MAY 2012 THE RIDER /21 Francine Villeneuve Reaches Milestone….Again
Fort Erie, April 16th…On October 31st 2011, Francine Villeneuve made her way into the Fort Erie winner’s circle aboard Red Hot Doll. It was a moment to celebrate as the veteran rider had finally reached her goal of 1,000 career wins becoming the winningest female Canadian jock- ey of all time and the first female rider to reach 1,000 wins in Canada. Although Fort Erie Race Track had credited Francine will the milestone, the North American database for horse racing known as Equibase did not. In July of 2011, Francine had won a race in Kingston, Jamaica aboard a horse named Turbine but that particular win was not noted because it took place outside of North America.
On Sunday, April 15th, 2012 Villeneuve was back in the winner’s circle aboard a filly named Will to Shine at Calder Racecourse in Florida. “I received a call from her trainer Michael Lightner several weeks prior”, explained the rider. “He asked me to come and work the
filly and if I liked her she was mine to ride.” Mike and his training partner Mary Surrency played a major role in the historic win. “They said they wanted me to win my 1000th race on their horse,” said Villeneuve. Francine dusted off her riding boots and saddled up for what would be a gate to wire victory pulling away to win by five lengths. “It was the greatest feeling.” Equibase will now credit the popular rider with her 1,000th win. “It is a total relief,” said Villeneuve.
When asked if she would reconsider her retirement Villeneuve said “I made a decision and I am going to stick to it.” But racing fans don’t need to feel as though they may never see her again…Francine is coming home to Fort Erie to be inducted into the local Sports Wall of Fame in the middle of June and as a special treat Francine will be on track on Father’s Day at Fort Erie Race Track to sign autographs for fans and say her official good bye to the sport she loves so
much and to the track which she called home. Villeneuve began her career on the race- track in 1984 when she took a summer job as a hot walker at Woodbine in Toronto. Her ability around horses and her small stature made her a natural for a future in the saddle. Her long career has seen its share of memorable occasions including riding Wilderness Song to a second place finish in the 1991 Queen’s Plate and com- peting in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff, finishing second in the Prince of Wales on Autumn Snow in 2005 and winning the Avelino Gomez Memo- rial Award for contributions to racing. Francine became known as a trail blazer for women in the sport helping to pave the way for others. She earned the nickname “The Queen of Fort Erie” after her years of dedication and hard work at the historic Border Oval.
Fans are invited to meet Francine and give her their best wishes on Father’s Day, June 17th at Fort Erie Race Track for an autograph and
meet and greet. Elissa Blowe
Live racing for the 2012 meet kicked off on Sunday, May 6th.
For more information please contact;
Manager, Media & Marketing Fort Erie Race Track 1-800-295-3770 ext. 3204
femedia@forterieracetrack.ca
Slow Feed Netting Makes a Difference throughout North America
Welland, ON – SLOW FEED NETTING, is one of Niagara’s best kept secrets in that, they are making a difference to the horse industry by way of how horse owners are feeding their horses. The slow feed movement is catching on across North America and in Europe. Slow Feed Netting produces Canadian-made hay netting to accom- modate all sizes of hay bales — small square, large square, small and large round bales, or any size or shape their customers can dream up to fit their feeding needs.
“Since I sell netting for various sports, we started with a 1” opening in the net and made a hammock for a customer’s horses. We sewed the sides up and most of the top but left an opening for her to add the feed. We then lashed the 2 sides together until she needed to add more feed. This was the beginning of Slow Feed Netting,” says Tim Proctor, owner of Turf Net Sports Sup- plies, the parent company for Slow Feed Netting. The idea of selling netting was brought to Tim by a lady looking to follow the advice she received at a course held by the Swedish Hoof School. During the course she learned of the ben- efits of slow feeding. First, it is better for the horse’s digestive system as the horse is constant- ly eating but at a slower rate. Secondly it saves the horse owner money in wasted hay and time. Dee Grenier, the original horse owner that brought the idea to Turf Net Sports Supplies commented, “in just one week I saw the differ- ence it was making in the way my horses were eating and the amount of hay was reduced. After several weeks, they were gaining weight and I was not going through as much hay. I started to tell my friends”.
After discussions with other horse owners and veterinarians that specialize in horse-care, Tim found the need for this type of feeding sys- tem sufficient to start Slow Feed Netting. Start- ing with one bag with 1” openings, Slow Feed Netting now has a variety of sizes and can cus- tom-make almost any size required by their cus- tomers. Slow Feed Netting is expanding and will be introducing other products for the horse indus- try in the months to come.
Slow Feed Netting sells to customers world- wide, with the majority being in North America. For more information visit
www.slowfeednet-
ting.com
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