Tag: People

The Saratoga Special heads into its 23rd season in 2023 and with the racing newspaper comes the opportunity for aspiring journalists and industry professionals.

The Special is again seeking editorial interns and seasonal staff members for the summer racing season at Saratoga Race Course, which runs from Thursday, July 13 through Labor Day, Sept. 4. Interns are typically staff writers responsible for covering races, developing stories and generally working on the editorial staff of a fast-paced quality racing publication with thousands of readers in print and online.

Those working in the paid positions in the past have been college students, recent graduates, experienced journalists and even a 75-year-old retiree leaping into a new challenge. The Special's internship program received a boost for the 2023 season thanks to a stipend from the National Turf Writers and Broadcasters.

“The NTWAB is excited to provide funding for internships geared toward racing coverage,” said Natalie Voss, NTWAB board member and head of the organization's scholarship/internship committee. “Our organization has been involved with similar programs in the past, typically helping provide funds for scholarships or facilitating scholarships with other entities. What sets this program apart is the direct funding provided to news outlets to boost their existing or new programs, which we hope will one day produce the same professional journalists who make up our membership roster.”

In addition to writing, responsibilities include help with editing, proofreading and other tasks that may arise. The schedule involves mornings at the track, afternoons at the races and late nights on deadline.

The Special also hires seasonal staff to handle advertising and marketing – including social media – plus distribution and fulfillment.

Past team members at The Saratoga Special have a multitude of jobs in racing, from on-air and in-print journalists, communications specialists, racing executives, handicappers, photographers, track announcers, jockeys' agents and bloodstock agents. Others have found employment outside of racing, including reporters for CNN and ESPN and as a U.S. Army officer.

Editorial team members through the years include Kristin Brennan, Mary Eddy, Peter Thomas Fornatale, Gabby Gaudet, Ryan Jones, Quint Kessenich, Katie Bo Lillis, Linzay Marks, Ryan Martin, Annise Montplaisir, Jim Mulvihill, Brian Nadeau, John Panagot, Madison Scott, Michael Smith, Catlyn Spivey, Travis Stone, Shayna Tiller and David Woods; along with last year's duo of Timothy Littau and Spencer Ripchik and of course Terry Hill, the self-proclaimed “world's oldest intern.”

The Saratoga Special is the flagship publication of ST Publishing Inc., which also produces editorial content for Mid-Atlantic Thoroughbred, The Horsemen's Journal and New York Thoroughbred Breeders.

Founded in 2001, The Special covers racing like no other publication – upfront, in-depth, personal, immediate and original. Our writers, handicappers and photographers are some of the best in racing and look forward to delivering the coverage readers and advertisers appreciate.

The Special plans on 20 editions for 2023 – Opening Day (a Thursday) and then Wednesday and Saturday plus an expanded schedule during Fasig-Tipton's world-famous Sales Week Aug. 4-9.

Internship candidates should forward a resumes and pertinent work samples to ST Publishing Managing Editor Tom Law at tom@thisishorseracing.com. Applications will be reviewed this spring.

The post Saratoga Special Accepting Applications For Paid Intern Supported By NTWAB appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Veteran Quarter Horse rider Gilbert Ortiz was feted Wednesday at Louisiana Downs by racing officials, fellow jockeys and a bevy of trainers, owners and well-wishers. It marked his final day riding at the Bossier City racetrack as the accomplished and respected rider will retire at the end of 2023.

Jen Sokol, Louisiana Downs Racing Operations Manager, presented Ortiz with a commemorative plaque in honor of his noteworthy achievements in the Quarter Horse industry.

“Gilbert has made an unsurpassed impact on Louisiana racing,” stated Sokol. “It's so much more than his 3,020 career wins; Gilbert has always given 100% to his horses, connections, fellow riders and fans. We wanted to honor him and make sure he knows how much we will miss him!”

Born in Pleasanton, Texas, Ortiz began his career in 1978 in Texas. The early years were challenging, and he did not win a stakes race until 1991. However that decade was very successful for Ortiz with opportunities to ride some of the top-ranked Quarter Horses in the country. His top Texas-breds included Grade 1 winners War Colors, Show Me Your Toole, Diamond Tres Seis and AQHA Racing Champion Aged Mare, Kool Kue Baby. The diminutive filly was acquired in a trade by Ramiro Lopez for two calves, two pigs and a cow dog! Despite her stature, she won 25 stakes victories and her name always brings a smile to Ortiz.

In 1986, Ortiz began riding full-time in Louisiana with tremendous success aboard Louisiana-bred champions including Heza Louisiana Dash, Watergirl B, Zupers Quick Dash, Coors Select, Magic Shiney and and of course, millionaire, Vals Fortune, who won 18 of 20 races in his brilliant career.

On November 27, 2015, Ortiz won his 3,000th career race aboard Baby Separatista in a trial for the Evangeline Downs Futurity. Only six other Quarter Horse jockeys have surpassed the milestone of 3,000 wins: G.R. Carter, Alvin Brossette, Danny Cardoza, Eddie Garcia and John Creager.

Like so many of his fellow riders, Ortiz has dealt with significant injuries throughout his career. In 1998, Ortiz broke his leg in a starting gate accident in Houston and underwent surgery where a rod and four screws were inserted. His surgeon told him he would not ride again, that there was no way the bone would regenerate. Ortiz sought other recommendations and began using a stimulator for twenty minutes a day to increase blood flow to the leg. Furthermore, he read that certain foods were high in calcium, which is essential for bone growth. So, he loaded up on broccoli and blueberries. Nine months later, his surgeon was incredulous that he had solid bone in his badly shattered leg! Another frightening spill occurred in 1999 when his mount rolled on him, leaving him with a fractured skull, two crushed vertebrae and broken bones in his face. Just six months later, Ortiz was back in the saddle.

Ortiz has numerous leading jockey titles in Texas and Louisiana and continues to be a role model and mentor to the up and coming Quarter Horse riders, including Raul Ramirez, Jr.

“Gilbert is a true professional and hard-working guy,” said Ramirez. “I remember when I first was starting out and was too green to switch sticks, I interfered with Gilbert's horse. Instead of yelling at me, he watched the replay and calmly gave me some really good advice. I try to do the same with the young guys because of the way Gilbert treated me when I was just getting started.”

Ortiz was honored in 2012 with the Sam Thompson Memorial Jockey Award, which is presented on All American weekend at Ruidoso Downs. The prestigious award is voted by jockeys for rider whose personal character on and off the track reflects positively on Quarter Horse racing.

He is the proud father of three children. Jessica, the oldest, is a registered nurse in Dallas; Kourtney is a pastry chef and son, Andrew is in the Air Force, based in Alaska. Each are married and grandchildren, Vincent and Sophia have given Ortiz tremendous joy!

A lifelong road warrior, Ortiz will travel to Kentucky to ride in the six-day Quarter Horse meet at Sandy Ridge-Red Mile. From there, he will head to Delta Downs and finish the year at Evangeline Downs. Accompanying him will be his longtime partner and agent Cynthia “Red” Delahoussaye, and their spirited canine, Ripp.

Ortiz will turn 60 on May 1. There's no question that breeders, owners, trainers, fellow jockeys and a legion of racing fans will miss his talent when he hangs up his tack. However, he is 100% comfortable with his decision and will not disappear into the sunset.

“It's time,” Ortiz acknowledged. “We will stay in Louisiana, and I will probably continue to work some babies next year. For now, I will just enjoy the rest of the year, doing what I love!”

The post ‘A True Professional’: Louisiana Downs Honors Retiring Quarter Horse Jockey Gilbert Ortiz appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots wrapped up its 151st season of racing on Sunday, March 26, having offered the richest stakes schedule in Louisiana history at $8.5 million. The pinnacle was Louisiana Derby Day on March 25, which set a single-card record for purses offered in Louisiana at $3.1 million. With 12 new stakes and a total of 65, the meet kicked off on Nov. 18-19 with the inaugural Louisiana Champions Day Preview Weekend, featuring six stakes written for horses bred in the Pelican State. The 110th running of the $1 million TwinSpires.com Louisiana Derby (G2) was the highlight of the 65 stakes contested over the 80-racing day meet.

With 64 wins, Reylu Gutierrez captured the first leading rider title of his young career. The 27-year-old won many for trainer Bret Calhoun who had a banner meet and accounted for approximately half of Gutierrez' wins. In just his second year at Fair Grounds, the rest of Gutierrez's scores came for a host of different trainers, proving how well Gutierrez has been received by local connections. His top moment came when Southlawn posted an upset in the Fair Grounds Oaks, offering personal redemption for Gutierrez after he and his mount Hidden Connection finished a diminishing nose shy of Echo Zulu last year.

James Graham, who was denied his third consecutive title and fourth overall, finished second with 53 wins. Jareth Loveberry vied for the title most of the meet, but he missed three weeks with a fractured fibula and finished with 50 wins, tied for third with Corey Lanerie. Knocking on the door of his 5,000th career win, Lanerie made the most of his return to Fair Grounds, offering difference-making rides week in and week out. No win was more special than in the final race of the meet when he piloted a difference-making trip aboard Rocket Ship Racing's Nosilverspoonshere to win the $75,000 Shantel Lanerie Memorial, which is named in honor of Corey's departed wife. Though Brianne Culp lost her “bug” status in February, her 18 wins proved to be enough to win the 2022-2023 apprentice title over Treylon Albert (15) and Sophia Barandela (13).

After trailing both the fast starting and longtime leader Bret Calhoun and Brad Cox early, New Orleans native Ron Faucheux finished with a flourish to capture his third consecutive training title with 42 wins. Affectionately known as “Mr. March” following an amazing hot streak that saw his barn win 23 races between Ash Wednesday (Feb. 22) and Closing Day (March 26), Faucheux swept the $75,000 Crescent City Derby and Oaks. He also strung together five wins in a row over March 8-9.

The race for the title went down to the last day as Bret Calhoun, the early leader who was in search of his first local crown, and four time champ Brad Cox were both in striking range but instead settled for a tie for second with 37 wins apiece. Trainer Patricia West started the meet scorching hot, winning with six of her first 14 entries, including her first stakes when A G's Charlotte took the $75,000 Big World Stakes on opening day. Justin Jeansonne had a banner meet, winning 14 races at a 25% clip. Coming off his Summer title at Evangeline Downs, trainer Shane Wilson finished in fourth with 25 wins.

“What impressed me most this meet was Ron Faucheux's 'March' to the title – that hot streak was amazing,” senior producer and racing analyst Joe Kristufek said. “Equally impressive was Brad Cox unveiling ridiculous talent week after week; Big Chopper winning stakes on both surfaces, route and sprint; Touchuponastar's dominance; Corey Lanerie's resurgence and Reylu Gutierrez and Jareth Loveberry taking their games to the next level.”

Two milestones were reached this year, as 4-time leading trainer Brad Cox and two-time leading jockey Florent Geroux both won their 2,000th race. On Jan. 26, Cox legged up Geroux on his 2,000th winning mount, Warrant, and fittingly, it was Geroux who was onboard when Bishops Bay broke his maiden on the Feb. 18 Risen Star undercard, giving Cox win 2,000. Away from Fair Grounds last year, Geroux returned successfully, scoring with a colony-best 32% of his mounts for a total of 33 visits to the winner's circle.

With 20 wins from 137 starts in their first full meet at Fair Grounds, L and G Racing Stable won the owners' race, as trainer Cesar Govea saddled each score. A welcome addition to the local backstretch, L and G Racing Stable was only formed two years ago. At a 33% clip, Godolphin impressed with 13 wins, including with their homebred star-filly Pretty Mischievous. Lothenbach Stables came up big yet again with 11 wins, and in terms of winning percentage, at 67% none could surpass Mansfield Racing among owners who entered at least ten races.

The 2022-2023 meet began with unveiling the new state-of-the-art toteboard in the infield, along with a new industry-low 15% takeout structure for the 50-cent Pick 5. Two new wagers were offered with the daily $1 minimum Pick 6 (15% takeout and no-jackpot) and the Bayou Bluegrass 5, an innovative collaboration between Fair Grounds and Turfway Park combining three graded stakes from the Louisiana Derby Day card with the Bourbonette Oaks and the Jeff Ruby Steaks (G3).

Since the points system began in 2013, no other prep races have produced as many Kentucky Derby starters as the Risen Star (G2) presented by Lamarque Ford-Lincoln and the Louisiana Derby, both at 33. After the stellar performances put on by 3-year-old males at Fair Grounds this meet, that total is sure to rise. At season's end, six of the top ten and nine of the top 20 horses on the Kentucky Derby points leaderboard ran in Fair Grounds' prep series.

Brad Cox dominated Fair Grounds' “Road to the Kentucky Derby and Oaks,” sending out the $100,000 Gun Runner Stakes winner Jace's Road on Dec. 26, the $200,000 Lecomte (G3) winner Instant Coffee on Jan. 2, the $400,000 Risen Star winner Angel of Empire on Feb. 18, and the $150,000 Silverbulletday Stakes presented by Fasig-Tipton winner The Alys Look on Jan. 21. With 37 wins on the meet, the Cox barn won a phenomenal 37% of their races entered.

With three of the 12 horses entered including morning line favorite Instant Coffee, Cox held a strong hand in Fair Grounds' signature race, but it was Spendthrift Farms' Kingsbarns who shipped in and wired the Louisiana Derby field under Flavien Prat to earn 100 points towards the “Run for the Roses.” It was the fifth Louisiana Derby win for trainer Todd Pletcher, and the first since Noble Indy took home top honors in 2015. After racing 3-year-old Eclipse Champion Epicenter through the 2021-2022 prep series, Winchell Thoroughbreds' and Steve Asmussen teamed up with Disarm, who finished second (40 points) in the Louisiana Derby, and all but assuring a spot in the Kentucky Derby 149 starting gates.

A new partner this year, Fasig-Tipton was named the title sponsor of Fair Grounds' 2023 series for 3-year-old fillies. The Fasig-Tipton Tremé Triple consists of the $150,000 Silverbulletday Stakes on Jan. 21, the $300,000 Rachel Alexandra (G2) on Feb. 18., and $400,000 Fair Grounds Oaks (G2) on March 25. The name of the race series is a tribute to the historic Tremé neighborhood of New Orleans that borders Fair Grounds.

As the calendar turned over to 2023, two of the most talented 3-year-old fillies in training were stabled at Fair Grounds in Godolphin's homebred Pretty Mischievous and Gold Standard Racing Stable's Hoosier Philly. Trained by Brendan Walsh, Pretty Mischievous rose to the top, winning both the Untapable and the Rachel Alexandra. She finished second in the Fair Grounds Oaks to Robert Masterson's Southlawn. The filly trained by Norm Casse ascended to beat a field that included Pretty Mischievous, The Alys Look, and Hoosier Philly, earning 100 points towards the Kentucky Oaks starting gate under leading rider Reylu Gutierrez. Southlawn's win became the crown jewel of Norm Casse's young training career. As of meet's end, Pretty Mischievous and Southlawn led all 3-year-olds in Kentucky Oaks points, and The Alys Look stands tall in fifth, giving Fair Grounds claim to three out of the top five Oaks-dreaming fillies.

In addition to the Louisiana Derby and Rachel Alexandra, two other G2 stakes were also contested on the meet's big day, with Gary and Mary West's West Will Power winning the $500,000 New Orleans Classic with Flavien Prat in tow for Brad Cox and the veteran Spooky Channel taking down the $300,000 Muniz Memorial Classic presented by Horse Racing Nation for NBS Stable, trainer Jason Barkley and jockey Joel Rosario.

The veteran Louisiana-bred sprinter Bootsie's Galaxy led all horses with four wins (from seven tries). Fifteen horses tied with three wins apiece, with Surveillance, Oeuvre, Big Chopper all scoring stakes hat tricks. Set-hut's Touchuponastar emerged as the top Louisiana-bred, winning both the $150,000 Louisiana Champions Day Classic and the $75,000 Star Guitar Stakes so impressively that he could be seen stepping up to face open company in the year ahead.

From hosting Rasi Harper's “The Real Players Inside the Backstretch” over Louisiana Champions Day weekend at the beginning of the meet to putting on the Shantel Lanerie Breast Cancer Survivor Second Line on closing day, the 2022-2023 Fair Grounds meet continued the tradition of celebrating and memorializing the many members of the horse racing community who often go overlooked. On Thursday, March 23, Fair Grounds also honored the equine athletes with the third annual “New Vocations Day at the Races.” Jockey Rosie Napravnik, a four-time local champion, joined Fair Grounds personality Joe Kristufek on-air to raise money for all aspects of racehorse aftercare.

“Our 151st season was one for the books,” Fair Grounds president Doug Shipley said. “Throughout the entire season our racing team proved once again they are the best in the business. Starting with an amazing Thanksgiving celebration to kick off the season and finishing with a fairytale ending with the Shantel Lanerie Second Line celebration. There were tears on the course this year as jockey Corey Lanerie returned to Fair Grounds to take home the win in the race named to honor his beloved-by-all wife. Their daughter Brittlyn served as the Grand Marshal for the Second Line walk completing out the season with full hearts all around.”

The post Reylu Gutierrez, Ron Faucheaux Capture Leading Rider, Trainer Titles At Fair Grounds appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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BloodHorse will accept applications through April 17 for a new paid internship position to work on the leading industry publication's various platforms this summer.

The accepted intern will work with the BloodHorse editorial department on its monthly magazine, popular website, BloodHorse Daily newsletter, and BH+ website, which features news videos as well as leading industry analysis through MarketWatch and breeding information. The paid internship is being funded by BloodHorse and the National Turf Writers and Broadcasters (NTWAB).

“We're looking forward to launching, with support of the NTWAB, this opportunity for a journalist interested in covering the racing industry,” said BloodHorse Editorial Director Frank Angst, who also is an NTWAB board member. “At BloodHorse, we have a number of platforms to tell stories and any number of topics to cover, from racing, to industry news, to sales, to breeding.”

The BloodHorse internship is targeted toward those with an interest in pursuing a journalism career in horse racing. The Lexington, Ky.-based internship will run over eight weeks this summer with specific start dates to be mutually agreed upon. As the intern finds the subject matter and platforms that most interest them, they will have opportunities to spend additional time in those areas.

The internship is open to students currently enrolled in a college or university or who have graduated within one academic year of the start of the internship.

This is one of two paid internships that the NTWAB is helping to support.

“The NTWAB is excited to provide funding for internships geared toward racing coverage,” said NTWAB board member and head of the organization's scholarship/internship committee Natalie Voss. “Our organization has been involved with similar programs in the past, typically helping provide funds for scholarships or facilitating scholarships with other entities. What sets this program apart is the direct funding provided to news outlets to boost their existing or new programs, which we hope will one day produce the same professional journalists that make up our membership roster.”

The internship application can be found here: bit.ly/BHIntern2023.

The BloodHorse internship is in addition to The Jockey Club internship program, which accommodates up to three interns who gain exposure to all companies and departments within the organization, including BloodHorse. The Jockey Club interns for 2023 will be announced in April.

BloodHorse has chronicled the Thoroughbred industry since 1916 and is dedicated to the improvement of Thoroughbred breeding and racing. BloodHorse produces widely distributed daily and weekly editorial content on Thoroughbred racing and breeding, including via its namesake weekly magazine, BloodHorse Daily, and social media platforms. BloodHorse is co-owned by The Jockey Club Information Systems Inc. and TOBA Media Properties. Additional information is available at BloodHorse.com.

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