Owner and CEO Russell Williams with one of Hanover Shoe Farm’s broodmares, Nicole Isabella and her 2020 foal.
With 886 horses on 3,000 acres, including 400 broodmares, 110 retired horses, 12 studs and a yearling population, Hanover Shoe Farms in Hanover, Pennsylvania has wrangled with a lot this year. Through it all, this family farm has consistently put their staff and horses first. From the Covid outbreak to scandals in racing, the largest breeding Standardbred farm in the world leads the way by example and deed.
“The first thing we did [when the pandemic began] was to organize a VPN (virtual private network) and security software for every office employee and send them home,” said farm owner and Chief Executive Officer, Russell Williams. “Stable workers wear masks in the barn and ride no more than two in a truck. They were given extra sick days and we started covering the co-pay for any medical problem of unknown origin. We did not want anyone to come to work sick. A $60 co-pay means a lot to some of our employees. We also gave paid leave to families with kids at home because schools were closed.”
These are not the only pandemic concerns. Buyers at the November Standardbred yearling sale In Harrisburg, Pennsylvania – where Hanover Shoe Farm sells their yearlings - study harness racing stats when considering a purchase, but the racetracks have been shut down.
“The brothers and sisters of the horses we plan to sell in the fall would [normally] be out there racking up racing statistics,” Williams said. “But that is not happening.”
The yearling sale makes up the bulk of the farm’s income, although, last year, Williams said they did sell a few broodmares with a provision that those mares could be brought back.
“We never want anything to happen to our horses,” he said. “We take care of them until the day they die. Some do not work out, while others work out bigtime. It’s not their fault. It is just how it goes. We think every one of them is entitled to a good life.”
Williams spoke of a recent scandal in the Thoroughbred and Standardbred world that exposed 27 trainers and a few veterinarians who were drugging horses.
“We were reeling when we heard this news,” Williams said. “When we raise these yearlings and send them out into the world, we love them. We do not want them to meet up with mistreatment of any kind.”
Indignation led to action with the Shoe Farms making a $250,000 challenge contribution to a grant to raise money for investigations.
“This goes to investigations into wrongdoing - anything that would interfere with the welfare of the horse,” said Williams. “We are working on the legal aspects now. If information comes to light that something is going on, it can be investigated by one of a number of high power investigation firms. We don’t want to see even a few horses mistreated. Drugging a horse is abuse.”
In addition, Williams said The Standardbred Transition Alliance was set up by the Standardbred community this past year, to find homes for all Standardbreds who must be retired and need a home.
Jim Simpson, chairman of the board of directors for Hanover Shoe Farms, says these are the kind of things that draw him to be a part of Hanover Shoe Farms.
“We are a family farm and have been since inception,” Simpson said. “My dad was a horse trainer who went to work for Mr. Sheppard, Russell’s grandfather. I’ve always been involved with horses and was VP [of the company] for 6 years, and then president for 20 years.”
The “family farm” began in the early 1900's, when a young Lawrence B. Sheppard - junior partner in the Hanover Shoe Company – replaced the mediocre stock at their Hanover Shoe Farm with some of the finest racehorses of the era. For the next 42 years, his goal was to keep Hanover Shoe Farms, "the greatest name in harness racing". When he married, his wife Charlotte joined him in that endeavor. Russell Williams laughed when he shared how came to own the farm.
“I was doomed. Lawrence is my grandfather. My mother loved horses and I did too, so I was already in deep.”
Simpson shared how Hanover Shoe Farms has been the leading money-winning breeder of any breed in the world.
“We have been in business for [94] years and we’re the largest - or close to the largest -standardbred operation in the world. There is a farm in Delaware who may now have more than us.”
Shoe Farm customers come from the USA as well as the Scandinavians, the United Kingdom, Canada and Germany. Simpson is part-owner of two “Hanover” horses, along with trainer, Paul Kelley, who has two stables - in New Jersey and Saratoga Springs. He says the Hanover Shoe Farm resume speaks for itself.
“When I transitioned from buying older horses into buying yearlings, going to Hanover Shoe farm - the largest nursery in the business - was a no-brainer,” Kelly said.
Kelley said the Shoe Farm also owns the former Hanover Fairgrounds.
“They move their yearlings over there in mid-September to prep them for the November sale,” he said. “They groom and exercise them daily, organizing how they will present them to the customer. A lot of us like to do pre-sale legwork and see the babies at the farm before the sale. It is a more relaxed, natural environment and gives you a bigger perspective.”
Kelley said he examines the pedigree, videos of the horses, and personally looks at about 75 trotters at Hanover Shoe Farm and a few other farms annually, purchasing about 10. He spoke of the two trotters from Hanover Shoe Farms that he and Simpson are part-owners of.
“The one filly, Allswell Hanover is a 3-year-old filly from the 2018 Harrisburg sale. She was a $100,000 yearling and was in the upper echelon, with a nice pedigree. She is a beautiful yearling with great conformation. Her dam earned $280,000 on the racetrack. The other filly, Derailed Hanover, is a really exciting filly. She was a $150,000 yearling and is a half-sister to Donato Hanover, who earned just shy of $3 million on the racetrack. He was the 2-year-old trotting colt of the year in 2006, and the 3-year-old trotting colt of the year in 2007. He won the Hambletonian, our biggest event, and he won a whole host of top stakes races at two and three. Anything can happen in this family. She has been training well and will have tremendous residual value as a broodmare. She’s only two and is about a month away from her first race.”
Williams says the broodmares are of utmost importance.
“The most important thing for a breeding farm is the quality of the broodmare band,” he said. “You want as many of the best mares as you can get. Sometimes they surprise you. Back in the early 90s, we were offered a mare who was okay. She’d won about $96,000 racing. They offered her for $13,000 and we thought she was worth that. Well, her first foal won $971,000 and became a top breeding stallion. Her second foal won 2.2 million dollars. The third one won a half million and fifth foal won $965,000. One more won $2.7 million and went on to become a great breeding stallion.”
Kelley spoke of the Shoe Farm broodmares.
“They have a really deep broodmare band, both in the trotters and the pacers. They are really well established in terms of excellence in breeding. I will look at 75 or more foals every year, and one of the things, to me, that is most attractive about Hanover [Shoe Farms] is the people I deal with every year. Their farm manager, Dr. J. [Dr. Bridgette Jablonsky] and Jim Simpson and Russell Williams, their integrity is impeccable. They care about every facet of the industry. That speaks volumes about exactly who they are, why they are successful, and why we put so much trust in the Hanover name.”
Kelley thought for a moment, his voice becoming quiet.
“When you walk around looking at those horses, you know that there are some future world champions right there before your eyes. It is up to you to try to figure out who that is.”
Visit Hanover Shoe Farms online at hanoverpa.com.