More than 50 yearlings by leading sires such as Kadabra, Sweet Lou, Somebeachsomewhere and Captaintreacherous purchased at the fall yearling sales, will hit the training track Sunday for thestable.ca's Second Annual Open House.
"Every year our open house gets bigger and better," said Anthony MacDonald, who launched thestable.ca three years ago with wife Amy. "This year, we will have 57 yearlings out jogging in sets, with shares still available in many yearlings from $70 per 1 per cent of ownership."
The event, expected to attract hundreds of owners and prospective buyers, is scheduled at Tomiko Training Centre in Hamilton on Sunday, Nov. 26, from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm, with the first set pulling onto the track at 10:00 am.
The Stable's drone will beam the event worldwide, with live commentary from Fred MacDonald and Ben Wallace. Wallace is a Hall of Fame trainer while MacDonald is a sports newscaster, writer and recent Canadian Senate award medal recipient. Neither are strangers to the track or the racing world.
"They got along really well last time and if you let them get rambling, they both make me look like a mute," said Anthony jokingly. "My father knows lots about breeding (and talking) while Ben is one of the most decorated trainers around. Both very knowledgeable and they complement one another rather well. We are really lucky to have them both."
Snacks and coffee will be on hand and one of the barns newest clients Adriano Sorella commandeered a food truck for the event.
"The truck will be there 10 a.m. Fresh cut New York style French fries, and Jumbo Ballpark hotdogs with all the fixings," said Sorella. "Compliments of my family to our new family. All of you!"
Tour the barns and meet the horses, trainers and staff. This year, 110 empty, 25 kg. feed bags -- one for each horse in The Stable -- will be set out for those attending the open house to fill for the Guelph Food Bank. Admission is free with a non-perishable item to the food bank. If you can't make it out and still want to help those less fortunate, feel free to donate to the GoFundMe page set up by thestable.ca for the Guelph Food Bank.
Thestable.ca is one of the fastest growing fractional share ownership programs in North America. Launched three years ago by Anthony and Amy MacDonald, thestable.ca started with 18 yearlings and 39 owners. A year later, it had grown to 146 owners and 39 yearlings. In year three, thestable.ca now has a total of 107 horses in training and 367 owners in ten countries.
"It's pretty evident after three years there's a huge demand among the general public all over the world for affordable horse ownership," MacDonald said.
From last year's crop of 39 yearlings, personally selected at the sales by the MacDonalds, came major stakes winning and stakes placed horses Lawmaker, Cruising In Style, Canale Hanover, Lima Son, Win Chaser and Zeppelin Bi.
Thestable.ca has two additional trainers and 20 staff overseeing the horses, which include yearlings-in-training, two-year-olds and older horses in racing. The program has an innovative single share concept that allows owners to purchase anywhere from 1 to 100 shares in promising yearlings purchased at the fall yearling sales in Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, New York, Ontario and Pennsylvania.
(with files from The Stable)