Hoss Talk

Horse breeders are no different from anyone else when it comes to marketing their products. They need that one, great hook. Here is how one longtime local breeder got his.

The day after T J's Lucky Moon, an 84-1 longshot, had won the 143rd running of the Queen's Plate, local trainer Richard Yates called B.C. breederBrian Kozak, a close friend, to tell him the good news. Kozak hung up on Yates, thinking it was a joke, since he had recently leased Tejabo, the father of T J's Lucky Moon, for stallion duties at his Crown West Farms in Chilliwack.

"I was busy at my farm with one of my mares who was having a foal," said Kozak, "so I couldn't watch the Plate.

"I also knew the horse was a huge longshot in the race. ... unbelievable!"

Before leasing Tejabo, Kozak had sought advice from Yates, a top bloodlines expert.

"After researching his pedigree, I learned he sired youngsters capable of winning races at classic distances. What he brought to his foals was stamina and soundness," Yates said.

Breeding statistics show that, prior to T J's Lucky Moon's victory in the Plate, six Tejabo foals averaged $43,435 per starter at an average winning distance of 7.7 furlongs, encouraging Kozak to have the horse shipped here.

The next project was marketing Tejabo. Instead of going the normal route of advertising in trade papers, Kozak and Yates made up a list of 115 broodmares whose pedigrees would suit Tejabo.

"That number was then refined down to a short list of 60 mares," said Yates.

"From that list, I sent out pedigree analyses to their breeders pointing similarities of their mares and ones he bred in Ontario which had produced outstanding horses."

From that list of 60 direct mail outs, twenty4our signed up for a mating with Tejabo for $2000.

"A lot of people have been thanking us since the Plate," Yates said. "And why not? They received a chance to breed to the sire of a Queen's Plate winner for $2,000."

Tom Wolski can be seen on the Sport of Kings, !. 0 a.m. Saturday CKVU.

twolski@shew.ca
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Source: Vancouver Province
E-mail Tommy Wolski at twolski@shaw.ca