On December 17th, the Virginia Racing Commission voted to allow the Virginia Horsemen’s Benevolent & Protective Association (VHBPA) and the Virginia Thoroughbred Association (VTA) to continue the bonus program that rewards owners of Virginia-bred or sired horses that win races at Mid-Atlantic region racetracks.
The bonus program adds a 25% bonus to the purse earnings of any Virginia-bred/sired horse that wins an unrestricted Virginia-bred/sired race at a Maryland, West Virginia, Delaware, New Jersey, New York or Pennsylvania pari-mutuel tracks. There will be a $10,000 cap on any single reward. The program, which was unanimously approved by the Virginia Racing Commission will continue through December 31st, 2017.
A free online registration form is available for Virgnia-Bred/sired owners to complete in order to participate in the program. Once the VTA office has the ownership information and a W-9 form is on file, bonus checks can be distributed any time the Virginia-Bred/sired wins in the Mid-Altantic Region.
“It is the responsibility of bonus winning owners to contact the VTA and to submit a W-9 form,” said VTA Executive Director Debbie Easter. “Bonus checks will be sent out at the beginning of each month, so we encourage winning owners to get us that information by the 25th of each month. Any W-9s received after the 25th will be processed and mailed in the following month’s cycle.”
FREE ONLINE OWNERS’ BONUS REGISTRATION
“We hope this program will help current owners of Virginia-breds while we rebuild our race program in Virginia”, said VHBPA Executive Director Frank Petramalo. “Virginia Breeders have always produced a quality product. This new regional owner’s program added to our nationwide Breeder’s program will help boost the appeal of Virginia-breds or Virginia-sired horses in the market place.”
The bonus program does not include Virginia-Bred restricted races, wins in all other races are eligible for the 25% bonus. The program also applies to Virginia-bred/sired steeplechase horses that compete in a pari-mutuel race in a participating Mid-Atlantic state.
Any questions can be directed to Janice Pfund at janice.pfund@easterassociates.com or Debbie Easter at Debbie.easter@easterassociates.com.
