Member of the MonthMeet Hibiscus Stables
In 1989, after receiving his MBA, Mike launched a company called Allstar Stats. The organization became a pioneer among fantasy sports leagues and was ultimately sold to NBC in 2006. After the sale of the company, Mike turned his primary focus to his other passion, horse racing, and thus Hibiscus Stables became a full-time endeavor. Together, Doris Ann, a retired physician; Al, an accountant and mortgage broker; and Mike have a unique blend of business savvy that has made their ownership dreams a reality. A TOBA member since February 2006, Hibiscus Stables offers racing partnerships. Operating from Somers, New York, Hibiscus Stables’ horses primarily run at Belmont, Aqueduct and Saratoga. The stable currently has about 35 partners and is expanding. Hibiscus was formed based on Mike’s belief that owning a small percentage of many horses may be more fun than owning one horse outright. “If you own a percentage of ten horses, you are going to have ten times the fun,” Mike stated. Additionally, Hibiscus Stables believes the ownership experience is more than just about entering a horse in a race. In addition to the many perks of ownership, with Hibiscus Stables the partnership experience is about the team camaraderie. On race days, partners all gather at a table in the clubhouse restaurant and are welcome in the paddock before the race, where they can meet the trainer and the jockey and are always a part of the winner’s circle photo when the horse wins. They also schedule group events like barn visits, partner picnics and meeting for sunset racing at Belmont Park. In 2005, Hibiscus purchased its first horse, a City Zip filly named She’s Got Zip. Although the horse was ultimately claimed from the stable and retired as a broodmare, she had an impressive 3rd-place finish in her two-year-old debut at Saratoga. The filly went on to win twice as a two-year-old and hit the board in several other races. Mike recalls Hibiscus’ first trip to the winner’s circle as “beyond ourselves ecstatic” and “truly unbelievable.” He remembers turning to his friends and saying, “Guys, your first horse wins its first race only once in your lives, so savor every moment of this!” Looking to further expand their knowledge, Doris Ann and Mike attended TOBA’s two-day Pedigree and Conformation Clinic in Ocala in 2006 and 2007. Mike said that he “thoroughly enjoyed the TOBA clinics and learned a great deal from the knowledgeable speakers.” He established worthwhile relationships with many of the clinic speakers, including Jason Collier of Muirfield Insurance and George Issacs of Bridlewood Farms, whom Hibiscus uses to prep its yearlings for the sales. “TOBA’s clinics introduced us to some trustworthy advisors in the industry that we may have otherwise never met,” said Mike. Additionally, Mike and Doris Ann developed friendships with many of the other clinic participants and often get together at the sales or track to share ideas and network. The Hibiscus Stables partners continue to build their organization. In 2006, they purchased Salt Water Reign, a filly by Salt Lake and a grade I-placed mare named Top Ruhl. In 2007, the stable continued to expand, purchasing Sextant, Mr. Blue Grey, Iron Curtain and Portuguesemano’war. All of the horses are in training with Linda Rice or Steve Klesaris. Hibiscus Stables enjoyed success with Salt Water Reign, but according to Mike, Sextant, a daughter of Orientate, shows the greatest amount of raw talent. Sextant, a New York-bred, won her debut at Belmont and finished fourth in an open company stakes at The Meadowlands in 2007. Continuing to expand, Hibiscus recently purchased a Forest Wildcat filly, a Good and Tough colt and a Yonaguska colt from the March OBS Select Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Ocala. The stable also recently expanded to the West Coast, where Ron Ellis will train the Forest Wildcat filly. Hibiscus Stables’ silks are royal blue with a fuchsia collar and display a hibiscus flower in the middle. The design of the silks was a collaborative effort between Al, Mike and Doris Ann although Doris Ann is responsible for naming the majority of the stables’ horses. Mike said, “Doris Ann is really creative and has a knack for blending the names of the horse’s sire and dam.” The Hibiscus Stables managing partners believe they have a unique approach to partnerships in that their goal is to provide unprecedented levels of customer service with ample flow of information to the partners. Their goal is to increase the number of partners, while adding quantity and quality to the stable. And their ultimate goal is to compete at the highest levels of racing. In 2007, Hibiscus Stables had a win percentage of 27 percent and were in the money 55 percent of the time. For Mike, a self-proclaimed sports fanatic, the greatest enjoyment of Thoroughbred ownership is the competitive nature of the sport. “Cheering your horse across the finish line is an unbelievable rush,” he said. He also simply likes to be around the horses. “We enjoy being around the animals,” he said. “We go to the barn and interact with the horses, we watch them work and we really know each horse’s personality.” Hibiscus Stables has assembled a winning team and have had a lot of fun doing it. “The team of advisors within our organization would not be what it is today if it were not for TOBA’s assistance,” Mike said. “One of my core philosophies is that to be the best or to assemble a championship team, you have to have all-stars at every position." “That holds true in anything you do, and in racing it’s no different,” Mike continued. “Organizations like TOBA provide access to these industry all-stars, so to speak, thereby making it that much more possible for us to assemble that winning team.” TOBA – Working On Behalf of Owners and Breeders.
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Hibiscus Stables was founded in 2003 by the three managing partners, Mike Oliveto, Doris Ann Hayes and Al Schwab. Mike and Al met while attending middle school in New York, and Mike and Doris Ann have been a couple since 1991. Growing up together, Mike and Al attended harness racing at Yonkers Raceway and visited Saratoga each August. In fact, Mike and Al have attended the annual Saratoga meet each year since 1980. While attending the races together as young adults, Mike and Al always said they were, one day, going to be owners.