An admission donation is set at $25, while the restaurant is giving 10 percent of its bar business during the Derby Week event to Second Stride. Also, there will be the Smoke Easy Cigar Lounge, along with both live and silent auctions of racing memorabilia and experiences.

As in the past, the centerpiece will be the Kentucky Derby and Oaks handicapping panel, which this year includes Byron King, Andie Biancone, Steve Byk and Doug Nachman.

“Aftercare is no longer an afterthought, as the industry has embraced its obligation to take care of the horses who take care of so many of us at the track and breeding farm,” said Kim Smith, Second Stride's founder and executive director. “Every dollar raised on Champions Night will go to helping off-the-track racehorses and other Thoroughbreds in need such as broodmares and horses that never made it to the races.

Click here for more information.

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The drawings will be Feb. 15 at 5 p.m. ET and streamed via Facebook Live.

Second Stride, which was founded in 2005, rehomed 169 horses in 2023 and directly assisted a total of 197, up from the 124 adoptions in 2022, when the facilities expanded to include Chorleywood Farm in Prospect, according to a release from the organization. The former racehorses, as well as broodmares and unable-to-race bloodstock, came from 49 tracks, training centers and farms and went to new homes in 26 states and Canada this past year. The average stay at Second Stride for horses being rehabbed and/or retrained before adoption was 57 days, covering more than 2,500 training sessions.

“We spent 2022 working on expansion so we could take care of and find second careers and forever homes for more retired racehorses,” said Second Stride founder and executive director Kim Smith. “Aftercare for horses coming off the track is a race without a finish line. So now we look to build on 2023, which across the board was our most successful in terms of horses served, rehabbed and adopted as well as financial growth including fundraising and grants and volunteer hours. And just to put the 197 horses we assisted last year in perspective, that number is slightly more than the 1% of North America's 2023 foal crop.

“We can't thank Churchill Downs enough for donating a prime box to these historic runnings of the Derby and Oaks. Every dollar raised will go toward the horses. This will get our fundraising off to a great start and hopefully make more people aware of Second Stride, how the horse donation process works and how our staff and volunteers prepare each donated horse individually for a second career, whether that be eventing, in the show ring, trail riding or as a wonderful, loving companion.”

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Tours of Second Stride will be offered six days a week, starting July 10, with both public and private options available. Guests will learn about the retraining and re-homing process and meet current trainees, as well as interact with the Thoroughbred ambassadors that reside at the farm.

“We're thrilled to have Second Stride join Horse Country and begin offering tours this month,” said Hallie Hardy, Executive Director of Horse Country. “Our member farms and supporting businesses, like Second Stride, are dedicated to connecting people to the horse, land and people of Kentucky's Horse Country.”

“Second Stride is excited to partner with Horse Country to expand our educational reach to the community and beyond” said Kim Smith, Founder and Executive Director of Second Stride. “The Chorleywood location is dedicated to partnership involvement and outreach as well as transitioning the state icon, the Thoroughbred, safely into fresh starts.”

Tours can be booked online or by calling Horse Country at (859) 963-1004. A kickoff is scheduled at the Prospect, Kentucky farm on Monday July 17 and those interested in attending can e-mail info@visithorsecountry.com for more information.

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The entry portal closes at 11:00 a.m. E.T. this Saturday, May 6. Players should keep track of their answers as you will not be able to revisit the survey portal once you submit your entry. Should a horse named directly in a prop be scratched, all answers to that prop may be counted as correct.

Winners will be notified by email late on Saturday evening to identify how to direct charitable donations. The top finishers will get to direct $20,000 in donations to four racing charities, which are: Backside Learning Center at Churchill Downs, New Vocations, Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund and Second Stride. Click here, for more information.

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A horse ownership stake with Skychai Racing, an outdoor cigar lounge and multiple ready-for-Instagram backgrounds are just a few of the new features added this year to Second Stride's 12th annual Derby week Champions Night at Molly Malone's in the Highlands section of Louisville Monday, May 1 from 6-9 pm.

Of all fundraisers taking place Derby week, it is the only event raising money for the horses, enabling the Louisville-based organization to continue to provide professional rehabilitation, retraining and placement of retired thoroughbred racehorses.  Placing over 100 horses per year, Second Stride aims to increase that figure significantly and relies heavily upon money raised during this pinnacle event.

The event, sponsored by Skychai, will feature a timely handicapping session as the Kentucky Oaks and Derby draw will have occurred only hours earlier. The discussion will be moderated by Byron King of Blood-Horse and panelists include: Fanduel/TVG's Andie Biancone, At the Races host Steve Byk, Churchill Downs Director of Racing Gary Palmisano and St. Louis radio show host and handicapper Doug Nachman.

“Being involved in the sport of kings is an immense privilege which comes with great responsibility,” said Biancone. “Aftercare is everything and Second Stride does such a great job. They have even helped re-home some of my dad's horses and I'm happy to lend my support for this event.”

Champions Night will host auctions and raffles throughout the evening. The online silent auction featuring exclusive items is already open for bidding closing Derby Day, Saturday, May 6.

Champions Night looks forward to welcoming back in person the many trainers, owners, jockeys, fans and other industry notables who faithfully attend in support of the horses. The event is open to the public. Tickets are not required but there is a suggested donation of $20 at the door.

Click here for more details.

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The Allaire du Pont Leadership Award is presented annually to an organization or individual whose philanthropic endeavors are consistent with TCA's mission. Past award winners include Jen Roytz, LNJ Foxwoods, and Dan Rosenberg, just to name a few. From Des Moines, Iowa, Maggi Moss is a successful Thoroughbred owner, attorney, and staunch advocate for equine welfare. After over two decades in the show horse world Moss turned her attention to Thoroughbred racehorses. In 2006, she became the first woman in America since 1945 to be named leading owner in the U.S. for races won. Moss has been leading owner at multiple tracks, and she continues to work as an advocate for the importance of Thoroughbred aftercare.

The Ellen and Herb Moelis Industry Service Award is presented annually to an organization that works to uphold TCA's mission. Past award winners include the Our Mims Retirement Haven, TAKE2 Second Career Thoroughbred Program, Retired Racehorse Project, Old Friends, and New York Race Track Chaplaincy. Founded in 2005, Second Stride is a Thoroughbred aftercare organization located in Prospect, Kentucky. Second Stride works to safely and responsibly retrain and rehome Thoroughbreds.

As for the Stallion Season Auction, it opens with the online bidding  of stallion seasons at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, January 4 and continues through 4:30 p.m. EST on Friday, January 6. Nearly 200 seasons will be available on www.Equiring.com with a full list available, here.

Most will sell during the online auction; however, select seasons to Constitution, Flightline, Good Magic, Maxfield (with 2024 breed back), Nashville (with 2024 breed back), Not This Time, Nyquist (with 2024 breed back), Olympiad, and Quality Road will be sold at the 'Tis the Seasons Celebration on Sunday, January 8. Bidders or their authorized agents may bid on select seasons by attending the event in-person or they may email ehalliwell@tca.org to register to bid online. Tickets can be purchased, here.

An online silent auction of non-season items including halters worn by Tapit, Gun Runner, Jack Christopher and more will be offered.  A list of silent auction items is available here. More items will be added. The auction is sponsored by Mt. Brilliant, Bourbon Lane Stable Retirement Fund, Limestone Bank, Coolmore America, Equine Medical Associates, Top Line Sales, Equine Medical of Ocala, L.V. Harkness & Co., The Thoroughbred Daily News, BloodHorse, Paulick Report, Daily Racing Form.

For further information regarding the 33rd annual TCA Stallion Season Auction including please visit www.tca.org or call (859) 276-4989.

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Sponsored by Churchill Downs and Skychai Racing, Champions Night will feature a handicapping session moderated by Byron King of BloodHorse. Panelists include Horse Racing Nation's Ed DeRosa, television talent Megan DeVine, and jockey agent Jake Romans. The traditional kick-off to Derby Week will also have live and silent auctions and raffles and will be emceed by WHAS radio host Dwight Witten with assistance from auctioneer Phil Ammon. The auction, which closes at 9 p.m. May 2, is already open online.

Champions Night is open to the public, with tickets not required. A suggested donation of $20 can be given at the door. For more information, please visit secondstride.org/champions-night-2022.

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Looking for a new endurance mount, Dixie Kendall was immediately taken by what she saw about Casey's Lear—first, her beautiful coat; and second, that she had some trail experience. The decision was an easy one for Kendall, who brought Casey's Lear home and appropriately renamed her “Steele.”

“Steele is everything I ever wanted in a horse and truly encompasses the example of a 'heart horse,'” she said.

While racing on the track wasn't in the cards for Steele, the mare has taken to the longer races of sport of endurance riding. As Steele and Kendall rack up their miles—they have completed two 25-mile rides and recently finished a 50-mile ride—Kendall has her sights set high for their future.

“My primary goal is that Steele will someday earn the AERC (American Endurance Ride Conference) Equine Longevity Award and we will earn the Decade Team Award,” she said. “Those titles are awarded to the horse and rider that have completed at least one 50-mile endurance ride for 10 years or more. I also hope to complete 100-mile rides with Steele, including Big Horn and Tevis (Western States Trail Ride), as well as earning Best Condition awards at future endurance rides.”

Working toward those goals, Kendall knows the important role Steele plays as an ambassador of the Thoroughbred breed at her competitions.

“I purchased Steele for the purpose of promoting the Thoroughbred breed in the sport of endurance racing,” she said. “Steele has proven to be a once-in-a-lifetime horse and continues to amaze me with her abilities.”

Read more at the TAA.

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Smith works diligently to make placing horses in the program as easy as possible. Owners retiring horses to the program need not complete the transfer paperwork themselves; the program also takes horses in on very short notice and there is no mandatory monetary donation for horses entering the program, though most owners and trainers will offer one, Smith says.

The goal is to make it easy for those in the industry to do the right thing—and to help as many horses as possible. Smith is very focused on relationship building, knowing that if she takes on a horse that requires extensive rehabilitation, down the road, that same owner may also offer her a sound horse that is retiring that needs no rehab.

Horses accepted into Second Stride need not be recently retired, either; the program accepts broodmares as well as stallions, which are gelded upon entering the program. Assisted by many volunteers, horses are typically adopted quickly; the program has rehomed over 1,000 horses since its inception, placing them in homes all over the country and in a variety of disciplines.

With the increase in Thoroughbred-specific shows and events like the Retired Racehorse Project's Thoroughbred Makeover, many horses retiring sound are being sold privately. Smith said she wishes more owners and trainers would consider donating their sound horses to nonprofit aftercare organizations. Sound horses can be adopted out for a higher fee than those horses with limited second career options, helping fund the horses that need longer-term care or more rehabilitation before they are rideable and able to be adopted out, she notes,

For more information about Second Stride, Inc., click here.

Read more at the Daily Racing Form.

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But during that 1 1/8-mile race, Art Collector jockey Brian Hernandez Jr. will be bringing attention to horses far from the limelight: retired racehorses and industry efforts toward rehoming them after they're through at the track. In that regard, Hernandez will be wearing the name Second Stride on his white riding pants in the Ellis Park Derby, the first and pending another pandemic the only Kentucky Derby qualifying race ever to be held at the western Kentucky track.

Trainer Tommy Drury, who is 3 for 3 since receiving Art Collector early this year from owner Bruce Lunsford, is on the advisory board for Second Stride, the accredited thoroughbred rescue and aftercare facility in Prospect and Pleasureville outside of Louisville. Drury, Lunsford and Hernandez hope to gain recognition for Second Stride and the concerted effort by horse racing to find safe homes for its retirees, including retraining many for second careers.

For every Art Collector, there are thousands of horses who don't have a future breeding career. Founded by horsewoman Kim Smith, Second Stride is among 160 facilities across North America accredited by the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance to offer adoption, rehab and equine-assisted programs as well has sanctuary. There are nine TAA accredited programs in Kentucky, all but Second Stride located close to Lexington. Indiana is home to one accredited organization, Friends of Ferdinand in Indianapolis.

“It's such a good program and a much-needed program,” Drury said. “As trainer, we'd be lost without Second Stride. They find these horses good homes. Kim and her staff do such a great job. This is just kind of saying thanks for everything they've done for us.”

Staff by volunteers, Second Stride provides professional rehabilitation, retraining and placement of retired thoroughbred racehorses, adopting out an average of 100 horses a year, including 83 the first seven months of 2020. The program specializes in giving retired thoroughbreds the training they need to succeed in a second and sometimes third profession, such as with horses no longer being bred. The organization is one of the few aftercare facilities that will take male horses that haven't been gelded.

“We transition them to whatever each individual horse wants to do,” said Smith while watching Art Collector train earlier in the week at the Skylight training center in Oldham County. “As Tommy tries to get into their brain when they're here, we try to get into their brain and figure out what their next mission is going to be. We've placed horses in everything from polo, jumping, dressage to family horses. It's amazing to find out what these horses can do, the thoroughbred, and how versatile they are. Barrel horses, we've had some police work — especially a mounted unit that likes the big black horses.”

To have Hernandez displaying Second Stride on his leg, Smith said, “For us, it's just humbling that they would consider us. It's mind-blowing the national coverage just to get aftercare out there, and all the horsemen are doing for the horses. Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance has been life-changing for our program and for the horses, with the sponsorship we get and also the mentoring and the education they provide our program in how to exceed. To have these hometown heroes being at Ellis is just going to be amazing. Tommy helped us set the foundation of the program and Brian Hernandez and his family come to our events and support us. So it's awesome. We're just proud of Tommy and Brian and the horse. It's super exciting.”

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