Canadian Warmblood Horse Breeders Association - Awards
 

Canadian Performance Futurity: History and Intention

By Jennette Coote 

In 2000 Chris Gould, Chair of Canadian Warmblood Horse Breeders Association (CWHBA), discovered Sweden had been running a highly successful Young Horse Championship - a program which required early nomination by breeders to participate. Over time, this championship evolved to offer significant prize money. It nurtured partnerships between riders and breeders, to the extent that riders began approaching breeders with selected mares and to arrange for stallion service. Together they could raise the resulting foals to compete in these championships. Recognizing the value for this model in Canada, Chris approached me to establish the Canadian Performance Futurity. 

I looked at the several examples of sire stake and futurity programs which had been available to date. Many of the program models I looked at were stallion generated. This put a great financial strain on the stallion owner and resulted in a higher dropout rate then is desirable for a successful national program. Instead we created a program with a broad base of support. By showcasing Canadian bred and Canadian registered horses, and tying the breeding community closer to the riding community, an end goal of having trainers and riders purchasing directly from breeders could be achieved. 

The Canadian Performance Futurity was developed and presented at the 2001 Canadian Warmblood Annual General Meeting. During this meeting the program was endorsed by the membership. It is important to note the Canadian Warmblood membership felt strongly that this program should be of benefit to all Canadian breeders and Canadian breeds, therefore it has been structured as an open program to all Canadian bred and registered horses. CWHBA has carried the administration of this program and provided seed money to get it off the ground, with the intention that it will be run independently once it is generating sufficient funds. 

Collection of nominations commenced in 2002. In addition to prize money generated from nominations, the CWHBA membership elected that 10% of the CWHBA Stallion Service Auction funds would be directed as a breed bonus for the top placing Canadian Warmblood horses. CWHBA also funded the first $5.00 nomination fee which was automatically paid as the horses were registered. Other breed associations will be encouraged to support and fund similar breed bonuses within this program. 

The steering committee consists of Jennette Coote, Chair; Dana Young, Vice-Chair; Tammie Fulton, Nominations Administrator; and Barbara Daley, Marketing & Communications. Each zone also has a coordinator/s: Sandy Alexander and Marilyn Powell, Pacific Zone; Jennette Coote, Prairie Zone; and Tim Millard, Eastern Zone. Additional help has been provided by many Canadian Warmblood members and friends across the country. The Canadian Warmblood National Office administrators the funds. 

The Canadian Breeders' Incentive Fund, which is managed by Equine Canada, has approved a start-up grant of $20,000. Plans are in place to establish a sponsorship campaign whereby a long-term corporate partnership will be established. 

Many people have been consulted regarding the rules of the classes, and helped in finding venues to offer them. The first year of showing these nominated horses is 2006 for 4-year-old horses. Classes offered are 2'9" Hunters, 1 meter Jumpers (judged 50% score and 50% technique), and the dressage test is Level 1, Test 1. To accommodate the size of Canada and the realities of transport all classes are offered in each of 3 zones: Pacific, Prairies and Eastern.

We are very excited about the opportunity this program offers for the many stakeholders in breeding and equestrian sport. We urge everyone to get behind this program, which will showcase our young horses and reward excellence in breeding.

www.canadianperformancefuturity.com

See the following Press Releases on the success of the first year of competition: