The CTHS board of directors is pleased to announce the addition of Ralis to the stallion base in British Columbia. The Grade 1 winning son of Square Eddie will be standing the 2019 breeding season at Canmor Farms for a fee of $2000. Ralis is owned by the members of the BC division of the CTHS for the benefit of all members. The stallion is managed by a group of 3 CTHS members with the skill sets needed to ensure Ralis will be a benefit to all our members. These 3 members operate as The Ralis Group.

The Ralis Group operates independently from the CTHS board of directors. The management group consists of Grant Watson, Dave Bennington and David Pihl. Grant Watson, (CTHSBC president) manages the everyday operations. Dave Bennington, (CTHSBC finance chair) handles all financial matters. David Pihl, (CTHSBC legal advisor) handles all legal matters.

Ralis the stallion, was purchased and donated to the CTHSBC division by Mr. Glen Todd. Glen’s generous gift will be used to expand the bloodline base in BC and hopefully encourage those breeders who told us that we needed new stallions in BC to start breeding again. Ralis should also encourage some breeders who ship to breed to remain in BC. Ralis currently is the only Grade 1 winning stallion in BC.

Like all ventures there are supporters and detractors. It has been brought to our attention that some CTHS members are circulating rumours about the stallion, Canmor Farms and the CTHS board of directors that are false. Like most gossip and social media, the truth is out there if people are interested in hearing it. The easiest way is to call our office or myself and simply ask. I usually avoid responding to these types of comments publicly, but I have been asked to inform our membership about Ralis and why we are standing a stallion.

In 2016, our board of directors put together a list of items for discussion with our industry partners that we felt we important to BC breeders. One of these items was to improve and expand our stallion base. We were hopeful that someone would acquire a stallion to bring to BC. The CTHS was not looking to purchase a stallion but we were supportive of an incentive for someone to acquire a stallion to stand in BC. We were informed there was more than one group looking to invest in bringing a stallion to BC. In the end none of the groups followed through and no new stallions located to BC.

In early 2017, Glen offered to purchase a stallion and donate it to the CTHS. Any money earned could be used to supplement the declining sale stake fund. Our board debated owning a stallion and decided that we should encourage ownership by members, but we should not stand a stallion as it could be perceived as putting us in competition with our members. We thanked Mr. Todd for his generous offer and declined.

At the 2017 CTHS yearling and mixed sale I was approached by a fellow director and asked to call a special meeting that day at the sale to discuss some issues. He informed me that he had spoken to others at the sale who were in support of the CTHS acquiring a stallion. We held a meeting on the sale grounds with 5 of our 8 directors. One director was not on site and the two others were busy with potential buyers. As this was an informal meeting, we meet to discuss the issue as well as other issues of concern to our members.

During the meeting the directors who attended were all in support of asking Glen Todd to purchase a stallion for the CTHS. Since there was a majority at that meeting who all supported the proposal, I agreed to approach Glen Todd to see if his offer was still available. Before I had a chance to speak to Glen two of the directors from the meeting privately approached Glen asking him to buy a stallion.

In July on 2018, Glen Todd contacted me that he had an opportunity to purchase a stallion for the CTHS. I thanked him and said I would get back to him shortly. I contacted the director who asked for the special meeting at the 2017 sale and one director who was not in attendance that day. Both directors indicated we should accept the stallion being offered. I contacted Glen and thanked him for his generous offer and accepted on behalf of the CTHS. This is how we acquired the stallion Ralis.

The CTHS board's thought process on standing a stallion.

The board of directors were unanimous in thinking that having a new stallion in BC was a good thing for breeders in BC. We hoped that someone would do so privately. We still do. Jersey Town was a welcome addition in 2018 but he has now left BC.

We debated the issue of being in competition with existing stallion owners. We did not want to take any mares away from existing stallions. We weighed the benefit of adding a new stallion for our members to choose from against the need to protect existing stallions. I think we have done that.

We made sure that the stallion was from a different bloodline to what was in BC already. Ralis is the only Smart Strike line stallion standing in BC. There would be no competition based on pedigree. We made sure that the stud fee was at the high end of the scale. The stallion fee was set at $2000 to not undercut other stallions in BC. Jersey Town who was a Grade 1 winner stood for $2000 before he left. We made sure that the stallion would be managed by a small group who were aware of the perception of a conflict and would ensure the stallion was managed for the benefit of all CTHS members.

Rumours and Gossip

Let me address some of the rumours and negative gossip being spread around.

The CTHS did not buy the stallion, it was a personal gift from Glen Todd to the breeders of BC. All money earned by the stallion remains with the CTHSBC for the benefit of all members.

The money being used to operate The Ralis Group comes from existing library and trophy accounts. NO MONEY is being taken from the BAP and your awards will not be affected by standing Ralis. Anyone saying the money is coming from award money is not telling the truth. Every director knows this. The Ralis Group is operated independently and has separate checks and accounts. The concept of offering services (standing a stallion) with all proceeds going towards member programs and funding shortfalls are not unique. The same director who pushed for the stallion also pushed for a raffle of a mare in foal with the proceeds going to CTHS programs. Under current lottery rules we were not allowed to run a raffle. Many organizations receive assistance thanks to generous contributions made by benefactors. In our case, Glen Todd has stepped up again to help breeders and racing in BC.

All board members were aware the CTHS was open to acquiring a stallion as it was discussed multiple times at our board meetings. The board of directors operates like all other boards where the majority rules. We have a majority board position that the CTHSBC stand a stallion with ALL proceeds going to the benefit of ALL CTHS members.

I would ask all members who have questions to simply call our office, a director or myself for the facts. Spreading false information does no one any good.

Grant Watson