Ben Settree (pictured) punching well above his weight
Ben Settree and his wife Melanie were for many years among NSW’s largest and most successful standardbred breeders. They also own Grand Circuit performer Kanena Provlima.
An open letter about the Eureka.
It must be noted that HRA should be applauded for trying to reinvigorate harness racing.
The problem is that, although they have tried something new and potentially exciting, The funding model for Eureka was flawed from the get-go.
To target the breeders by imposing an unequal and irrevocable tax upon those that support the very essence of the game, was a tragedy in itself.
However, with the acknowledgment that the state bodies supported the Eureka even with their own participants speaking against it, the initial model was only for an expected three years so the question must be posed. Why are they collecting tax in the fourth year when it was never approved nor voted on? And if the cessation of the Eureka is being considered, what is the targeted intention of the funds?
HRA bring a lot of problems to the table in their attempt to govern the game- the Eureka being primary, the NR system has proven to be an object failure, and it’s about time that those responsible stand up and take responsibility for it. Trying something new should not be punished, however, when that new idea fails and falls flat, it should be acknowledged that HRA need to change their approach and change it rapidly. It has become apparent that some administrators within the game have too much say, and thus unwilling to cop the failure on the chin.
At this point in time, I implore HRA to suspend the collection of the tax this year with a full review to occur after this coming breeding season in an attempt to salvage breeding numbers, Australia wide.
For those of you who know Mel and I, you know our connection to Brooklyn Lodge, a stud founded by Doug and Janet Moore responsible for the breeding of prolific numbers of winners and numerous horses to the sales. And although the closure of Brooklyn Lodge had many factors contributing to it, it should be noted that one of those factors was the decreasing profitability of harness racing in general. With costs going up, stagnant yearling sales with declining median prices and then the imposition of the HRA stallion Levy on top of all of this. All of these factors had to be considered when Melanie and I were deciding whether or not to continue our involvement in Harness racing, especially at such a high level, and it was at this point that we decided we could no longer expose ourselves to this level of debt.
So as it stands at the moment, Mel and I own four mares which are extremely valuable commercial products. However, given the imposition of the tax, it is unlikely that we will breed the full complement of mares and will seriously reconsider our stallion selection as a result. If the stallion tax was rescinded for this season, that would be a factor that would force us to reconsider our breeding numbers and most likely lead to us breeding our full complement of mares.
At this point in time, I would like to respectfully request that the state bodies stand up for the participants they represent and vote no for the stallion tax this season with a review to be considered moving forward.
In closing, I would like to say that no one is against the ideas of a slot race, but it is the funding model that has some serious flaws, and has appeared to be an abject failure in everything that was promised to the breeders in regards to the benefits that the Eureka would bring.
Please consider the plight of the breeders moving forward and save Harness racing before it’s too late.