NL Article | Horse Racing Free Tips

No Horses Or People In Fair Hill Barn Destroyed By Christmas Eve Fire

No people or horses were injured in a Christmas Eve fire that destroyed a barn at Fair Hill Training Center in Elkton, Md.

The barn known as Parlo II West, which housed an outpatient veterinary clinic operated by Dr. Kathleen Anderson and is used for much of the year by trainer Michael Matz, was fully engulfed in flames at about 6:30 p.m. ET on Friday, according to a witness. The fire was under control within 90 minutes, but the damage had been done with little besides the concrete block walls remaining.

Matz, a former Olympic equestrian best known in racing as the trainer of 2006 Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro and 2012 Belmont Stakes winner Union Rags, had moved his stable to Palm Meadows Training Center in Florida for the winter. Anderson was out of town for the Christmas holiday when the fire broke out and she said the clinic closed at around 4 p.m. because of the holiday. The fire did not spread to any other barns.

Anderson said the barn was built in 2005 and had a fire alarm system, fire wall and sprinkler system. The cause of the fire, she said, was not known.

“We appear to have lost everything, but fortunately no horses or people were involved,” said Anderson. “There was a lot of diagnostic equipment: X-rays, ultrasound, the pharmacy, plus medical records.”

A former president of the American Association of Equine Practitioners, Anderson lost her home to a fire in 1997.

“This is the second time around for me,” she said. “The 1997 fire was not pleasant, and this is more tolerable because it's strictly material possessions and we can deal with that. Dealing with the loss of horses or people is far worse.”

Nevertheless, Anderson said, both she and Matz – whom she spoke to by telephone – are “distraught” over the loss.

This is also the second fire at Fair Hill, which had a 40-stall barn destroyed in a 2005 blaze that left 24 horses dead.

Denise Bennett, who is stabled at an adjacent barn, submitted the following video of the fire.

The post No Horses Or People In Fair Hill Barn Destroyed By Christmas Eve Fire appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

A Christmas Tradition: Gin Fizzes, Turkey Dinner And Daily Racing Forms For Santa Anita’s Opening Day

I married into a horse racing family. No, Carol's parents weren't major owners or breeders (they did dabble with a few claiming horses), but you would be hard-pressed to find two people who were more dedicated to the sport and enthusiastic about the challenge of picking and betting on winners than Bill and Helen Watts.

They seldom missed a day at Santa Anita – weekdays or weekends. Bill was employed as a trader at Merrill Lynch in downtown Los Angeles and was free to head to the track in Arcadia when the markets closed at 1:00 p.m. Pacific. Helen's job, it seems, was going to the races. She drove 15 miles from their home in Covina to Santa Anita and was always there well in advance of the daily double. She'd give Bill a report on the first couple races when he arrived from work (though, in those days, you could keep up with the results on KNX News Radio, which played the stretch calls and gave the payouts of every race).

They were delighted to learn their daughter was dating someone she met at the Los Angeles office of Daily Racing Form, where Carol and I both worked in the 1980s. It may have had something to do with the fact we could grab a couple of extra copies of the Form when it was hot off the presses and not yet in distribution, saving them each $1.50.

A couple years later, when we decided to marry, Carol and I were told in no uncertain terms that the wedding would not take place during the Santa Anita winter-spring meet, the Del Mar summer meet, or the Santa Anita fall meeting then run by the Oak Tree Racing Association. That left late April-June and November-December during Hollywood Park, or September during the Los Angeles County Fair race meeting at Pomona. We set Sept. 25, 1983, for our wedding date.

Bill and Helen's lives were organized around the sport. Vacations – sometimes group tours to visit racetracks, breeding farms and training centers overseas – had to fit into those same time slots as our wedding. Social events with friends or business associates on race days were highly discouraged and avoided as much as possible.

One of their favorite days of the year was Christmas, not so much because of the religious aspects or good cheer of the holiday. It was due to the anticipation and excitement of what came next: opening day at Santa Anita. (One of their other favorite days each year was the mid-July opening day at Del Mar, which they also never missed.)

I have to laugh when I hear someone complain about awkward Christmas dinner conversations with in-laws. Questions like, “When are you going to have kids?” or, “Have you thought about a career change?” never came up in our dinner table discussions.

It was more like, “Who do you like in the double?” “Do you want to put in a Pick 6 ticket with us?” or, “How big do you think the opening day crowd is going to be tomorrow?” (Note: this was back when opening day attendance of 50,000-60,000 was common and leaving the track could be a traffic nightmare.)

The Watts family Christmas Day tradition began with gin fizzes and the opening of a few presents, and then on to a feast of turkey with all the trimmings. Once the dinner table was cleared, the Daily Racing Forms came out and the serious business began. We'd go through every race, each of us giving our picks, and why.

There may have been a better time for Southern California horse racing than the early to mid-1980s, but I never experienced anything more exciting. The jockey colony – Hall of Famers Bill Shoemaker, Laffit Pincay Jr., Chris McCarron, Eddie Delahoussaye, Sandy Hawley, Darrel McHargue and a newcomer named Gary Stevens – was the best I will ever see. Hall of Fame trainers like Charlie Whittingham, Laz Barrera, Gary Jones, Richard Mandella, Robert Frankel and an upstart from the Quarter Horse world named D. Wayne Lukas seemed to dominate the big races. It was the Golden Era for me.

Bill and Helen have both passed in recent years, but I know if there's a heaven above with a newsstand selling the Daily Racing Form, they'll start handicapping the daily double as soon as Christmas dinner is over. And some how, some way, they'll find a place to make a wager. They never met a race they didn't like, especially on opening day at Santa Anita.

The post A Christmas Tradition: Gin Fizzes, Turkey Dinner And Daily Racing Forms For Santa Anita’s Opening Day appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Lost And Found Presented By LuibriSYN HA: Grindstone And Giacomo Share The Spotlight In Pacific Northwest

About 2,500 miles away from the site of their crowning achievements, Kentucky Derby winners Grindstone and Giacomo are still considered royalty at Oakhurst Equine Veterinary Services and Thoroughbred Farm in Newberg, Oregon.

Grindstone, pensioned since 2019, turns 29 in late January and Giacomo will be 20 in February.

“We are very, very fortunate and blessed to have two unique and special horses,” said Ben Root, operations manager for the facility founded in 1996 by his parents Dr. Jack and Margaret (“Cookie”) Root. “These stallions give us an opportunity to be ambassadors for Thoroughbred racing. We get calls a few times a month from people wanting to see them and we welcome them.”

The Derby stars have totally different personalities.

“Grindstone still thinks he is king of the world,” Root said. “He screams and yells and bangs on his stall door when a horse walks by. He loves attention. When he is led in or out of the barn, he announces his presence to the other stallions. He knows he's special, he knows he's cool.

“Giacomo is as tame and sweet as you could ever imagine. He might nip a little bit but you can get right up to him and even hold him to get a picture taken. We even have had older school children do that. Especially for non-horse people, Giacomo is an angel.”

Both have their quirks. Grindstone inexplicably removes his halter from his head almost daily. In perhaps a subtle show of dominance, Giacomo backs away if his halter is touched but willingly stands still for treats, pettings and photos. When turned loose in his paddock each morning, the son of Holy Bull performs his self-taught routine that includes pirouettes, bucks, rears and a few laps at a gallop.

Grindstone makes a face for a visit from top author Laura Hillenbrand in 2017

Prior to pandemic restrictions, Oakhurst hosted Kentucky Derby parties for several hundred friends, family and clients and a “Breakfast with the Stallions” event where Giacomo was in a nearby pen so guests could get up close and personal.

The occasional admirers who visit the stallions include owners of their offspring for racing and non-racing activities.

“They just want to see the dad,” Root said.

Track announcer and publicist Jason Beem, a longtime friend of the Root family, has made frequent stops to mingle with Giacomo. Another notable devotee is a man who came during his layover at the Portland International Airport.

From Bluegrass to Pacific Northwest

Grindstone and Giacomo launched their breeding careers in the heart of Kentucky's famed Bluegrass region prior to landing in their forever home. Grindstone, by Unbridled, was at owner-breeder W. T. Young's Overbrook Farm before being purchased by the Roots in 2009. Giacomo campaigned for breeders Jerry and Ann Moss until Frank Stronach became a partner for his four-year-old season. He initially was on the stallion roster at Stronach's Adena Springs before hopscotching to other states.

Grindstone was leased to Oakhurst when the Stronach conglomerate operated the now shuttered Portland Meadows with the goal of infusing enthusiasm into the area's small Thoroughbred market.

Giacomo eventually was sold to the Roots with the understanding he would remain under their care regardless of his results as a stallion.

Both have had a measure of success as sires to augment their celebrity status. A current headliner is Milords Oathkeeper, a Root family-bred son of Giacomo and the Grindstone mare Milady Rocks. The gelding brought honor to his connections in winning the Josephine County Juvenile Stakes at Grants Pass Downs in November. With two wins in five starts, he has earned a meager $14,831, but the figure is irrelevant to the family. The Root clan has long participated with more profitable racers in Washington, California, and Arizona, but Milords Oathkeeper has an intangible value. Ben Root summarizes the significance of the victory in three words.

Milords Oathkeeper is the pride and joy for the Root family, carrying the blood of Giacomo and Grindstone

“Oregon is home,” he said.

To punctuate the point, Root said they have declined attractive purchase offers in favor of racing him as a three-year-old in 2022.

“The emotional attachment kind of throws financial reality out the window,” Root said. “My father walks by his horses every day and says 'look what we have here.' We treat them like kings. They have beautiful stallion halters with brass name plates. Their paddock fences are black because my father designed the farm to look like Kentucky. We never take any of this for granted.”

For more information on Oakhurst Equine Veterinary Services and Thoroughbred Farm, visit https://oakhurstequine.com/

Liane Crossley is a Lexington-based freelance writer who has spent her entire career in Thoroughbred racing-related jobs in barns, press boxes and offices. She has worked for stables from Saratoga to Ak-Sar-Ben and from Canterbury Park to Oaklawn Park and about another dozen tracks in the eastern two thirds of America. A longtime contributor to Thoroughbred Times, her articles have appeared in Keeneland Magazine, Blood-Horse, Daily Racing Form, Thoroughbred Daily News, Breeders' Cup website, Horse Illustrated, European Bloodstock News, KyForward, Horse Illustrated, Young Rider and other publications. She is a seasonal member of Keeneland's media department.

The post Lost And Found Presented By LuibriSYN HA: Grindstone And Giacomo Share The Spotlight In Pacific Northwest appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Court Documents Show Indicted Veterinarian Fishman Was Subject Of 2011 Complaint Involving A Dead Racehorse

Attorneys for the prosecution and defense have been trading motions in federal court over the past few weeks as they work out what evidence will be permitted in the upcoming trial of veterinarian Dr. Seth Fishman and Lisa Giannelli, the first two defendants to be tried in the 2020 drug adulteration and misbranding case that involves more than two dozen trainers, veterinarians and suppliers.. Fishman is charged with two counts of conspiracy to commit drug adulteration and misbranding, and two counts of conspiracy to defraud the United States, while Giannelli is charged with one count of each.

Fishman, who is licensed as a veterinarian, is accused of creating and distributing adulterated or misbranded drugs that were marketed as performance enhancing substances he then sold to others outside the context of a valid prescription. Giannelli is alleged to have acted as a sales associate on Fishman's behalf.

It's still unclear when the trial may begin; it is the “back-up” case for a Jan. 19 start date and is also the back-up option for a date in March. Attorneys in the case have been notified they should be ready to proceed in January.

Both the prosecution and defense have filed motions in limine, which refers to motions asking for the judge to rule on limiting or allowing certain pieces of evidence at trial. The documents included a few partial previews of evidence and arguments that may come up at trial:

Fishman and Giannelli's drug sales have been the focus of a state investigation before. In early 2011, the Delaware Division of Professional Regulation received a complaint from an unnamed veterinarian who believed a racehorse had died after receiving an injection of a product sold by Giannelli for Fishman. The horse, a Standardbred named Louisville, was owned by Nanticoke Racing Stables, though the trainer and attending veterinarian's names were not immediately available in court documents. The prosecution's description of the complaint (which was filed under seal) stated the complaining veterinarian suspected Fishman and Giannelli were selling equine drugs without first examining the horses and diagnosing medical conditions. Attorneys for Fishman and Giannelli point out the horse's ownership did not permit a necropsy, but that state investigators wondered whether the cause of death was related to the injected substance going incorrectly into an artery, rather than a reflection of some impurity of the drug itself. At the time, Fishman maintained that he did perform examinations of horses to establish valid veterinary relationships with his clients; Giannelli indicated at the time that she acted as a delivery person with little knowledge of what substances Fishman was sending out or why.Defense attorneys also stated the substance was Pentosan Gold, which they said was produced by a company called NatureVet. Counsel for the pair at that time characterized the substance as a “supplement” and prescribed use was “a generally acceptable off-label use in this industry.”
The complaint was ultimately dismissed with no regulatory action taken.

Pentosan is commonly known as a drug used to treat osteoarthritis either through intramuscular or intra-articular administration.

The defense is seeking to preclude evidence of the horse's death and some of the investigative file, asserting it will unfairly bias the jury.
The prosecution is seeking to introduce information Fishman gave to investigators ahead of the 2010 prosecution of harness owner David Brooks. In 2013, Brooks was sentenced to 17 years in prison in connection with a fraud and obstruction of justice case surrounding his DHB Industries. Fishman offered evidence to prosecutors in that case related to performance-enhancing products, human growth hormone and other drugs he said he supplied to Brooks for use on Brooks' horses. At that time, Fishman told authorities Brooks' horses were not testing positive because the substances were designed to evade tests. The two sides disagree over whether the terms of Fishman's participation in the Brooks case allow his statements at that time to be used against him in the current case.
Both sides take issue with each other's veterinary experts and seek to limit or exclude their testimony. Prosecutors plan to call Dr. Diana Link, veterinary medical officer/Master Reviewer for the FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine, Dr. Jean Bowman, veterinary medical officer in the Division of Surveillance for the FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine, and Dr. Cynthia Cole, director of the Racing Laboratory at the University of Florida. The defense argues that Cole should not be able to opine on whether the products were adulterated or misbranded according to their labeling, and that she should not testify to the “safety and efficacy” of the products. Likewise, the defense wants to introduce Dr. Clara Fenger, longtime expert witness and detractor to new drug regulations, to testify to the “safety and efficacy” of Fishman's products, as well as the “propriety of using these products for the purpose of maintaining the health and welfare of horses involved in racing.” Prosecutors argue that it's unclear which, if any, seized substances Fenger has analyzed or how she determined that they were safe and effective for horses and want her precluded from testifying.
Fishman has admitted to making substances for foreign distribution in addition to his domestic business. One of the details the defense is hoping to preclude from the trial is an allegation from the prosecution that Fishman was solicited by the United Arab Emirates' Presidential Affairs Department, Sector of Scientific Centers and Presidential Camel Department “to distribute performance enhancing drugs and to create and distribute other illegal drugs.” The defense points out that the documents it has seen so far from the government do not describe illegal or performance-enhancing products.The defense's in limine motion also makes reference to a person referred to only as “Bengawi” who is supposed to have solicited Fishman for this purpose. Prosecutors also say they have intercepted communication in which Bengawi asks Fishman to create a substance “intended for use in spiking a woman's unattended drink, i.e., a 'Viagra for ladies.'”
“The Government alleges that the defendant responded to the request with an offer to make 'BI-AGRA' which he described as 'female Viagra it makes the woman bisexual.' It is unclear whether the defendant was responding in a humorous vein; or even taking the request seriously. There is no indication that the defendant subsequently shipped a substance for this purpose.”
Prosecutors allege that Fishman was selling products to “a veterinarian engaged in training horses for Olympic equestrian events. Those sales were, nevertheless, intended to dope those horses using Fishman's same suite of purportedly untestable, misbranded and adulterated drugs.”The veterinarian is not named, nor is any detail given about which Olympic equestrian sport or team may have been involved.

Also this week, U.S. District Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil heard arguments from prosecutors that Fishman should have his bail revoked after saying they uncovered evidence that Fishman has continued making and distributing illegal substances since his arrest. Fishman's attorneys argued that the products he was making in Florida were for foreign distribution only, which was not prohibited under federal statutes on drug adulteration and misbranding. Judge Vyskocil did not revoke Fishman's bail as requested, but did accept an agreement between the two sides to add new restrictions to the terms of bail. Fishman has been ordered to surrender all substances and drugs housed in a storage unit in Boca Raton, Fla., to either the FBI or FDA, not to enter the unit or send any agents or employees to the unit, and to refrain from manufacture or distribution of any drug or substance.

The post Court Documents Show Indicted Veterinarian Fishman Was Subject Of 2011 Complaint Involving A Dead Racehorse appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post