Howard takes over as CTBA chair

Leigh Ann Howard has begun her term as the president of the California Thoroughbred Breeders Association.

Howard was elected by a unanimous board vote March 13, and her first meeting as president took place April 15 at the CTBA office in Arcadia. Actions from that first meeting included changes in the CTBA committees as well as committee reports.

Howard succeeds Scoop Vessels as the CTBA president.

Howard also became only the second woman to serve as president of the CTBA, joining Cecilia B. DeMille Harper. “That’s kind of a big deal,” Howard said.

The CTBA was founded in 1937. Harper, the daughter of movie producer Cecil B. DeMille and the mother of current Del Mar Thoroughbred Club general manager Joe Harper, served as the CTBA president from 1963 to 1966.

Howard joined the CTBA in 1967 and has been on the board since 1997. She served a one-year term as vice-president for 2007-08 before ascending to the position of president.

“I think that I’ve had enough experience on the board, and certainly my lifetime of working in the industry gives me lots of experience,” Howard said of seeking the position of CTBA president.

Howard was born in Los Angeles and grew up in the town of Lindsay in the San Joaquin Valley. She attended Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, and after her college graduation she went to Buellton, where she worked for Dr. James Buell as an assistant at his breeding farm.

She stayed in Buellton until 1971, when she founded The Howard Agency, which was an employment agency for horse auction personnel.

Howard moved to Carlsbad after founding The Howard Agency and became involved in training through the auction company. She went to the San Luis Rey Downs Thoroughbred Training Center to prepare two-year-olds, and after the sales ended she found herself with two-year-olds in training at San Luis Rey Downs.

She began her affiliation with San Luis Rey Downs in 1975 and has been a licensed trainer since 1982, which was also the year Howard moved to Fallbrook.

In 1985 Howard accepted a position at Valley Creek Farm and was the general manager at Valley Creek Farm before taking over as general manager of the San Luis Rey Downs Thoroughbred Training Center in spring 2001. She remains at Valley Creek Farm as a consultant.

Howard is also currently the president of the Bonsall Chamber of Commerce. She became involved with the Bonsall Chamber of Commerce after becoming the general manager of San Luis Rey Downs and is serving her fourth term as president after initially being installed in November 2004.

One of Howard’s goals as CTBA president is to strengthen the committees. Howard had previously chaired the CTBA’s Education Committee, which is currently chaired by Rancho Santa Fe’s Rosemary Neeb.

The Farm Operations Committee was created in 2007 and is chaired by Myron Johnson of Fresno; Vessels is also a member of that committee. Bill Nichols, who lives in the Sacramento area, chairs the CTBA’s Sales Committee.

John Harris of Coalinga chairs the Legislative Committee, Temecula’s Dan Schiffer chairs the Racing Committee, Keith Card of La Cresta chairs the Promotions Committee, and Pete Parrella of Corona Del Mar chairs the Finance Committee.

What had been the Magazine/Internet Committee is now the Communications Committee and is chaired by Dan Harralson of Fresno.

Another goal Howard has for the CTBA is to have more specific information about thoroughbred breeding and sales in the state. “I want to get some real numbers,” she said.

She also seeks a better census of thoroughbreds to determine the number of horses racing and the post-racing careers of race horses. “We’re trying to get the right information, the best information, to our breeders,” she said.

Howard has also contemplated holding some CTBA meetings in the Sacramento area or in San Diego County. “I’ve been a big proponent of moving the meetings around,” she said.

Howard also inherits the short-term goal of maintaining the breeding industry during rough economic times. “The economy is really in a big mess right now, and our industry is basically discretionary funds,” she said. “Since discretionary funds are really going away, we need to tighten our belts.”