VTA Stallion Season Auction Ends Wednesday

The Virginia Thoroughbred Association's expanded Mid-South Stallion Season Auction will conclude today at 8 p.m. Bidding starts at 9 a.m. EDT. The auction will benefit the VTA, and has been expanded this year to include the North Carolina and South Carolina Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Associations.

Stallions donated to the telephone auction include: Black Tie Affair, Behrens, Bop, Century City, Gold Case, Honour and Glory, Housebuster, Lite The Fuse, Matty G., Meadowlake, Milwaukee Brew, Najran, Peaks and Valleys, Perfect Soul, Polish Miner, Prospect Bay, Regal Classic, Skip Away, Sky Classic, Unbridled Jet, and Volponi. Additional seasons are available privately.

Through an exclusive arrangement with Colonial Downs, the Maryland Jockey Club, and Delaware Park, stud farms which donate seasons that generate certain revenue thresholds for the auction will be made the name sponsor of a stakes race at those tracks. Donation thresholds start at $10,000 for Virginia-bred stakes at Colonial Downs and Delaware Park. For a contribution of $250,000, farms can sponsor a graded stakes on Preakness Day. In 2004, all seven Virginia-bred stakes at Colonial and Delaware Park were sponsored.

Private donations of seasons or season income to sponsor races will be kept open until April 1.

"We wanted to give the farms back something in return for their generosity," said Glenn Petty, VTA executive director. "We had a good response last year and again this year from the likes of Coolmore, Darby Dan, Pin Oak, Northview, and Country Life, to name a few. We are hoping that we can expand the program in 2006 to racetracks in Florida and Kentucky."

The Virginia Thoroughbred Association generates 40% of its annual budget through this fundraiser.