Tag: People

The finalists for the 2022 Thoroughbred Industry Employee Awards in America have been announced, including three finalists in six of the seven categories, as well as the winner and runner-up of the Thoroughbred Industry Community Award – Jessica Hammond of the Maryland Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association, and Kyle Roper of CHI St. Vincent, respectively.

This year's Awards Ceremony will once again be hosted by Keeneland and will take place on Friday, Oct. 14, in Lexington, Ky. Finalists and their guest will be provided with travel and accommodation for out-of-town finalists, a tour of a local horse farm, dinner for finalists and their connections, and the Ceremony luncheon followed by an afternoon of racing at Keeneland.

The shortlist judging panel, the first of the two judging panels, met on Friday, July 29, to determine the finalists in each category as well as the Community Award winner and runner-up. Their meeting was hosted by the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in Saratoga Springs, New York. The second and final stage of judging will be conducted as in person interviews with each finalist on Thursday, Oct. 13.

Panel Chair Rogers Beasley commented: “Being a part of the Thoroughbred Industry Employee Awards is more than an honor, it is the most meaningful program in the industry. Being able to recognize and reward these individuals who contribute so much to our industry is truly special. But all the nominees should be very proud of their accomplishments that prompted someone to nominate them and tell their story.”

“I'd also like to thank the National HBPA, TOBA, The Jockey Club, Breeders' Cup, and Godolphin, without whose underwriting and support these awards would not be possible to implement. Lastly, a heartfelt thanks to our media partners – BloodHorse Publications, The Thoroughbred Daily News, Daily Racing Form, TVG, Paulick Report, and America's Day at the Races – for helping to spread the reach of the awards.”

TIEA was pleased to welcome category sponsors for the first time in 2021 and all seven will be returning as sponsors again this year – Hallway Feeds, NTRA, Hagyard Equine Medical Institute, Keeneland, NYRA, I Am Horse Racing and Churchill Downs.

The winners of the Administration, Dedication to Breeding, Dedication to Racing, Leadership and Support Services Awards will receive a prize of $7,500, with an additional $2,500 awarded to the winner's team at their farm, stable or organization. The two runners-up in these categories will win $2,500 each, with $2,500 awarded to their farm, stable or organization.

The winner of the Newcomer Award will receive $2,000 and a five-day educational trip to Dubai, with $1,000 awarded to their team at their place of work. The two runners-up in this award will receive $1,000 each, and $1,000 will also be awarded to their farm, stable or organization.

As the winner of the Community Award, Jessica Hammond will receive a prize of $7,500 and an additional prize of $2,500 will be donated to the charity of her choice. Kyle Roper will receive $2,500 as the runner-up in this category.

The 2022 Thoroughbred Industry Employee Awards finalists are:

Katherine McKee Administration Award sponsored by Keeneland
Darla Shoemaker Gaige (Charles Town HBPA)
Blaire Eads (EQUIX)
Angela Ramsey (Sequel Holdings)

Support Services Award sponsored by I Am Horse Racing
Walter “Stretch” Johnson (Protravel International)
Timothy Tullock, Jr. (Maryland Jockey Club)
Laura Scheer (New York Racing Association)

Dedication to Breeding Award sponsored by Hallway Feeds
Don Jenkins (Darby Dan Farm)
Danny Mitchell (Denali Stud)
Steve Holbrook (Coolmore America

Dedication to Racing Award sponsored by National Thoroughbred Racing Association
Alice Clapham (Graham Motion)
Felipe Pulido Mendoza (Richard Mandella)
Danny Ramsey (McPeek Racing Stables)

Leadership Award sponsored by Hagyard Equine Medical Institute
Matthew Zehnder (University of Kentucky Maine Chance Farm)
Leanna Willaford (Bill Mott)
Anne Eberhardt (BloodHorse Publications)

Newcomer Award sponsored by New York Racing Association
Charles Churchill (Ed Brown Society and 1/ST Racing)
Maddie Rowland (Elizabeth Merryman)
Jonathan Estrada (David Donk)

Thoroughbred Industry Community Award sponsored by Churchill Downs
Winner Jessica Hammond (Maryland Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association)
Runner-up (Kyle Roper, CHI St. Vincent)

The post Finalists Announced For 2022 Thoroughbred Industry Employee Awards appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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There was a time when Annise Montplaisir, horse crazy as a young teenager, was part of racing's “next generation.”

Today, as a graduate of North Dakota State University and the Godolphin Flying Start program with a range of experience in the racing business, Montplaisir has joined the industry's current generation. Along the way, she's picked up something exceedingly valuable: a passion for using the lessons learned to help newcomers find their path in the industry as well.

That path is Amplify Horse Racing, the non-profit she and Madison Scott co-founded in 2019 that promotes education, mentorship and career opportunities for youth and young adults interested in joining the Thoroughbred industry.

Starting with its information-packed web site [amplifyhorseracing.org], Amplify merges the online and face-to-face by working with people, established organizations and educational initiatives across the industry to help people find fulfilling careers in the business. And during the next several weeks, Montplaisir will be in one of horse racing's citadels, Saratoga, to help young people connect to programs and mentors in a variety of ways.

“One of the greatest struggles for most newcomers to the sport is finding information about the industry, said Montplaisir, who serves as Amplify's president. “It's pretty spread out. We have a lot of amazing educational and workforce training initiatives, but if you didn't grow up in the industry, it can be difficult to figure out how to get started.”

That's where Amplify steps in offering via all-day behind-the-scenes educational tours for teens and young adults, ages 15 to 25, at Saratoga Race Course on Wednesday, August 10; Friday, August 12; Wednesday, August 17; and Friday, August 19

Now in its third year, the “Experience Saratoga” tour program is “a peak behind the curtain,” as a 2021 Saratoga participant described it, a way to help young people interested in the business to learn about the typical day of a racehorse. Participants will speak with trainers as well as New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) professionals from the frontside to the backstretch, some of whom have careers or skills the typical fan might not know about. They'll take in morning training, visit the Hall of Fame and attend races as well.

“What's so great about being in Saratoga is that it's such a magical place,” says Montplaisir. “You can't leave Saratoga without feeling enamored by racing. We want to make sure people in the program get to see and talk with racing people at all levels. Sometimes, all is takes for a door to open is a conversation with the right person. That can happen at Saratoga.”

It did for Montplaisir, who traces her passion for horses to seeing the film, Ruffian, as a young teen. Growing up near Fargo, North Dakota, she took a volunteer position at North Dakota Horse Park as the track's ambassador, standing at the front gates with its mascot, a retired racehorse named Barracuda Boy.

From there, Montplaisir plunged into a little of everything at the horse park – “that's the value of working as a small track,” she said – progressing from pony rider to galloping, assisting the director of media relations, working as the official clocker and even serving one summer as director of communications. “Whatever I wanted to get my hands on,” she said, “they threw me right in, and I learned.”

During two summer breaks from college, Montplaisir interned for the Saratoga Special newspaper and began making the connections that would build her career. After graduating from North Dakota State, where she double-majored in Management Communication and International Studies with a minor in Spanish, Montplaisir headed to Kentucky horse country. There, she interned with Fasig-Tipton, Keeneland, and Mill Ridge Farm before being accepted to the prestigious two-year Godolphin Flying Start program. Today, Montplaisir is back in Kentucky, based in Lexington as Education Coordinator for the Kentucky Equine Education Project.

Montplaisir considers herself fortunate to grow up near a track and to have made the kind of contacts to advance her career. She described Amplify as a resource or door opener for those without connections – “a more streamlined pathway to connect with programs and mentors.”

Past participants of the Saratoga tours agreed.

“Amplify provided a first-class experience that was filled with educational moments from start to finish,” said Matthew Scull, who took a Saratoga tour in 2021. “There were peeks into the many different professions, and the unprecedented access facilitated the learning process tremendously. The tour shined a bright light on some of the greatest people, places and programs associated with the sport.”

For another 2021 Saratoga participant, Mary Rufo, “Amplify did a wonderful job with their tour program at Saratoga.”

“I've lived in the Saratoga area for nearly my entire life,” Rufo added. “These tours were a great way to get a more in-depth, behind-the-scenes look of how it all comes together for a day at the races.”

As part of this month's program in Saratoga, Amplify is partnering with the Cornell Cooperative Extension service to offer tours to participants for their youth programs, including the Advanced Equine group and Animal Ambassadors. And from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 21, Amplify will be represented at the Saratoga County Horse Farm Tour hosted by CCE Equine, an adult-education program in the Capital Region. The drive-it-yourself tour event will include a list of participating farms across Saratoga County.

Considering that Amplify is dedicated to inclusion and breaking down the barriers, Montplaisir finds a lot of irony is racing's moniker as the “Sport of Kings.”

“In horse racing, you aren't restricted to sitting in the stands as an observer, she said. “You can work hands-on with the athletes – raise them from birth, send them to be 'recruited' to a racing team, train to become a professional, and watch them strengthen and improve through each race. That's because Thoroughbred racing is not just a sport of kings; it's a sport for everyone!”

Learn more about Amplify Horse Racing at https://www.amplifyhorseracing.org/

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Trainer Shea Stuart, in his first full summer racing in Kentucky, has a three-horse stable. But two of those horses are scheduled to run in stakes this weekend at the RUNHAPPY Meet at Ellis Park in Henderson, Ky.

Stuart plans to run Tut's Revenge in either Saturday's $70,000 R.A. Cowboy Jones Overnight Stakes at a mile on dirt or Sunday's $100,000 Evan Williams Turf Mile, a race in which Tut's Revenge was second last year. Stuart also has Pyramid Princess for Sunday's $100,000 Centennial Distaff Turf Mile, a race he hopes serves as a launching pad to running next month at Kentucky Downs.

Both horses are owned by Iowa-based Claim to Fame Stable and are related – in human terms, Pyramid Princess would be Tut's Revenge's aunt.

Tut's Revenge finished second by a neck in the $75,000 Jeff Hall Memorial on July 24. Sunday's $100,000 Twin Spires Turf Sprint at 5 1/2 furlongs is a third option for this weekend for the 6-year-old gelding. The 11-time career winner also was second in an Ellis Park allowance last summer, leaving him with three seconds in three starts at the track, the defeats coming by two necks and a half-length.

“He ran good on the dirt, so we have a lot of options with him,” Stuart said. “We've already run second in a stakes here, and he won a stakes at Canterbury. We'll see which race here looks easier, and try to run in the best spot where we can get in the winner's circle.

“He's awesome. He's going to try 100 percent whenever he goes out there. He's just really cool to be around. Very happy boy. Likes his friends. Loves peppermints – gets about a bag a day. He's right there every race, and he likes it here. Likes to watch the horses train, watches the races every day.”

Pyramid Princess is out of the Elusive Quality mare Triple O'Five, who already has produced three stakes-winners. That includes Cat Five' O, the mom of Tut's Revenge.

The 4-year-old Pyramid Princess will make her stakes debut after winning three of her five starts. She will be racing for the first time since capturing a second-level allowance race March 5 at Sam Houston in Texas.

“She's had three really good works here so far,” Stuart said. “She was at Keeneland before she came here. Hopefully she's ready to roll.”

The 38-year-old Stuart is a third generation trainer around the Midwest and Southwest. He works in conjunction with his dad, Clinton, the winner of 1,170 races and currently stabled at Minnesota's Canterbury Park. Shea Stuart's first venture to the Pea Patch was last summer, when he was here for a month with Tut's Revenge, a triple stakes-winner who has earned of $457,972.

Either Tut's Revenge or Pyramid Princess could give Stuart his first victory at the Pea Patch. With his third horse, My My Munny, finishing fifth in an allowance race Sunday after an earlier runner-up effort, Stuart has four seconds out of five career Ellis Park starts. He's hoping this meet proves the launching pad to a Kentucky base at Ellis Park while returning to Oaklawn Park for the winter.

“I'm content to just have a small little stable,” said Stuart, who is expecting to add several 2-year-olds to his Ellis stable soon. “I do most of the work myself. I'm trying to get moved into Kentucky. It's pretty nice because I can stay here and just go into Hot Springs (Arkansas, for Oaklawn's five-month meet). I love the facilities here. Knock on wood, I've had nothing but good luck here. It's a nice place to train. It's quiet. I love it here.”

The Cowboy Jones Memorial pays tribute to the Ellis Park icon known as much for being a character as for his riding, which included him just falling just short of becoming the first jockey to win a race in seven different decades. Jones died April 25 at age 79.

Saturday's $70,000 stakes kicks off a big weekend, with Ellis Park staging four $100,000 turf stakes on Sunday: Evan Williams Turf Mile, Centennial Distaff Turf Mile, Twin Spires Turf Sprint and Laguna Distaff Turf Sprint. Sunday also is RUNHAPPY Dollar Day.

Racing resumes Friday, Sept. 5, with a 12:50 p.m. CT post. With five wins this past weekend, Brian Hernandez has a 12-9 lead in the jockey standings over Gerardo Corrales halfway through the meet. John Ortiz won Sunday's first race with Frisco Line for his eighth win of the meet, giving him an 8-7 edge over Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen for leading trainer. At 4-for-7, Doubledown Stables continues to top the owner standings.

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With Cyberknife setting a track record and trainer Chad Brown winning four consecutive graded stakes race on TVG.com Haskell day at Monmouth Park it was easy to overlook another impressive achievement on that July 23 race card.

Kevin Velez hit the valet “lottery” by serving as the valet for the winning jockeys of all six stakes races that day.

Velez, 34, was the valet for Samy Camacho, who won the $100,000 Wolf Hill Stakes, for Flavien Prat, who won the $400,000, Grade 3 Monmouth Cup, the $400,000, Grade 3 Molly Pitcher, the $200,000, Grade 3 WinStar Matchmaker Stakes and the $600,000 Grade 1 United Nations. He was also the valet for Florent Geroux, who rode Cyberknife to victory in the $1 million, Grade 1 Haskell Stakes.

“It's a day you never dream can happen – and you don't believe it has happened until the day is over,” said Velez, the son of former jockey Jose Velez. “I have to give a big thanks to everyone involved and the other valets. Everyone was on top of their game that day. We were ready. It was a big day and I drew a good overnight.”

Of the 14 races that day, Velez, in his 11th year as a full-time valet at Monmouth Park, had nine of the winning riders.

Valets take care of the jockeys' tack, getting their gear ready, making sure they are in the right silks and that those silks are clean, setting up saddles and basically “making sure they look sharp when the leave the jockeys' room to ride.”

Velez said he has known Geroux for a while and that Geroux recommended him to Prat.

Even now, Velez is trying to process his remarkable one-day run.

“It probably will never happen again,” he said. “I didn't even realize it was happening until the end of the day. People were asking me `how many have you won?' I really wanted to make sure everything was done and everyone was taken care of before I started looking back. When the last race was over and they crossed the wire it kind of hit me that I had the kind of day that I had.”

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