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California-Based TRF Second Chances Program Celebrates First Anniversary

On Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2020, ten student/inmates began a new semester at the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation's Equine Care Program at the Pleasant Valley State Prison (PVSP) at Coalinga, California.

There was no better way to celebrate its one-year anniversary.

“The four groups that made this happen – the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation, the (California) Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, West Hills College and Harris Farms – worked extremely well together,” said Heidi Richards, whose work with the Equine Care Program earned her the CDCR's 2020 Corrections Officer of the Year Award. “We had 30 student/inmates in the first class, and 28 were certified. We are very excited about how successful the program is.”

The Equine Care Program at PVSP opened Oct. 16, 2019 and coincided with the prison's 25th anniversary celebration. The program is an extension of the TRF's Second Chances/Groom Elite Program that began in 1983 at the Wallkill State Correctional Facility near New Paltz, NY. Former racehorses enjoy a tranquil sanctuary home at Second Chances, which is now offered at prisons in New York, California, Kentucky, Florida, Illinois and South Carolina. In return, the horses provide hands-on vocational instruction in horse care as well as lessons in mutual respect, compassion, responsibility, and trust.

In collaboration with West Hills College, PVSP's Equine Care Program is a two-semester course that, at conclusion, not only certifies its participants to work at entry level jobs within the racing industry but gives them six transferable college credits. The program at this minimum-security facility is offered to student/inmates within five years of parole.

The fledgling program managed to hold strong despite the turmoil of 2020.

“Our biggest concern was the pandemic,” said Richards, who also is the West Hills College instructor for the program. “But our COVID-19 numbers were low enough to open the program this semester. Warden Scott Frauenheim and everyone here did a great job in maintaining the program. They kept testing everyone at the gate and, additionally, the staff was tested every 10 days. They were really on top of it.”

Warden Frauenheim, who will retire on Friday (October 30) after 26 years of state service and the last seven as PVSP's warden added: “I am proud and honored to have been the first Warden with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to start an Equine Care Program. I am grateful to provide a unique rehabilitative program that helps incarcerated people follow a new path in their lives. Although COVID-19 placed a hold on Pleasant Valley's Equine Program, Pleasant Valley State Prison has commenced with the program and its college courses. The Pleasant Valley Equine Program just completed its first year of program, and I foresee many more successful years to come.”

Presently, the student/inmates are working with two former racehorses. Michael the Man, a 13-year-old Kentucky-bred who had 60 races and earned $197,724 from a record of 11-8-9 and California-bred Slycy, who is also 13, earned $230,606 and posted a record of 14-10-7 from 52 starts.

The horses live on the Equine Care Program's two-acre facility that student/inmates built and help maintain in addition to their work with the animals.

A CDCV grant of $300,766 was secured last year with the help of the West Hills Community College District to fund the Equine Care Program at Pleasant Valley State Prison until 2022.

“It is hard to believe that the program is only a year old with all that Heidi has accomplished,” said TRF Executive Director Pat Stickney. “We are incredibly grateful to all the groups that came together to launch this Equine Care Program which, under Heidi's leadership, will continue to have such a positive impact on the graduates and the horses for years to come.”

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Old Friends Celebrates Saturday’s Eighth Running Of Awad Stakes

On Saturday, Oct. 31, 2020, Belmont Park will host the eighth running of the $89,000 Awad Stakes, 1-1/16 mile race on the turf for 2-year-olds. It is scheduled as Race 8 on the card with a post time of 4:27 p.m.

Multiple graded stakes winner Awad was a homebred for Ryehill Farm and trained by David Donk. The son of Caveat, out of Dancer's Candy, by Noble Dancer (GB), Awad ran in eight graded-stakes races with his four biggest wins coming in Grade 1 contests on the turf. Those wins were the Secretariat Stakes, a 1-1/4- mile race at Arlington Park on Aug. 29, 1993; the Early Times Manhattan Stakes, a 1-1/4 mile race at Belmont Park on June 10, 1995; the Arlington Million, a 1-1/4 mile race at Arlington Park on Aug. 27, 1995; and the Sword Dancer Invitational Handicap, a 1-1/2 mile race at Saratoga on Aug. 9, 1997.

Awad was known for his incredible speed and set two track records during his career. The first was in the 1995 Arlington Million, where he ran the 1-1/4-mile race in 1:58.69 to become the first to finish in under two minutes. The second came in the 1997 Sword Dancer Invitational, where, at age seven, he ran the 1-1/2-mile in 2:23.20.

After just one race in 1998, he was retired after 70 starts, finishing his career with 14 wins, two seconds, 11 thirds, and $3,270,131 in earnings.

He stood at stud at Northview Stallion Station in Maryland and Castle Rock Farm in Pennsylvania until 2006, when he was pensioned and came to Old Friends in September thanks to his former trainer, David Donk.

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Major Racing Organizations Fund First-Of-Its-Kind Furosemide, EIPH Study In 2-Year-Old Racehorses

The Stronach Group together with Breeders' Cup Ltd., Churchill Downs Inc., Keeneland, the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission, the Kentucky Thoroughbred Association and the New York Racing Association have agreed to jointly fund North America's largest study on the effects of furosemide and on the prevalence and severity of Exercise-Induced Pulmonary Hemorrhage (EIPH) in two-year-old racehorses.

The study, formally titled Furosemide: Its Effects on the Prevalence and Severity of Exercise-Induced Pulmonary Hemorrhage (EIPH) and the Immune System's Normal Response to Exercise in Two-Year-Old Racehorses, began this month and is being led by Dr. Warwick Bayly and Dr. Macarena Sanz from the Department of Veterinary Clinical Services at Washington State University's College of Veterinary Medicine. This study represents the largest study ever to focus on evaluating the effects of furosemide on two-year-old racehorses.

The study will be focused on two-year-old racehorses only and will aim to address the debate surrounding whether or not injection of furosemide has beneficial, detrimental or no effects on the welfare of these racehorses. The use of furosemide and its effects has been a dominant issue confronting North American racing for more than a decade. The study offers an opportunity to address unanswered questions at the heart of furosemide use, namely:

1. Does the administration of furosemide four hours before racing and/or training reduce the severity of EIPH in two-year-old racehorses?
2. Does the pre-race administration of furosemide four hours before racing effect a horse's performance?

The study will evaluate the endoscopic exams from at least 600 horses from three groups representing the major racing jurisdictions of California, Delaware, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York. Horses will be evaluated in three groups: 1) those who are given furosemide at least 48 hours before racing or not at all; 2) those who are given furosemide 24 hours before racing or not at all and; 3) those who are administered furosemide four hours before racing. Veterinary practitioners from each of the jurisdictions will be asked to recruit trainers who are existing clients to voluntarily participate in the study.

“This study provides an opportunity to fill a critical knowledge gap on the use of furosemide,” said Dr. Warwick Bayly, Professor, Equine Medicine, Washington State University College of Veterinary Medicine. “As a first-of-its-kind study of this depth, it is our hope that once completed we will be able to provide additional information that will enable the horse racing industry to address the regulation of furosemide in the United States from a scientifically-informed perspective.”

“The current patchwork of rules and regulations across the United States regarding the administration of furosemide does a disservice to the horses and the practitioners who care for them,” said Dr. Dionne Benson, Chief Veterinary Officer, The Stronach Group. “This study is an opportunity for industry stakeholders to come together to invest in meaningful steps to address pressing questions so that we may develop a higher and more consistent standard of rules and regulations.”

“The use of Lasix has long been a highly debated topic. This is our opportunity, as advocates for the safety and welfare of our racehorses, to collect and analyze vital real-life information that can be used to help answer some questions regarding the use of Lasix and its effect, but also guide common-sense regulation around Lasix use,” said Dr. Will Farmer, Equine Medical Director, Churchill Downs Incorporated.

“This study represents a unique collaboration of North American racing interests to further understand the true rate of EIPH in young racehorses through endoscopic examinations performed in post-race settings,” said Dr. Stuart Brown, Equine Safety Director – Sales and Racing, Keeneland. “The potential to gain insight under the present landscape of furosemide use across various racing jurisdictions will help shape decisions that benefit the safety and welfare of the equine athlete in competition.”

Preliminary results from the study are expected to be available in Spring 2021, assuming the quantity and quality of the samples satisfy the requirements for statistical relevance as set out by Dr. Bayly and Dr. Sanz.

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Unreachable Star Connections Donate To Friends Of Ferdinand On Indiana Champions Day

Unreachable Star was one of the first modern day superstars in the Indiana breeding program. The one-time leader in the state for most purse earnings accumulated during his racing campaign, the now 16-year-old is remembered with a new stakes race in his honor, the $100,000 Unreachable Star Stakes as part of the newly formed Indiana Champions Day, placing the spotlight on the Indiana breeding and racing program.

In honor of the veteran racehorse, who was the first to eclipse $700,000 in purse earnings in the state of Indiana, Unreachable Star's connections made a $500 donation to Friends of Ferdinand during Indiana Champions Day Wednesday, Oct. 28. The donation will assist the local organization with racehorse aftercare programs.

“This is absolutely a full circle moment for us to have a race named in his honor,” said Loren Hebel-Osborne, one of the owners of Unreachable Star. “If he could be here, he would be eating a watermelon and hamming it up and loving it. I hope this donation brings awareness to all horses that are warriors like him, and we hope people will give them a chance after racing for a second career.”

Unreachable Star was retired in 2015 with a total of $784,595 in career earnings and earned four consecutive year-end honors in Indiana as one of the state's top performers. He was the on-site horse at the Churchill Downs Museum and is now enjoying a new career in the hunter-jumper show ring.

“When he started his career in 2007, the purses and the stakes weren't as high as what they are today, so he would have been pretty close to becoming the state' first horse to earn $1 million if he had raced now,” said Tim Glyshaw, trainer of Unreachable Star during his entire career. “He was a barn pet and we kept him at Churchill Downs the whole time. After every race, he'd get a watermelon. He loved watermelon. You could do anything with him. He was just a really cool horse.”

Bruce Murphy, president of the Indiana Thoroughbred Owners & Breeders Association (ITOBA) provided the winner's circle presentation for the donation.

“We are honored to have owners Dave and Loren Osborne and Chuck Bebber here today for the inaugural Unreachable Star Stakes,” said Murphy. “We are very proud to be able to offer a stakes race in his honor, and this is a very nice donation on behalf of his connections.”

Racing continues Monday through Thursday until Thursday, Nov. 19. All-Quarter Horse racing is set for Saturday, Oct. 3 and Saturday, Oct. 24. For more information, go to www.indianagrand.com.

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