MILTON, P.E.I. – Island racing was saddened by the recent passing of Meridian Farms operator Brian Andrew, but his brother and business partner is making it clear the Andrew family stills wants a role in Atlantic Canadian harness racing.
William Andrew operates Meridian Farms in High River, Alta., and was the chief partner to his older brother, the late Brian Andrew, in Meridian Farms in Milton. The younger Andrew says that although the breeding operation in Milton will not be what it once was, he is far from pulling out of the region.
Meridian Farms opened on P.E.I. in 2003 on the site of the former Glengyle Farms and grew to be the biggest producer of standardbred yearlings on the East Coast. The Andrew family invested heavily in breeding stock through the years, including the top stallions in the Atlantic Sires Stakes with horses like Northern Bailey, Ameripan Gigolo, Camystic, N Xample, Pang Shui, Tad The Stud and Armbro Barrister, among others.
With Brian gone, Andrew says the broodmare operation cannot continue like it was. He has taken one broodmare to Western Canada to join his 35 strong broodmare band in Alberta, while the rest will be left in the hands of Brian’s family to decide on their future. Brian’s son, Blake, operates a small breeding operation in northern New York and may take some mares there while daughter Rachel Andrew is racing a stable in Ontario.
“There is not the connection on P.E.I. for me to have any broodmares anymore,” Andrew said Thursday while indicating there are no immediate plans to sell the property in Milton. “I’m out west and Brian wasn’t getting any younger with no real succession plan, so we planned on winding the broodmare part down anyways. It may mean some stay, and some go but I’m leaving that up to (Brian’s wife) Carol and Blake and Rachel. There are eight weanlings at the farm with potentially two sold … but the Maritime-bred weanlings will likely go through the sale (in Crapaud) next fall.”
In a bolster to Island racing and breeding, Andrew shook on a deal Thursday morning that will see trot stallions Armbro Barrister and Tad The Stud remain at the Gass family’s Dusty Lane Farms in Cornwall, along with pacing stallion Pang Shui. The deal will see Gass take partial ownership of the stallions with Andrew retaining an ownership share. Stallion Westwardho Hanover has went to Western Canada, while Cougar Hall, who Andrew leases from Jeff Gillis of Ontario, will be looking for a new home.
An ardent sponsor of racing programs across the region, William Andrew was awarded the Cam Fella award in 2015 for extreme effort and dedication to Canadian harness racing. Even with Meridian Farms downplaying its role, Andrew will continue to sponsor the P.E.I. matinee program and the Atlantic Sires Stakes for two- and three-year-old trotters but is looking for downsized commitment to the later.
Andrew puts $20,000 a year to the Atlantic Sires stakes trot, a commitment that started in 2014. Andrew has every intention of continuing that sponsorship well into the future but will be looking for half or a quarter of that commitment while hoping to see another entity, whether it be the provincial government or a local business, step up to financially assist in that endeavour.
“I’ll do it for the good of the program but with us not selling any trotting yearlings anymore it doesn’t make sense for me to do it by myself anymore,” Andrew said.
“Progressing the trotting breed is something I’m very proud of. I never wanted to corner the market, but the good part is that people went out and bought trotters than bred them. It is something that should continue.”
Canada Wide
An Island native scored his first ever driving win outside of the region Sunday evening at Flamboro Downs in Dundas, Ont. Milo native Ryan Desroche was a winner with Bravado Seelster in 1:57.3, racing for a $6,000 purse. It was his 24th lifetime win. The young driver relocated from P.E.I. in September and is now working for the stable of Charlottetown native Jason Ryan.
Nicholas Oakes' column appears in The Guardian each Friday. He can be reached at [email protected].
