Letter to the Editor | Horse Racing Free Tips

Letter To The Editor: Mandella Cites Veterinarian Blea’s ‘Honor And Exceptional Care For Equine Welfare’

The following letter from Hall of Fame trainer Richard Mandella is in reference to the investigation of California Horse Racing Board equine medical director Dr. Jeff Blea by the California Veterinary Medical Board and Blea being placed on administrative leave by the CHRB pending a Jan. 21 hearing.

I have known Jeff Blea for over 20 years. He became my main veterinarian, I believe in 2006, when Rick Arthur retired. I have trained racehorses since 1974 and I'm fortunate enough to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.

I believe I've had some of the best veterinarians work for me starting with Jack Robbins, Rick Arthur and Joe Cannon. As they retired, Jeff Blea was next in line. I would say that Jeff is one of the best I have ever met. However that would be an afterthought compared to his integrity, honesty and desire to make racing a safer and better place.

Dr. Blea remains an outstanding ambassador to the sport. Jeff is highly educated, well experienced, honorable, and has always conducted himself so his actions align with the best interests of equine athletes. He was President of the American Association of Equine Practitioners and The Southern California Equine Foundation. He has served on numerous boards, committees, aftercare programs and research foundations.

Dr. Blea always discussed and made sure I understood the plan when deciding medication, treatment or procedures with the horse's best interest in mind. This is not like small animal vets that see the patients once or occasionally. The veterinarians are here every day as well as the trainers and assistant trainers and they know the horses very well.

In a 2015 interview on I Am An Equine Veterinarian, Dr Blea said – “There's an inordinate amount of trust between a human being and a horse. I love being around horses, being outside, working with them, and working on them. The racetrack is a unique environment, and the people are what make that community so enjoyable… When I retire and look back on my career, I'd like to say I was ethical. I was honest. I did not tolerate lying. I was a good father. I was a good friend. I was a good human being…”

I would say the man I know lives this statement. He didn't just make it up.

Dr. Blea is thorough, thoughtful, scientific and ethical in his medical approach. His honor and exceptional care for equine welfare should not be in question or carelessly attacked. For a man to overcome his injuries (his left arm and hand were paralyzed from a training accident while he was a jockey in his teens) and to have the career that Jeff Blea has had, he deserves an award of some kind instead of trashing the man's life, not just his career.

– Richard Mandella, Hall of Fame trainer, Santa Anita Park, Arcadia, Calif.

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Letter to the Editor: Remembering Josephine Abercrombie

DR. E.C. 'PUG' HART

When Clifford [Barry]'s number flashed on my screen [Wednesday] I had a gut wrenching feeling because I knew why he was calling. We both lamented that Mrs. A was in a better place and how it was “time.” She was one of a kind, a true horse woman, a philanthropist and all the other superlatives people will be mentioning. But for those of us who were fortunate enough to really know Mrs. A, there has never been, and I doubt there ever will be another one like her. When I listened to Terence Collier talk of her accomplishments at the Pin Oak dispersal last fall, I thought of all the stories I would like to share about Mrs. A, but that would take days and some of them aren't exactly appropriate for this publication.

The first time I met Mrs. A, she and her entourage came to Ocala to buy a stallion that we owned. After a few volleys back and forth with offers, she turned and said “aren't you from Texas?” I replied, “yes, M'am” and she said, “let's go in your office and cut this deal.” In less than five minutes we came out and she bought her first stallion Caller I.D. from me and that was done on a handshake. We sold her another stallion and she had fun with it and then said she wanted a good horse if I ever saw one. A year later I called about a horse I was managing for my longtime owner Morton Rosenthal. She and Clifford flew to Florida and once again–on a handshake–she bought Maria's Mon.

But more enjoyable are the Josephine stories that she loved to share when we got together. Here are just a few:

The time she left her dear friend on the tarmac because he was five minutes late to the plane to go to a dog show. He was running towards the plane and she instructed her pilot to take off as she waved to him. Every time we got together after hearing that story, we made sure we were 15 minutes early to any meeting with Mrs. A.

Then there's the one she enjoyed telling a story about how she was a much better skier than her instructor, but she always followed him down the slopes because she enjoyed the view.

And the tales of her travels all over the world were fascinating to hear. She once offended someone at a dinner party in a foreign country and her father sent the plane to pick her up the next morning. But that was Mrs. A, she was truly a lady, but she did it her way as Frank Sinatra would say (but that's another Mrs. A story better told by her than me).

Then there were all the Thanksgiving dinners in Virginia, the birthday parties in Kentucky and Ocala and all the memories of our visits to Pin Oak.

When Maria's Mon died, we sent Mrs. A ,and Clifford each a champagne flute and I still have her letter thanking me and suggesting that every New Year's Eve we would make a toast to Maria's Mon. Just the other evening we got out the flutes, but this time we raised our glasses to Mrs. A, and to Maria's Mon.

She used to ask me to stop addressing her as Mrs. A ,and just call her Josephine and I would almost always respond, “yes, Mrs. A” and we would laugh.

The last time I walked her up those long winding stairs after a dinner outing, I wondered how many more times I would be in her company.

Susie and I will always be grateful to Mrs. A, and we'll get out those Moët & Chandon flutes again and toast a very special lady.

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Letter to the Editor: John Sikura

The case of Bob Baffert has been, sad but fascinating to watch. It has served to be the perfect foil for agenda-driven companies and organizations to attach a face to 'the cause.' Due process and the right to defend oneself with veracity is the foundational tenet of this country. It protects citizens from overreaching by entities such as Churchill, NYRA and others banning Baffert from running at their tracks until adjudication is reached–not dictated. The actions of Churchill Downs clearly prioritize what we already know, which is that the value proposition of the Kentucky Derby is their one commitment to racing. The serial monetizing of racetracks, and devotion to casino and historical racing revenue leave them without a credible position except as very good drivers of CDI stock value. The leading face of racing is excluded from racing at Churchill and cannot earn Derby points while the premise argument (veterinary-prescribed topical skin cream) has proven to be validated. Will the NYRA now reverse itself or cling to its ban? Admonished by a judge for sidestepping due process and a new hearing scheduled to decide the right of Baffert to race at their tracks, this new evidence is assuredly exculpatory for Baffert. What about The Jockey Club? They have taken a lead position on HISA and have committed to exposing cheats while fairly dealing with violations. They joined the NYRA suit in their brief and therefore should publicly state a position. This is a good test for them as well.

I wish to make my position clear that I am against all forms of cheating or illegal drug use. Those convicted of such should face the harshest of penalties. I also believe that jealousy and innuendo without proof are unfair and tarnish the reputation of our game and can cost people their careers. Ignoring thresholds of therapeutic drugs, inconsistent withdrawal times, human error or environmental contamination is not realistic testing. The intent should be to eliminate all illegal drugs from our game and deal with 'positives' in a manner which attaches penalties uniformly and fairly. I hope and trust that HISA will accomplish all of this and more.

In the interim, the Baffert barn is responsible for following the rules and protocols of racing in each jurisdiction he races and that is not debated by me. I do contest the piling on in advance of final proof and draconian punishment of banishment as commensurate penalty for the 'violations.' None have included illegal drugs and none have tested at a threshold to enhance performance.

I close by admitting that it was probably best if this letter was not written and I said nothing publicly. Bob Baffert has been a friend and an important part of my life and business so you can question my objectivity. I would counter by saying that those who know me know I speak candidly and without adherence to public opinion or consensus. I don't absolve him of being responsible for his barn, I only write the letter as his detractors have been vocal, organized and many. I for one wish to tilt the scales and offer my support.

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Letter To The Editor: John Good

An open letter to Ben Huffman, Chris Polzin, Dan Bork, and Tyler Picklesimer, racing secretaries at CD & KEE, IND, ELP and KD, respectively–

The Thoroughbred racing industry continues to demonstrate its willingness to embrace technology, innovation and transparency for the long-term good of the sport. Our recent flagship events and race meets have been a credit to the sport– a phenomenal product showcasing the equine and human stars and stories, and generating record handle. There is national TV exposure that we could have once only dreamed of. History will look kindly on those who had the resolve to pursue HISA, and 2022 promises to usher in a new era that will finally standardize regulations and practices within the sport. The much-needed increase in purse money in Kentucky and elsewhere has helped create a more viable environment for owners and trainers, and is finally offsetting years of stagnation in purses, while the costs of raising and training Thoroughbreds appreciated unabated.

Moments like these can also be opportunities to re-evaluate business models and think outside the box. A bold proposal would be to double the claiming price of every race when the condition books are written for Keeneland, Churchill and Indiana Grand next spring. With the current purse structure, the horses should be worth more. The horses are worth more. This explains the absolute claiming frenzy of today–sometimes dozens of claims in for a single horse–resulting in millions of dollars each racing week going unspent. This presents an opportunity to impact the economic outlook of buying at the yearling and 2-year-old-in-training sales. Of course, anytime you buy an unraced youngster at an auction, you're trying to buy a classic contender, and the dream is always alive until proven otherwise. But if an increase in claiming prices, one that appreciated in tandem with increased purses (double), supported the idea that “my thirty-grand claimer would now be a sixty-grand claimer”, that would have a dramatic effect on the mentality of buyers at auction, serving as an incentive to have more would-be claiming owners participate in auctions. It would be the ultimate shot in the arm for that precarious “middle market,” and could impact the economics of breeding and raising Thoroughbreds for a generation to come.

How to implement? The condition could read something like: Claiming Price $50,000. For horses that have not started for more than $25,000 in their last 2 starts (races where entered in Kentucky or Indiana since April 8, 2022 not considered). This would imply that once the horse had started twice under the new structure, the connections would be free to enter for any price. Upper-echelon claimers could be raised by a declining percentage scale if deemed appropriate. If this continued through the fall, it would achieve a significant rebalancing of value in the Thoroughbreds racing in Kentucky and Indiana, and galvanize other circuits to reciprocate.

As a fringe benefit, we'd also achieve a more palatable ratio of equine value to available purse money, removing a potential focal point from those who will use any hint of prosperity within the sport as propaganda to further their cause of seeking the demise of the whole industry.

If we don't do it now, when do we do it? When does the baseline value of the horse, so easily definable once he is racing, appreciate in value to reflect his earning potential? Is a $30,000 horse still a $30,000 horse in 2045, as he was in 1997? If so, how does the early development of these Thoroughbreds remain feasible, given the inflation experienced with the associated costs?

John Good is a former trainer on the Kentucky circuit, who served prior to that as a longtime assistant to Bob Baffert and also worked under legendary Irish trainer Dermot Weld. Good transitioned away from Thoroughbreds in 2015, but remains an avid fan of racing

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