When your horse takes one bad step, then another and another, so many things run through your mind as to what could have happened and what will happen.
Utilizing the right diagnostic tools will help you figure out what's going on within your horse. Radiographs capture issues with the bones, but magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) utilizes the combination of powerful magnetic fields, radio waves and a computer to produce detailed images of the distal limbs, or everything below the knee and hock. The MRI is a powerful tool utilized to spot disease and damage in both soft and bony tissues.
Traditional MRIs require the horse to undergo general anesthesia, then being placed in a recumbent position so the distal limbs can be inserted into the machine's tubular core. However, the recovery process following general anesthesia can have potential risks for the horse.
Enter the Standing MRI (sMRI), which allows for high quality images with the use of light sedation instead of general anesthesia. The standing option allows for early and accurate diagnosis, with much less risk to the horse. Park Equine Hospital in Lexington, Ky., is now utilizing a modular Hallmarq Standing MRI which is available to clients looking for a safer option.
“It's a very needed diagnostic tool to have here in central Kentucky,” says Tonya Park, CFO of Park Equine Hospital. “When one of our personal horses needed an MRI, we did not want to lay him down under general anesthesia. After hauling out of state to the nearest standing MRI, we made the decision to partner with Hallmarq to offer a safer option for our clients and patients.”
Park Equine's highly qualified staff have been fully trained by Hallmarq specialists and are now accepting standing MRI appointments for clients and referral veterinarians. The images are read by a radiology service for a quick turnaround, offering answers to the concerns owners might have.
“We feel there is a considerable need for a standing MRI, not only in Kentucky but in surrounding states. Ensuring the health and well-being of our patients is our top priority, and we are pleased to offer this valuable service,” says Park.
Unlike larger equine hospitals in the area, Park Equine Hospital is a boutique-style hospital, where you'll find world class equine medical care in a small town setting. The staff at Park Equine strive to provide specialized personal care tailored to the needs of their clients and patients. The goal of Park Equine Hospital is to exceed their clients' expectations and provide excellent care to their horses.
Unlike a traditional MRI, horses do not need to undergo general anesthesia for a standing MRI
Ambulatory and in-house services are offered for general medicine, sports medicine, lameness, general reproduction, advanced diagnostics, and comprehensive elective and emergency surgery.
Horses of all breeds and disciplines, from the champion performance horse to the backyard pony, benefit from individualized exams, advanced diagnostics, and alternative therapeutic therapies offered at Park Equine Hospital. The list of state-of-the-art diagnostics and therapies offered at Park Equine include Hallmarq Standing MRI, digital radiography, endoscopy, ultrasound, acupuncture, shockwave and regenerative laser
Park Equine Hospital is located at 5455 Lexington Road in Lexington. You can find more information about their new standing MRI and the hospital by visiting their website: http://parkequinehospital.com
Racehorse trainers will be part of many decisions in their horses' careers. Dirt or turf. Sprint or route. Put on blinkers or take them off.
Trainer Linda Loftin was part of the two biggest decisions someone in racing can make for a horse's welfare when it comes to Grand Lily.
— Number one: when to retire a horse.
— Number two: what that horse should do next after racing.
In addition to being in Grand Lily's best interest in terms of her physical and mental well-being, these decisions are also poised to reap financial benefits for her owner, Dennis Ackerman.
The example of Grand Lily has the potential to expand the economy of the Thoroughbred beyond the breeding and racing industries.
“Lily,” a 2013 grey Colorado-bred mare, was Ackerman's first racehorse, bought for $3,700 at the 2014 Silver Cup Yearling Sale in Colorado. However, this isn't his first rodeo. He's a farrier and a breeder of sporthorses in Colorado. P.S. Arianna, a 2001 bay Trakehner mare that Ackerman bred, rose up the ranks in the equestrian sport of eventing to compete at the Kentucky Three-Day Event in 2017 with 21-year-old rider Madeline Backus. (Remember that name, because it will come into play later with Grand Lily.)
Considering that many Thoroughbreds bred for racing never make it to the track, let alone win, let alone earn prize money greater than their purchase price, Grand Lily was relatively successful for being Ackerman's first racehorse.
Ackerman teamed up with Loftin to train Grand Lily for a racing career. Loftin, a Colorado-native from Black Forest near Colorado Springs, left her home state in 1989 for Kentucky.
“I was just barely 22 and trying to get into trouble,” she said, with a laugh.
She studied and worked at the Kentucky Horse Park, where, among several responsibilities, she helped care for racing legends like John Henry and Forego at the Hall of Champions.
“Forego, I loved that horse, man,” Loftin said. “That's the first time I ever laid hands on a racehorse.”
The racing bug bit Loftin. She then worked as an exercise rider, as well as in sales prep for breeding farms like Lane's End and Three Chimneys. The most famous horse she says she galloped was Tejano Run, the runner-up to Thunder Gulch in the 1995 Kentucky Derby for trainer Kenny McPeek.
Loftin returned to Colorado in 2013 to be closer to her parents after the Black Forest Fire.
“I couldn't find a job,” she said. “So, I worked at a kennel, and I worked at Big R. Through Big R [in Falcon, Colo.], I started meeting people from the racetrack.”
Loftin met Ackerman through Big R. Ackerman was looking for someone to prepare his first racing filly for a career on the track.
In 2018, following two seasons in which Loftin would work with Grand Lily in the offseason before the horse would go to a trainer at the track, Loftin decided to get her trainer's license. The first horse she ran under her new stable was Grand Lily in the third race, a 5 1/2-furlong maiden for Colorado-bred fillies and mares, at Arapahoe Park on June 11, 2018. It was also the first career ride for 25-year-old apprentice Alyssa Morales, who, coincidentally, received her jockey's license after doing her practical exam before fellow riders and stewards aboard Grand Lily.
Grand Lily broke on top in a field of six and settled under Morales into company down the backstretch before taking control in the homestretch and pulling away by 2 1/2 lengths to win at 7-1 odds.
Grand Lily's maiden win at Arapahoe Park in June 2018 represented the first career victory for owner Dennis Ackerman, trainer Linda Loftin, and jockey Alyssa Morales
“She pretty much took care of me,” the jockey said. “She loaded right into the gates. Since I had already broken out of the gates with her, I was really confident that she knew what she was going to do the rest of the way.”
Grand Lily ran five more times at Arapahoe Park and at Turf Paradise in Arizona, but her best finish after breaking her maiden was fourth place beaten 9 1/4 lengths in a $10,000 claimer.
So, Loftin was part of “decision number one” for Grand Lily. She and Ackerman decided to retire the mare.
“She hated being a racehorse,” Loftin said. “She doesn't want to be a stall horse at all. She was really kind of nasty. I was lucky I got a win out of her.”
Grand Lily's temperament at the racetrack and her (lack of) effort in races were how she communicated that she was no longer suited for a racing career. Ackerman said he received a text message from Loftin about this.
“Lily just got tired of the track, and she didn't like that life,” Ackerman said. “They were down in Phoenix, and I get a text, 'That's it. Lily is done. She is tired of this life and she wants a new career.' And I said, 'OK, then that's it, we're done.' We respect that, and we'll find something else. That's the point where Linda and I come from: we both want sound, happy horses.”
Ackerman said he felt an obligation to ensure that his horse could be most effective in transitioning from racing to post-racing. He retained ownership in Grand Lily, and Loftin continued to train her. Loftin emphasized skills the mare would need for her next sport, for her next home.
“I'm good about getting nervous horses to calm down,” she said. “I teach my horses to use their whole body. It also keeps them sounder.”
This is something racing trainers can do, even while their horses are on the track. It's a small but important investment that can pay dividends for both the horses' well-being and their financial value. The former addresses a necessary issue that may be the fulcrum on which horse racing's future and social license to operate teeters. If that isn't enough motivation, and unfortunately for many in racing it isn't, the latter provides a financial incentive and grows the economy for Thoroughbreds.
Loftin first introduced Lily to dressage, considered a foundation to build upon for all equestrian sports. Some racing trainers even incorporate dressage movements into their race training to emphasize suppleness, balance, and relaxation.
“Mom and I would play with the dressage letters, and she would read the dressage [tests], and we would go and just do walk-trot dressage, teach her to bend, teach her to give,” Loftin said.
Grand Lily then went to a hunter-jumper trainer in Colorado. That gave Grand Lily a foundation in jumping, but it wasn't the right discipline just yet.
“She was too fast for hunters. They want them to go duh-dut, duh-dut, duh-dut,” said Loftin, demonstrating a metronomic cadence that makes a successful hunter, the sport where horses are judged on their ability to maintain a steady rhythm around a course of fences and on the flat. “I would go to Castle Rock with the hunter-jumper trainer and get on her every once in a while, and that's how we figured out she wasn't going to be a good hunter because she just wants to go. She wants to have a little more excitement.”
So then, Loftin was part of “decision number two” for Grand Lily. Just like a trainer may advise that a horse is more suited to running on dirt or on turf, Loftin told Ackerman that she thought Grand Lily was more suited to eventing. It's the type of decision that requires racing trainers to have some knowledge of equestrian sports outside of racing. However, that knowledge of and exposure to what could be incredibly influential in determining the right fit for a Thoroughbred post-racing, even if racing trainers don't have riding experience outside of racing, are more accessible than ever, thanks to the visibility of such a wide range of equestrian sports at the Retired Racehorse Project Thoroughbred Makeover. Or, just start by watching The Friday Show about “What Makes Up The Thoroughbred Makeover?”.
“She came back, and I'm like, 'Dennis, send her to Laura Backus. You know, you guys are good friends and you've known each other forever,'” Loftin said about having Grand Lily go to the Pendragon Stud Equestrian Center in Larkspur, Colo., where Ackerman has worked for decades as a farrier and where the Ackerman-bred P.S. Arianna was based on her journey with Laura's daughter, Madeline, en route to the Kentucky Three-Day Event.
“Her best trait,” Ackerman said about Madeline, “is to sit up there on a horse and remain quiet and relaxed and transmit quiet confidence to the horse. And then, the horse picks up on that and says, 'This is easy. She's showing me how to do this. We'll do it.'”
Eventing's combination of being rhythmic in the dressage phase, bold to the jumps on the cross country course, and steady and balanced over the fences in the stadium jumping, plus the routine of training and being turned out on the farm, suited Grand Lily to a tee.
Grand Lily after her lone racetrack victory.
“She's got really nice movement, which is why I think they originally thought she should go be a hunter,” Madeline Backus said. “But, she's just a little bit on the hotter side, which, of course, I love. She isn't that steady, quiet, almost-dull ride to the fences. She gears up and wants to do it, which isn't the hunter ride. It's exactly why she's really good for eventing because she sees a jump and goes after it, not in an anxious way but like, 'Oh, that's mine, I'm going to go do that.'”
Lily quickly blossomed into one of the most noticed rookie event horses in the United States Eventing Association's Area IX that covers the states of Colorado, Idaho, South Dakota, and Utah.
The mare and Madeline finished third of 12 in the horse's first recognized event at the Spring Gulch Horse Trials in Colorado in August 2022, two months after Backus started training Lily for eventing. She then finished first out of 30 at The Event at Archer in Wyoming and first of 16 at The Event at Skyline in Utah. She closed out her rookie year with a third out of 19 at the Tomora Horse Trials in Colorado.
My first “Horowitz on OTTBs” for @paulickreport in 2023 will be about Grand Lily. The grey mare raced at Arapahoe, and her presence and movement caught my eye in the announcer's booth. I now announce her winning events, like here at Skyline during her rookie season in 2022. 1/3 pic.twitter.com/9KZl8QpaV1
In four events in 2022 at eventing's Beginner Novice level that has a maximum jump height of 2-feet-7, Grand Lily incurred zero jump or time penalties on cross country or in stadium jumping.
“She's very game, and she's also very brave,” Madeline Backus said. “She sees a jump and is like, 'You point me at it, and I will go over it.'”
Plus, Grand Lily's movement and temperament on the flat have earned her strong marks in the dressage phase.
“We kind of joke that she has a bit of fairy dust,” Madeline said, “because her dressage is still improving because she's very green with dressage, but she just goes out there and is consistent in her rhythm and the judges really like her.”
Grand Lily finished as the High Point Beginner Novice Horse in the USEA's Area IX for 2022. Ackerman and Loftin said they plan to attend the Area IX banquet on Feb. 4 where Grand Lily and Madeline Backus will be recognized, just like how the racing owner and trainer celebrated their horse's successes at the Central Colorado Eventing banquet on Jan. 21.
“She knows she's something special and expects to be treated like that, but she's also got a very kind heart,” Ackerman said of his racehorse-turned-eventer.
Lily and Madeline are spending the winter in Florida. They earned a blue ribbon in their first event there, the Rocking Horse Winter I Horse Trials Jan. 28-29. Their final score of 27.7 was best of 11 in their Beginner Novice division. They continued their streak of zero cross country or stadium jumping penalties. Grand Lily is for sale, and her value as an eventer is now more than it ever was as a racehorse. Her sale price is listed at $24,000.
“I told Madeline the reason I have Lily with her is I want a good foundation on Lily so she knows the job at hand and knows how to accept a rider,” Ackerman said. “Then, she can go off and be owned by an amateur who can make her a rest-of-life partner.”
Ackerman will reap the benefits of that. All because he and Loftin didn't actually “retire” their retired racehorse. They embraced that the Thoroughbred is an elite athlete. They found the right sport for Grand Lily to showcase her physical and mental athletic prowess. They've provided the best care they possibly could for Grand Lily. All of that means they can cash in on their winner in so many ways that will benefit the sport of horse racing and the Thoroughbred economy as a whole.
Announcing horse races inspired Jonathan Horowitz to become an advocate for off-track Thoroughbreds, as well as to learn to event on OTTBs and to expand his announcing of and writing about equine sports to horse shows around the United States. He also works for the United States Eventing Association and runs the Super G Sporthorses eventing barn with his wife, Ashley. He can be reached on Facebook and Twitter at @jjhorowitz.
Star Plus, an Argentinian Group 1 winner who later raced in the United States, died at Old Friends on Saturday night, Jan. 28, 2023, due to a paddock accident.
A reason for his death is unknown at this time. Necropsy results are pending to get an accurate cause of death.
Michael Blowen, founder and president of Old Friends, made the announcement on Monday, Jan. 30, 2023. Star Plus was 20 years old and had been at the farm for 11 years.
Bred by Claudio Javier Valle and Marc Valle, Star Plus, who is by Alpha Plus–Nannar (Arg), by Big Play, was foaled on July 18, 2003 in Argentina.
The bay stallion began racing as a 3-year old in Argentina in 2006. However, his biggest win there came in 2007 when he captured the Premio Joaquin S. de Anchorena (Arg-G1) at San Isidro.
After that racing season, Star Plus was purchased by Earle Mack and brought to the United States. He then raced him from 2008 to 2010. He was first trained in the United States by Ken McPeek, and later by Angel Penna, Jr.
Star Plus' best finishes were a win in an allowance race at Keeneland, and a second in the Turfway Park Fall Championship Stakes (G3). Then, following his last win, which came in an allowance optional claiming race at Gulfstream Park in March 2010, Star Plus came out of the race with a severe ankle injury and was retired with six wins, eight seconds, one third, and $176,503 in earnings in 26 career starts.
With his final race in the books, Mack's plan was to retire Star Plus so he could enjoy the rest of his life. However, the horse's road to retirement was a long and hard fought one to achieve.
It began when Mack was advised that there was some interest in Star Plus by a small breeding farm, and he agreed to let them have him. However, he made one major stipulation, which he put in writing in the contract that stated Star Plus was never to be raced again. And, if they no longer wanted the horse, Mack should immediately be notified so that a suitable retirement home could be found for him.
However, in 2011, Mack discovered that his horse's new owner/trainer, George Iacovacci, Sr., had put Star Plus back in training and planned to race him. And, so began Mack's quest to get his former horse back before he got hurt, or worse, while racing once again.
In all, Star Plus raced four times for Iacovacci at three different tracks, Mt. Pleasant, Mountaineer, and Parx Racing, and finished last in all four races.
In the meantime, every time Mack saw that Star Plus was going to race, he contacted horse racing officials in those states and tracks to let them know of the horse's medical condition and requested that the horse not be allowed to race. In addition, with the help of a number of people, including Maggi Moss, a well-known attorney and respected Thoroughbred owner, letters were also sent to officials saying the same thing and requesting that the horse not be allowed to race. However, all three tracks denied the requests.
Finally, Mack took matters into his own hands, and after the horse's fourth race, an allowance optional claiming race at Parx Racing on Jan. 28, 2012, negotiations were held, and with the help of some others, Mack purchased Star Plus back.
Then, with his horse safely back under his ownership, Mack made arrangements with Blowen, and donated his horse to Old Friends to enjoy his long-awaited, well-earned retirement. Star Plus arrived at the farm later in 2012, along with a generous donation by Mack to Old Friends to ensure the care of his horse.
“Star Plus was so much fun,” said Blowen. “We ran together (he always won, of course) and he seemed overjoyed with himself. Smart. Whimsical. Carefree. In short, a great role model.”
The 52nd annual Eclipse Awards hosted by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association commenced at The Breakers in Palm Beach, Fla Thursday evening, Jan. 26. As the Official Charity Partner, the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance (TAA) was commemorated throughout the awards celebration. NTRA concluded the evening by announcing a $10,000 donation to the TAA.
“The work and mission of the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance is vital to the growth and success of our industry,” said NTRA President and CEO Tom Rooney. “NTRA is grateful for the care and due diligence provided by the TAA each and every day to support our retired racehorses and we encourage everyone to join us in supporting their cause.”
TAA Operations Consultant, Stacie Clark Rogers and 1/ST RACING Executive Vice President and Maryland Jockey Club Acting President and General Manager, Mike Rogers presented both the Champion Female Sprinter award to Goodnight Olive (trainer: Chad Brown; owners: First Row Partners & Team Haney; jockey: Irad Ortiz Jr.) and the Champion Male Sprinter award to Elite Power (trainer: William Mott; owner: Juddmonte; jockey: Irad Ortiz Jr.).
“It's an honor to be a representative of the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance and be a part of presenting this monumental achievement to the Eclipse Award winners of the Male and Female Sprinters,” said Stacie Clark Rogers. “Having the support of industry partners like NTRA is essential to the continued growth of the TAA and the level of positive change we can effect on our 81 accredited organizations.”
NTRA further elevated the aftercare presence at the awards by playing a condensed version of the TAA's short film “Celebrating Ten Years.”
Additionally, NTRA coordinated a Sip, Shop, and Support event at Lilly Pulitzer where TAA received 10% of proceeds from the day's sales and raffled off a hand-painted Lilly Pulitzer purse with all proceeds to benefit the TAA.
About the National Thoroughbred Racing Association
The NTRA, based in Lexington, Ky., and Washington, D.C., is a broad-based coalition of more than 100 horse racing interests and thousands of individual stakeholders consisting of horseplayers, racetrack operators representing nearly 80% of the U.S. pari-mutuel handle, more than 30,000 owners, breeders and trainers, and other affiliated horse racing associations, charged with increasing the popularity, welfare and integrity of Thoroughbred racing through consensus-based leadership, legislative advocacy, safety and integrity initiatives, fan engagement and corporate partner development. NTRA press releases appear on NTRA.com and social media.
About the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance
Based in Lexington, KY, the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that accredits, inspects, and awards grants to approved aftercare organizations to retrain, retire, and rehome Thoroughbreds using industry-wide funding. Along with continued funding from its original partners Breeders' Cup, The Jockey Club, and Keeneland Association, the TAA is supported by owners, trainers, breeders, racetracks, aftercare professionals, and other industry members. Since inception in 2012, the TAA has granted more than $28.1 million to accredited aftercare organizations. Currently 81 aftercare organizations comprised of approximately 180 facilities across North America have been granted accreditation. To learn more about the TAA, visit ThoroughbredAftercare.org.
