DUAL Completes Acquisition of David Ashby Underwriting

DUAL, the specialist underwriting arm of Howden Group Holdings, has completed the acquisition of David Ashby Underwriting Limited (“DAU”), a MGA specialising in bloodstock and high value sport horse insurance. The latter had earlier been formed in 2020 following David Ashby's purchase of Amlin's bloodstock and livestock book and provided cover in Thoroughbred bloodstock, commercial breeding, rear and racing, and high value sports horses.

David Howden, CEO, Howden, said: “Joining with David and his expert team deepens our connection to the equestrian world, and makes us a true differentiator in this exciting market. DUAL now provides world-class expertise in all the major equine markets, and we will continue to leverage our expertise to provide more choice and a fresh alternative for clients.”

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Eclipse Award Winning Owner Diana Firestone Passes Away at 91

Diana Firestone, who, along with her husband Bert campaigned a number of champion horses, including 1980 GI Kentucky Derby winner Genuine Risk, passed away peacefully at her home in Florida on Feb. 12. She was 91.

In 1980, the Firestones won an Eclipse Award as the nation's top owners. Bert Firestone passed away in 2021.

“I can't say enough good things about her and Bert and the opportunity they gave me when I shifted from the Midwest to New York,” said Hall of Famer Bill Mott, who was hired by the Firestones to be their private trainer in 1986. “They gave me the opportunity to break into New York and they treated me like family. She was a wonderful person and a very good horse person herself. She was very knowledgeable about racing and breeding. She always conducted herself so well and was a very kind person.”

Firestone was born in New Brunswick, New Jersey in 1932 and was the granddaughter of Robert Wood Johnson, the founder of the health products manufacturer Johnson & Johnson. She was the daughter of John Seward Johnson, an executive with Johnson & Johnson, and Ruth Dill Johnson, a native of Bermuda.

A lifelong equestrienne, Firestone learned to ride in England with her siblings. While in prep school in Washington, D.C., she rode hunters and jumpers and fox hunted across Virginia's northern landscape. After graduating from Bennett Junior College, Firestone had a renowned equestrian career, representing the United States in horse shows worldwide.

“Horses, with the single exception of my family, have been the most important thing in my life,” Firestone once said.

“She was an amazing mother and an amazing horse woman,” said Firestone's daughter Alison Robitaille. “Pretty much every animal loved her. Whether it was dogs, horses, whatever, when it came to animals she was like a magnet. She gave to me my love of horses and introduced me to them at an early age, which I am very grateful for.”

In recognition of Firestone's commitment to equestrian sports, the American Horse Shows Association awarded her the Walter B. Devereux Trophy for having exemplified the ideal of good sportsmanship through commitment, dedication and service.

The Firestones were perennially among the top owners in the sport in the 70s and 80s and horses running under their familiar green and white silks accounted for 51 graded or group stakes wins.

Teaming up with trainer Leroy Jolley, they landed their first Eclipse Award with Honest Pleasure, the champion 2-year-old of 1971. He was followed by 1977 champion sprinter What a Summer.

But the Firestones will always be best remembered for winning the Derby with Genuine Risk, who, at the time, became only the second filly to win the sport's most prestigious race. She finished second in a controversial running of the GI Preakness S. and was then second in the GI Belmont S. She is the only filly to win or place in all three Triple Crown races. In 1986, Genuine Risk was enshrined in the Racing Hall of Fame.

Two years after Genuine Risk, the Firestones had another Eclipse Award winner. Already a champion in France, April Run (Ire) won an Eclipse Award as the nation's outstanding turf mare in 1982. In 1987, the Firestone's Theatrical (Ire) won six Grade I races, including the GI Breeders' Cup Turf, and was named champion turf male. He was the first Breeders' Cup winner and Eclipse champion for Mott.

The Firestones were also active in Europe. In 1981, their Blue Wind (Ire) was named champion 3-year-old filly in both England and Ireland and April Run was named champion 3-year-old filly in France. That same year, Play it Safe (Ire) was named champion 2-year-old filly in France.

The Firestone homebred Winchester became the couple's final top-level victor with four Grade I wins from 2008 to 2011, and they completed the dispersal of their bloodstock in January 2020. The Firestones, who owned both Gulfstream Park and Calder Racecourse from 1989 to 1991, began scaling back their racing ventures in the late 1980s.

Firestone is survived by four children, Robitaille, Lorna Stokes, Christopher Stokes, Cricket MacDonald and three stepsons, Matthew Firestone, Ted Firestone and Greg Firestone. She is also survived by 16 grandchildren.

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2022 Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event Will Host Para Dressage And Para Jumping Demonstrations

The Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event presented by MARS Equestrian (LRK3DE) will host demonstrations in Para Dressage and Para Jumping when it returns to the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY, April 28-May 1, 2022.

Organized by Equestrian Events Inc. (EEI), the Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event presented by MARS Equestrian™ features one of only seven annual Five Star three-day events in the world as well as the $225,000 Kentucky CSI3* Invitational Grand Prix presented by Hagyard Equine Medical Institute. Known as “The Best Weekend All Year,” the event annually attracts more than 80,000 spectators who also enjoy extensive shopping, a variety of hospitality experiences and a wide array of demonstrations.

This year's demonstrations will include Para Dressage, the only equestrian sport in the Paralympic Games, and the emerging sport of Para Jumping. Working with EEI in organizing the demonstrations are Para Dressage rider Rebecca Hart, who has competed in four consecutive Paralympic Games, and Wren Blae Zimmerman, a blind Jumping rider who competes in USEF-recognized competitions and has the ultimate goal of helping Jumping become a Paralympic sport.

“We are incredibly excited to host demonstrations in both Para Dressage and Para Jumping,” said Mike Cooper, president of the board of Equestrian Events, Inc. (EEI). “What Rebecca Hart and Wren Blae Zimmerman do as riders is incredibly impressive and an inspiration to anyone faced with physical or other challenges. We are thrilled to join with them in presenting demonstrations of their sports at our event!

Each demonstration will feature 2-3 riders and demonstrations in both disciplines will be held on Friday and Saturday in both the Walnut Arena and Rolex Stadium. Both will also be featured as part of Sunday's Opening Ceremonies. Hart, as a Paralympic veteran, will also appear as part of “Champions Live!” a discussion panel held annually at LRK3DE that features U.S. equestrian champions from each Olympic/Paralympic discipline.

“I'm both thrilled and incredibly appreciative to EEI for the opportunity to introduce Para Jumping to the United States at an event as prestigious and well-attended as the Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event,” said Zimmerman. “I hope to contribute to the growth and accessibility of horse sport by empowering change within the equestrian community. The short-term goal is for Para Jumping to become an officially recognized discipline which will ultimately help establish greatly needed resources, pathways, and competition opportunities for riders with disabilities to participate in the jumping disciplines.”

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The Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event is a thrilling multi-day competition featuring Olympic-level riders and horses in what can best be described as an equestrian triathlon. Horse and rider pairs compete in three phases of the competition – Dressage, Cross-Country and Show Jumping – for $375,000 in prize money. Two distinct Eventing competitions are held, a CCI5*-L and a CCI4*-S. LRK3DE is the longest-running Five Star event in the Americas and as the United States' premier event, it also serves as the Land Rover/USEF CCI-5*-L Eventing National Championship presented by MARS Equestrian for the U.S. athletes.

Read more here.

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Smaller, But Still Super: Michael Matz

The concept of the super trainer is by no means a new phenomenon in horse racing, but the huge stables run by super trainers have undoubtedly changed the landscape of the sport in many ways, from the backside to the racing entries. Are super trainers bad for the sport?  Are there any benefits for an owner in using a “smaller” trainer? We asked these questions and more to a few trainers who may not be considered super trainers in terms of their stall numbers, but they have made the most of the horses they're given to build competitive racing stable over their careers.

Michael Matz offers a perspective on racing and training that perhaps no one else in history shares as not only a successful trainer, but before that, an accomplished international equestrian who competed in three Olympics and took home the silver medal in the team show jumping competition in 1996. Two years later, Matz transitioned to the racing world and it wasn't long before he made it to the big stage with the unforgettable 2006 Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro (Dynaformer). Other top performers include 2012 GI Belmont S. winner Union Rags (Dixie Union) and 2006 GI Breeders' Cup Distaff victress Round Pond (Awesome Again). As Matz approaches 800 career wins, he compares the state of racing today to that of the show jumping industry several decades ago.

 

KP: How did you first get involved in horse racing?

MM: When I first got involved in racing, I had a prior commitment with a young horse named Judgement to try and go to the Sydney Olympic Games in 2000. We made it into the top 15, but we had some better horses on the team. I ended up giving him to Beezie Madden and he was a really nice horse for her.

After that, I felt like the show jumping industry was going the wrong way and I didn't like some of the things going on with management. I always enjoyed the racehorses so I thought I would give it a try and I had my first winner in 1998.

I started out with about five horses in my stable. I have always trained for my family, but over time we started to get some better horses and more clients. At one point we had 60 to 70 horses, but that got hard with the help situation and I didn't want to have so many people watching over my horses. I didn't like being separated with a barn in one place and another barn somewhere else. I like to be a little more hands-on without having these big strings.

KP: When you moved from the show jumping world to the racing world, what was the biggest challenge in making that transition?

MM: Good horses make good riders and good horses make good trainers. When I first started, I didn't have that many good horses and I was looking into how I could get better-quality horses. As anyone can tell you, the good ones are easy to train. I watched and spoke with a lot of the bigger trainers when I first started and I think mostly everyone does things the same way. It's the same as with the show jumpers–the people who have the better horses are winning. You just have to find a way to get those horses.

KP: How many horses are normally in your stable today?

MM: Now, we only have between 20 and 30 horses. It's a little hard right now because it is a numbers game. Things have really changed from how it was when I first started. I mostly train for breeders. I don't have anyone going to the sale and spending millions of dollars. We'll buy some at the sale but that's always a hard situation when you buy one or two and there are four thousand at a sale.

It's getting a bit difficult right now and I think the big thing is that the ownerships have changed. More people are going into partnerships and you have half a dozen trainers getting all the horses. When I first got involved, I think a lot of the owners were a bit more loyal than they are today. The bottom line  for them is asking their trainer, 'What have you done for me lately?' So it is a hard situation when you don't have the numbers.

Matz ponying undefeated Barbaro ahead of the colt's Kentucky Derby victory | Horsephotos

KP: What do you believe makes your stable unique?

MM: Any small stable can be a bit more personalized. You know your horses better than someone who has 200 or 300 horses. At this point in my career, I don't think I could handle that physically or mentally. Also, now that my children are competing in show jumping, I want to be able to watch them ride.

KP: What do you believe are the benefits for an owner in using a “smaller” trainer?

MM: The obvious benefit is that if you ask someone to train your horse, that person is going to be training the horse. It won't be his main assistant or second assistant or third assistant. The biggest opportunity that you have is that you know who will be training your horse and know that they can probably keep a better eye on the situation. That's my opinion and it's why it was hard for me when I had more than 50 horses. I just felt like everyone has a different view of something and if you don't keep your own eye on the horse, there are things that can happen that will go unnoticed.

KP: Do you think super trainers are bad for the sport?

MM: I don't know that they are bad. Obviously if they're getting all those horses, they deserve those horses because they've done well. For an owner, it's all about personal preference. If you want to be one of 200, that's fine. But it is all about numbers. It seems like it has gotten to the point where if one horse doesn't work out, they can just bring in the next one.

KP: What do you enjoy most about your job?

MM: It's a pleasure to be around the animals all the time. The enjoyment and thrill when a horse wins is such an accomplishment. I'm very lucky right now that the people I have as owners could not be a nicer group. I don't have a lot of clients now at this point in my career, but the people I do have are wonderful and they all really love their horses.

KP: What is the most frustrating aspect of your job?

MM: I do think there are things going wrong in our sport. It's funny, some of the things that I think were going wrong when I was involved in show jumping are the things we have problems with now in racing with each state wanting to do their own thing and have their own rules.

Matz-trained Union Rags races to victory in the 2012 GI Belmont S. | Horsephotos

I do think that when people are penalized, it should be a lot harsher penalty. Right now, I think organizations are afraid to do anything because someone can just get a lawyer and sue them. Whatever the rule is, we need to make sure it's the same for everyone and that we all start at the same starting gate and finish at the same finish line without one person starting 10 lengths in front of everyone else.

That's the discouraging part for small trainers in the business right now who want to do it the right way. I'm not saying any of these big trainers don't do it the right way, but there are things going on right now that need to be figured out.

KP: Do you think the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) would help achieve the uniformity you mentioned in regards to rules and penalties?

MM: Nothing is really happening otherwise, so I think we have to go that way so that something does happen. I wish that something could have already happened, but right now every state has their own rules and regulations and nobody has a set standard that they're going by. The disappointing part about it is that nothing changes. If people get caught with something, they have to have serious penalties.

I think the biggest thing I don't care for is that if a trainer does get suspended, all they do is put their assistant in and the stable keeps running like normal. Maybe if penalties were actually enforced, things could happen so that smaller trainers could get some more horses.

KP: What horse was the most influential to your career?

MM: With show horses, it would be [1981 Show Jumping World Cup winner] Jet Run, who I had for a long time and was a great horse.

With racehorses, the best horse I ever had was obviously Barbaro. We will never know just how good he was, but he was pretty good.

To catch up on our 'Smaller But Still Super' series, click here.

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