In an article written by AQHA last month, the association mentioned the positive news that in 2010, horse owners showing American Quarter Horse Association Incentive Fund-nominated horses earned $2.75 more money per point than in 2009.
The article states that, “More than $3 million will be divided among nominated foals that earned a total of 125,706.5 points – making the payout $24.01 per point. The increase is primarily due to the elimination of green and introductory points.”
AQHA and the incoming President Peter J. Cofrancesco are working toward revitalizing the Incentive Fund program. On the AQHA Show and Contest Committee agenda, there are two suggested rule changes regarding allowing former race horses to be nominated to the fund and also one AQHA member suggested putting a cap on the number of points a horse can earn so the pay off value of a point would be higher. While we think these are interesting issues regarding the Incentive Fund, we wondered why youth exhibitors have been excluded from receiving payouts. We reached out to AQHA and asked them about this topic, but we have not received a response to our inquiries.
GoHorseShow.com asked several parents, youth exhibitors, breeders, and trainers what they think about the idea of youth receiving Incentive Fund money. Some individuals like trainer Reid Thomas of Corpus Christi, Texas mentioned several interesting ideas of how to increase the Incentive Fund payouts to prevent from watering down the points for everyone. Let’s see what everyone had to say. We encourage you to comment and vote at the end of the story.
Horse Show Grandmother Sue Sancken–Well, I have six grandchildren five of them are already showing. If you ask me, it would help to offset some of the cost, but AQHA has to be careful so they don’t run into financial difficulty like our government. You can only do so much. They have to make that call. I think really it would be more fair for the kids to get something out of the Incentive Fund. Maybe something like what NSBA is doing with a scholarship fund for the kids part of it.
Youth Exhibitor Lauren Crivelli--I think having Incentive Fund for points is a great way to encourage involvement in the association. It makes it easier for amateurs and open riders to justify the expense of these shows. I think it would be a good decision to allow youth riders to earn Incentive Fund money. I believe that this money should be in the form of scholarship money that can be used at colleges and trade schools. This will help youth who spend so much time and money on horses to be able to go to college a lot easier.
AQHA Judge and past NSBA President Dawn Clason-Of course, it would be great if it could pay out more. I think that is everyone’s wish. I love the idea of paying back the youth. NSBA started a program just for the youth. Like anything, a little something back is always a plus.
Breeder Shelley Donovan—Hedy, Kim and I have always felt the Incentive Fund has been a great program. We look forward to those checks as “Christmas in Febuary.” As breeders and stallion owners, we are always ask to give and donate. It is nice to see a return for that.
With the the amount of points the babies by our boys get in the youth, it would be awesome for youth to receive Incentive Fund money. But, I think if that happened, the amount per point would really go down. We are disappointed that the green points did not count this year. It brought the per point value up, but, the younger stallion’s babies usually earn their points in the green first.
AQHA is really promoting the green classes. These classes are among the biggest at the horse shows. The Incentive Money from those points would be great. We also really like the amount paid based on number of mare’s bred. We wish the Breeder’s Trust in the APHA would follow suit.
Horse Show Parent Faith Small–I would have to say, that in all fairness, yes, youth exhibitors should be awarded Incentive Fund money for the points they and their horse have earned. As a parent, I’ve paid the same show fees for my son as I have for myself and trainer. I’ve not found that youth horses are any cheaper to buy than amateur/open horses, and I haven’t found that they are any cheaper to train. All things considered, as the associated costs are the same, so should be the rewards.
My son is a much better rider than I am, and I would love to have the Incentive Fund money that he would have won. It would have been nice to offset some of the expenses associated with showing. In all the years that he has been showing, I’ve watched the youth numbers decline steadily. It has been very sad to see. I know that showing horses is a huge endeavor, not only financially but also in regard to the time and commitments required from the entire family. I believe the parents especially would like to know that they’re getting something back at the end of the day. While the intrinsic rewards associated with showing horses are definitely priceless and can never be matched, we have to be practical and realize that a financial return may be just as important in the end, especially in today’s economy.
Trainer Reid Thomas–I would reward the youth, if laws prevents AQHA from paying them, consider implementing a scholarship program that puts the money into a college fund, if not used, all money would be returned to AQHA. The kids are the future of the industry and our country. I believe you would see huge benefits from this…from the financial stand point of the parents, to the teaching of life skills to our youth, and an increase in participation. Another thought would be for the money to go into an account and be used to cover Youth World expenses. If a youth doesn’t attend Youth World then the money is forfeited for that year.
If you wanted to generate more income for the Incentive Fund, AQHA could also collect additional fees at time of transfer from each new owner. This would increase annual assets of the fund and current owners who benefit the most from the 80% split of money with regard to points. Maybe a $20 fee.
Furthermore, the Incentive Fund could require each stud donate a breeding each year like many other programs to increase cash flow in the fund. In the end, it’s all about building and giving back. Keeping these core principles in mind, I would consider the above changes.
Youth World Champion Carey Nowacek–I definitely like the Incentive Fund…though I never see those checks! It is great to get a little back at the end of the year. As for Youth getting Incentive Fund money, I think it’s something that should be considered. For those youth who don’t have their trainers showing in the open classes, it will be a little more incentive. I know my dad always likes seeing that check even if it isn’t much. It’s just the fact that my sport–that is very expensive is giving a little bit back.
Trainer Robin Frid–I feel that something should be created for the youth so that they can earn Incentive Fund Money aimed towards their continuing education. I fully understand the problems with those monies going directly to the youth annually. However, I do not feel we accurately reward them, or their parents for that matter, for the commitment they make. AQHA is an outstanding scholastic tool in teaching commitment, work ethic, leadership, and responsibility. Finally, the NCAA is rewarding this through scholarships. I feel there is more– we as an association can do to help.
AQHYA President Dakota Diamond Griffith—This is a complex situation. First, where would the youth funding come from? Take funding away from the regular fund could harm the industry by watering down the payout and decreasing participation in open and amateur events. Second, I feel that money awards may complicate the NCAA eligibilities. NSBA has a youth scholarship payout that is forward thinking. After hauling for eight straight years, obviously I would have appreciated payouts, but I chose to go in open classes which has actually been fairly lucrative.
Trainer Kelley Roberts–Not quite sure where I stand on the youth receiving Incentive Fund money. If they have an Incentive Fund horse, I don’t see why they shouldn’t receive the funds. However, having an Incentive Fund horse is such a big part of purchasing a horse for open and amateur events that it might really make it hard to sell horses that are not in the Incentive Fund.
Breeder Carol McWhirter–The Incentive Fund is not as well managed as it should be as the value per point has become too diluted. The KY Incentive program has done a better job with monitoring their point valuation. Three of my biggest objections regarding point dilution are: 1) team penners-points should be split for 1/3 valuation because it is a team of three (KY does this) 2) mandatory class filling for circuit championship awards 3) the new “mounted shooting” class should not be awarded Incentive Fund monies because the event reflects the skill of the rider and not that of the horse. Youth classes should not be given incentive monies because it would dilute the price per point even further.
