VTA MEMBERS:

 Virginia Thoroughbred Association President Amy Moore has called a Special Meeting of the membership for November 26, 2024, at 12:00 pm.  The meeting will be held at Airlie House, 6809 Airlie Road, Warrenton, Virginia, 20187.  The purpose of the meeting is to vote on changes recently approved by the VTA’s Board of Directors to the organization’s Articles of Incorporation.

Currently, the VTA’s Articles of Incorporation provide that directors of the VTA are elected to two-year terms, with half of the directors elected each year.  If adopted by the members, the amendment to the Articles of Incorporation would provide that directors are elected to four-year terms, with half of the directors elected every two years.  (The amendment also provides transition rules for current directors.)  The proposed amendment and the current Articles language are listed below.

Proposed language for Articles of Incorporation Change
Article VII
Directors

The number and qualifications for directors of the Association shall be fixed in the Bylaws. The current directors shall be divided into two classes: Class A directors shall be those directors who were elected to office in 2024; Class B directors shall be the remaining one-half of the directors.  The current two-year term of Class A Directors shall be extended for an additional year to end at the 2027 annual meeting of the members. The current two-year term of the Class B directors shall not change but shall end at the 2025 annual meeting of the members. Thereafter each class of directors shall serve four-year terms so that, as near as possible, every two years one-half of the Directors are elected to four-year terms.

Current language for Article VII
Directors

The number of and qualifications for directors of the Association shall be fixed in the Bylaws. The number of directors shall be divided into two groups with each group containing one-half of the total, as nearly equal in number as possible. Directors shall be elected to two (2) year terms to serve on the Board of Directors. The terms of the two groups of directors shall be staggered so that the terms of one group expire each year. At each annual meeting of the Members one group shall be elected for a term of two years to succeed those whose terms expire. All elections for Directors shall be decided by a plurality of the votes cast by Members entitled to vote.

The VTA Board believes that this change will enhance the recruitment of Board members, reduce turnover in the VTA’s leadership, and allow the VTA to benefit from the experience of directors who have more familiarity with the issues facing the organization.  The Board recommends that members vote FOR the amendment to the Articles of Incorporation.

WE NEED YOUR VOTE: Our Bylaws require a quorum of more than one third of the membership to approve these changes. You are welcome to attend the Special Meeting and vote on the changes in person.  If you choose not to attend the meeting, we ask that you please vote by proxy or electronically through the email sent to you.  If you have any questions or you have not received a proxy in the mail or a Constant Contact email detailing how to vote, please email me or call our office so we may get you the materials you need to vote.

Debbie Easter
Executive Director
Virginia Thoroughbred Association
(434) 531-2480
Debbie.easter@easterassociates.com

“The world’s premier breeding stock event”

The November Sale will take place in Lexington, Kentucky on Monday, November 4, 2024. Starting at 2:00pm, 309 horses will make their way to the sales ring by the end of the night.

See the file below for all Virginia-bred and Virginia-certified horses listed in the sale.

The grand finale of the yearlings’ sales will take place in Lexington, Kentucky. The schedule for this four-day sale is as follows: hips 1-404 will head to the ring on October 21st. October 22nd hips 405-808 will sell. On October 23rd hips 809-1212 will sell. Lastly, on October 24th, the sale will conclude with hips 1213-1614 at the sales pavilion. Each day will begin at 10:00am.

See the file below for all Virginia-bred and Virginia-certified horses listed in the sale.

Up next is the OBS yearlings sale in Ocala, Florida . This two day sale that will begin at 11:30AM on Tuesday, October 8th with hips 1-266 and the supplements. The sale will continue on Wednesday, October 9th at 11:30AM with hips 301-569 and conclude with the supplements.

See the file below for all Virginia-Bred horses listed in the sale. Please note there are no Virginia-Certified horses.

Fasig-Tipton heads to Timonium, Maryland from Saratoga to continue with yearlings in the sales ring. This is a one day sale that will begin at 11:00AM on Tuesday, October 1st.

See the file below for all Virginia-Bred and Virginia-Certified horses listed in the sale.

It was a season with beautiful clear skies, the occasional summer storm, and the adventurous goose who bravely wandered to the track during training. We had wiener dog races, a county fair, a golf tournament, and most of all, exciting racing!

With all that behind us, it is not the only thing we said “farewell” to when the last horse crossed the finish line on Saturday, September 7, 2024. It was a farewell to the GIII Virginia Derby as we have known it traditionally run on the renown Secretariat Turf Course. On August 11^th, at the Colonial Downs Festival of racing, Governor Glen Youngkin announced that the Virginia Derby would be one of the qualifying races on the road to the Kentucky Derby. It is scheduled to now be run on the dirt course at nine furlongs on March 15^th, pending approval by the VRC and VHBPA.

The evening before the final running of the turf version of the Virginia Derby, Churchill Downs, Inc and the Virginia Thoroughbred Association hosted an elegant reception at The Jefferson Hotel commemorating this race Virginians and horsemen throughout the country have come to know and celebrate.

Guests included Virginia Johnson, co-author of Virginia Horse Racing: Triumphs of the Turf, Matt Lohr, Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry, and a special appearance by historical actors from St. John’s church portraying prominent Virginians President George Washington, Martha Washington, President Thomas Jefferson, and Governor Patrick Henry who all enjoyed mingling with the partygoers. Many connections to the horses running on Virginia Derby Day were in attendance along with representatives of the Commonwealth’s Legislature as well as the many supporters from all stakeholders who have been such a big part of Virginia’s successful horse industry. The food and ambiance represented all things Virginian with dogwood branches, magnolia leaves, ham biscuits, chicken with waffles (a southern favorite), fried green tomatoes, oysters, shrimp, and crab cakes.

As the temperature cools and the leaves begin to change, the atmosphere may quiet down at Colonial Downs, but we are all looking forward to our first Road to the Derby prep race in Virginia in the spring.

Keeneland’s yearlings sale kicks off in the sale’s ring on Monday, September 9th. With 6 books and 12 sessions this sale offers 4,424 of the country’s most diverse yearlings. Please refer to the schedule below when horses go to the ring.

• Book 1, session 1, September 9, 1:00pm, Hips 1-181
• Book 1, session 2, September 10, 1:00pm, Hips 191-372
• Book 2, session 3, September 11, 11:00am, Hips 381-760
• Book 2, session 4, September 12, 11:00am, Hips 761-1132
• Friday, September 13 – Dark Day
• Book 3, session 5, September 14, 10:00am, Hips 1133-1550
• Book 3, session 6, September 15, 10:00am, Hips 1551-1970
• Book 4, session 7, September 16, 10:00am, Hips 1971-2390
• Book 4, session 8, September 17, 10:00am, Hips 2391-2809
• Book 5, session 9, September 18, 10:00am, Hips 2810-3222
• Book 5, session 10, September 19, 10:00am, Hips 3223-3635
• Book 6, session 11, September 20, 10:00am, Hips 3636-4035
• Book 6, session 12, September 21, 11:00am, Hips 4036-4424

See the file below for all Virginia-bred and Virginia-certified horses listed in the sale.

Concluding the sale, Virginia-Certified horses sold for an average of $133,500 and Virginia-Bred horses sold for an average of $96,500.

Come Celebrate Virginia Racing

Churchill Downs Inc. and the Virginia Equine Alliance invite VTA members, owners and trainers to the Virginia Derby at Colonial Downs Racetrack on Saturday, September 7. Join us on the 4th floor for the grand closer of the 2024 season. Only those with reservations will have access to Suites 6 and 7 and a lunch buffet served in the ballroom. Reservations are restricted to 4 spots per party and space is limited. We will maintain a waiting list once capacity is reached.

Email Kiersten Wall at kiersten.wall@easterassociates with questions or to be added to the waiting list. Reservation deadline is September 1st or when event reaches capacity.

Make your reservation now as space is limited! $50 per person includes 4th floor access, food and drinks. PLUS you have all day suite access to view the races.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS FOR MONDAY, AUGUST 26, 2024

Join us at the Warrenton Horse Show Grounds at 9:00am on August 26th. Show off your, registered, Virginia Bred, Virginia Sired, or Virginia Certified yearlings. Horses in the Virginia certified program must have completed their 6 months residency prior to August 26 and completed registration with the VTA as well as be Jockey Club certified.

To register your Virginia Bred or Virginia Sired yearling please visit the following website: https://services.easterassociates.com/thoroughbred/home

See the following for important information and forms.