosh Stables and C S X Stables paid her dam, Armbro Affair, into the Ontario Resident Mare program in 2015, so they will be receiving a pro-rated share of the $130,000 keyed to open stakes results.
Stallion owners also benefit from breeders’ rewards. A total of $100,000 is split between the leading sires of two-year-old trotters, two-year-old pacers, three-year-old trotters and three-year-old pacers. In 2019, Kadabra topped both trotting categories while Bettors Delight led both pacing divisions. Stallions must still reside in Ontario to receive the award, which is payable to the stallion owner or syndicate.
For complete details about the Ontario Resident Mare program and breeders’ rewards, click here.
(OSS)