A new effort to expand the Midwest Thoroughbred industry into Wisconsin has been initiated with the formation of the Wisconsin Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association, which announced Jan. 29 the launch of its website at www.wistoba.org.
"We have the environment for it with a strong agricultural foundation and thousands of acres of pasture suitable to breed and raise high-quality Thoroughbreds," said Joe Moore, who formed WISTOBA and owns Silo Skyline Farms and Racing Stable in Pulaski, Wis. “We have a strong breeding industry for Quarter Horses and Morgans but we are essentially starting from scratch with Thoroughbreds."
Since 2020, The Jockey Club has registered 23 Thoroughbred foals born in Wisconsin.
Moore has been working closely with the national Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association and the National Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association to create what he hopes will become a new breeding center that dovetails with racing programs in Illinois, Iowa, and Minnesota.
"Breeding is the best way to get our foot in the door. We see a lot of opportunity if these four states could collaborate," he said.
Moore is a real estate agent for commercial and residential property by profession. He became a licensed Thoroughbred owner in October 2024 and now has four horses at the racetrack and is involved in 10 other racehorses through a syndicate.
"I have always been a fan of racing," Moore said. "Then life gets busy, and you are focused on other things. Once my daughter started taking riding lessons, that resparked everything."
Among Moore's best runners is Beautiful Charade, a 5-year-old daughter of Maximus Mischief . He claimed her for $10,000 at Hollywood Casino at Mahoning Valley Racecourse in Ohio in December 2024. Last year, she won three races and earned more than $61,000 with trainer Tim Hamm. The mare is likely to become Moore's first broodmare.
Pari-mutuel wagering has been legal in Wisconsin since 1987 but racing has been limited to fairs and small-scale harness racing. One of Moore's first goals is to educate state legislators about the growth opportunities of establishing a Thoroughbred breeding program and how a state-bred incentive program can help launch that initiative.
"With the right structure and leadership in place, the state has the potential to contribute meaningfully to the next generation of horses competing at the highest levels across the nation," he said.
Through its website, the association is inviting anyone interested to sign up to receive periodic updates and be notified when founding memberships become available. Moore said founding members will have an opportunity to help shape the organization's early direction and priorities.
