D. Wayne Lukas and Montana

Well my placement has finished with D. Wayne Lukas and I can’t say enough about the man or his operation. The barn is run in such a professional way that it doesn’t even feel like a barn. The example that Wayne sets makes you want to improve your own performance each and every day. His staff also makes the operation a fun environment to work in. Things are taken seriously but everybody always seems to be in a good mood because they enjoy what they’re doing and on the other hand they’re very good at what they do as well. I had a fantastic time learning from “the coach” and his staff.

After finishing up at Wayne’s, I went to Montana over the 4th of July weekend and met my girlfriend’s family. They were so great. I really had a great weekend with Elizabeth and her family. Montana is so gorgeous with all the trees, mountains, open grass fields, and lakes. We spent our time playing board games, badminton, and bocce ball. It was nice to be able to sit back and relax.

Now I’m back in Lexington and the course has picked up again. We’ve got our presentations next Thursday and we’ve all been working frantically to make them the best they can be, or maybe I just have because everybody else’s are fantastic and mine is still sub-par. It probably won’t change much on the day of, we’ve got some very talented people in the group, so I won’t get my hopes up too much. We all start inspecting yearling tomorrow for the Fasig Tipton July sale and then tomorrow night is the Darley Stallion Parade, so it will be a very busy day but it should be fun nonetheless.

Wayne Lukas/Triple Crown

I know it has been a long time since my last entry. A lot has happened since I last wrote. The Triple Crown has come and gone, Zenyatta has won her 17^th race in a row, and Rachel looks like she is on her way back. I started my Darley Flying Start work placement three weeks ago with D. Wayne Lukas and I can tell you that it has been everything that I’ve ever dreamed and more.

Being an aspiring trainer myself Wayne has always been an idol of mine. His professionalism, attention to detail, horsemanship, high expectations, and generosity have helped him achieve what many people only dream of. He has been working me hard ever since the day I arrived and I wouldn’t have it any other way. We start earlier than any other stable, arriving at 4:30 am, and finish later than most operations at 5:00 pm in the afternoon. It is this work ethic that he has instilled into his staff and his former assistant’s that not only have led to his success but theirs as well. Wayne is not only a teacher but a coach as well and takes the time to develop his staff and help them reach their goals. It amazes me how open he is and I never thought that I would have the opportunity in my life to sit down with Wayne and talk for an hour. My work placement is going better than I could ever imagine and I’m looking forward to the next three weeks.

As for the Triple Crown, it turned out to be a great performance all around and rewarded many deserving individuals. I was very happy to see Pletcher and WinStar win their first Derby. Both are extremely hard working and dedicated operations in our game today I can think of very few who are more deserving than them. As for the Preakness, I was ecstatic to be standing next to my girlfriend and my father while Lookin at Lucky pulled away from the field in the stretch. I was so happy to see him prove that he is the best three-year-old in the country and to share that with my girlfriend and my father meant a lot. It also was great to see my dear friend, Martin Garcia, win his first Triple Crown race. Martin is one of the hardest working individuals you can find in racing and deserves all the success that he has had this year. Though the Belmont wasn’t the crescendo that everybody was hoping for, with the absence of both the Derby and Preakness winner, it was a great race nonetheless and was the grounds for the emergence of some very promising colts. I’m really looking forward to the Breeders’ Cup Classic this year.

Royal Ascot starts tomorrow and I’m very happy to see that there are several more American flag bearers taking on the European’s this year. Good luck to all of the connections representing the United States at Ascot!

Foal Watch

I’m glad that I went in to foal watch with an open mind because it’s been a lot of fun. I went in a little nervous because I’d never foaled out a mare before but the staff has been great and within several nights, after assisting a few times, I was able to foal out a mare. It hasn’t been easy making the switch to nocturnal life, working from 8pm-5am, and now that I’m finally adjusted my foal watch experience has come to an end. I guess that’s life though. On the other hand, I don’t think I’ve ever consumed this many Red Bull’s and 5 Hour energy shots in a span of two weeks before or hopefully will ever have to again, haha. My time hear in the evening’s at Gainsborough has been great. I’ve had the opportunity to foal out two A.P. Indy’s, each one being out of a Gr.1 winning mare. I have really learned a lot while I’ve been out here. It’s also been a great way for me to catch up on old episodes of Cops, it’s almost inspired me to grow a mullet and a moustache.

Last week was pretty busy with foal watch and everything happening at Keeneland. The meet started on Friday and I also spent from Thursday onward looking at the two-year-olds for the sale every morning. The crowd for the races at Keeneland have been great. I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many gorgeous women in one place at one time. It makes it really difficult to watch the races, haha. The two-year-old in training sale just ended on Monday and the results were pretty interesting. Though there weren’t any horses that sold in the millions there were a lot of nice horses that sold for $250K plus. I thought that there were several really nice horses and a few diamonds in the rough.

The Derby preps last weekend, helped create a clearer picture for the Derby and at the same time made things a lot more interesting. Though Lookin at Lucky is still my pick and Eskendereya proved that he’s for real there’s another horse that I think people should watch out for on the Triple Crown trail. That horse is none other than Richard Mandella’s Derby hopeful Setsuko. This horse can close like a freight train and might really move up on dirt. People should be watching for this son of Pleasantly Perfect to be making a big move in the stretch. If he doesn’t do it in the Derby I think this horse will win the Belmont.

Spring is Beginning

Things in Kentucky have been going good. Today is Dubai World Cup day and it looks like it should be a very good day of racing. The Flying Start team and I are doing a forecast for today’s races just like we did for the Breeder’s Cup. Thank god Jennifer Zhou is not participating in this one because she killed us in the Breeder’s Cup. I didn’t get much time to handicap after I woke up this morning, I basically woke up and the guys immediately told me to turn in my choices. I stuck with the home team pretty much, with most of my picks being from America. I’m not doing so well thus far but I have Richard’s Kid in the World Cup and he could make all the difference if he performs like the way I think he should. Thanks to Carl O’Callaghan’s blog on the TDN I’ve been able to follow Richard’s Kid and the American horses a lot more closely.

I’ve just finished another week long rotation at Keeneland with Johnny Burke and had a lot of fun. When I go to the track in the morning, it doesn’t matter what track it is, I feel like I’m returning home. I guess I’m definitely a barn rat. The barn area was starting to fill up last week with the horses shipping in for the meet and the two-year-olds arriving for the sale. It looks like there are some very nice two-year-olds in this sale as I watched them train in the mornings. I’m interested in seeing how they breeze on Wednesday and then looking at them more closely later on in the week. I’ll be attending the sale with Donato Lanni and I’m looking forward to having the opportunity to learn from him.

This Sunday night I start my two weeks of foal watch. I’m more of an early bird than a night owl, so I’m not particularly looking forward to this. I wish mare’s foaled out in the morning’s more often but that’s not how nature works. I’m very interested in learning about the foaling process though, I’ve never had the opportunity to foal out a mare. So, overall I think I will gain a lot from the experience of doing foal watch at Gainsborough. Congratulations to Carl O’Callaghan on the win with Kinsale King.

Working at Keeneland

Kentucky is really starting to become a tease. The weather is warm one day and then freezing the next. I think everyone in the group is dying for spring to come. I know I am. I saw a movie the other day that was set in LA and I don’t think I’ve ever missed California so much, haha. Luckily in Kentucky they have Mexican food unlike England and Ireland, so I don’t feel completely out of it.

I just finished up my work rotation at Gainsborough. I really learned a lot and I owe it to all the great people who work there. Although, I love training and don’t plan on going into the breeding side of the game it was nice to learn more about it. It plays a crucial role in the development of these horses and their success. I feel that these dedicated individuals don’t get enough credit for the hard work that they do. Without them it would be very difficult to help these horses achieve their maximal potential from the standpoint of training. From the broodmare managers down to the individuals that work day-to-day with the mares and foals these people are all indispensible and deserve recognition for the work they put in.

This week I’m back at the track and back to myself. After being away from the racetrack for so long I’ve began to have withdrawals, haha. It’s been great to be back at the track. I love training so much and I’ve really enjoyed the last couple of morning at Keeneland. Johnny Burke, who I’ve been doing my work rotation with these past few days, has a great knowledge of training. I’ve learned a lot from him so far about rehabilitating horses and many other things. I’m looking forward to the rest of this work rotation. Tomorrow we are going to the Kentucky Horse Park. The last time I went I only had enough time to go to the Hall of Champions. So it will be interesting to see the rest of the park and the new additions they have made for the FEI World Equestrian Games.

Second Week of Work Rotation

Hey everybody,

Our work rotations have been going very well. I’m enjoying my time at Gainsborough. The staff and management at Gainsborough have been phenomenal. I can’t say enough about Dean, Gary, and Bob, who collectively manage this operation. They’ve really included us in the runnings of the farm and provided us with an in depth, hands on experience that would otherwise not be possible without their generosity.

We start the mornings going around all the barns to tease the mares. It is something else seeing so many Grade/Group 1 winning and/or producing mares in one place. Last week I was lucky enough to be able to go around with Gary and feed all the mares in paddock. It was a lot of fun feeding these mares off the back of the truck. It really let me see how much quality Darley has in their broodmare band, as well as some of the successful past racehorses of Gainsborough. This week I was fortunate enough to be allowed to handle the teaser stallion while we were teasing mares on Thursday morning.

After we finish teasing the mares we join up with Dean and go around with him and the veterinarian to observe the reproductive work and evaluate any new foals. We’ve also been given the opportunity to accompany some of the mares to the breeding shed.

Our lectures and visits have been great too. Friday’s have become my favorite days. No, not because I’m tired from my week and ready for the weekend but because this is the day we usually go on our farm visits. Last week we went over to Castleton Lyons where we saw Bernstein and the rest of their operation. However, this Friday was awesome. We went to Claiborne and then went to Adena Springs. Seeing a legendary operation like Claiborne was something else. I enjoyed seeing Horse Greeley again; he has always been one of my favorite horses that I’ve worked with. Although, it was great seeing Horse Greeley again my favorite part of the trip was Claiborne’s graveyard. I know that probably sounds really morbid but it wasn’t at all. The history that the horses in that graveyard have made is mind boggling. Horses that have truly shaped the breed to what it is today. This was a trip that I will remember forever.

Well, I’ll stop boring you with details. The NBA All-Star game and Olympics are calling me, that’s my type of Valentine’s Day. I’ll catch you guys next time. Take care and Happy Valentine’s Day.

Things in Kentucky are continuing to go well. The weather has been pretty interesting. One day it’s cold and snowing. Then the next day the sun comes out and the snow melts. Next it starts to rain and then it decides to snow again.

The last two weeks we’ve been taking a farrier course at the Kentucky Horeshoeing School. It’s been really great. We’ve learned all about the internal anatomy of the hoof, shoeing principals, how the hoof and lower limb interact on different racing surfaces, trimming feet, and many other aspects of the equine hoof. It was an invaluable experience to learn all of these things in such detail and I know it will benefit me greatly in the future when I’m training. During these past two weeks we also had the opportunity to go out to Old Friends. Michael Blowen has done a great job with this facility and his obvious love of horses has really made the life of the horses in his care much better. It was great to get to see horses like Gulch, Commentator, Black Tie Affair, Jade Hunter, and Kudos.

This week we will be starting our work rotations at the Darley farms. It will be nice to finally get my hands on horses again and I’m looking forward to start doing manual labor again.

Vacation / First Week in Kentucky

Sorry, it’s been so long that I’ve put up a new post. I was on vacation with my family over the holidays in Palm Springs, Ca. I really enjoyed spending time with my little brother, my parents, and especially my grandparents. Though I’ve been enjoying my travels it was great to be with the family again and see some of the people that have played key roles in my life while I was growing up. It was also nice to take the family with me to opening day at Santa Anita to watch the races. They seemed to have a lot of fun and they made a bit of money too. I ran into a lot of my friends and mentors during my visit to Santa Anita and it was nice to see all of them. I wish I had more time to sit down and catch up with each of them. I was very happy to see that all of them were doing very well.

I arrived here in Kentucky on January 4^th. Though I was greeted very warmly by the other members of the course and the Darley staff, the weather decided to greet me in the opposite manner. It’s been snowing here since the day that I arrived. I don’t think I’ve ever spent so many consecutive days in long underwear as I have here. However, it is gorgeous and I’m really loving Kentucky. Being a California boy, spending Christmas in shorts and a t-shirt, I’m enjoying the snow and some of the Kentuckians are finding it humorous how much I’m liking the cold weather.

Last week we went to all the Darley farms here in Kentucky and it was amazing to see them all and learn about the history of these operations. My favorite Darley farm had to be Stonerside, it was picturesque with all the snow and has proven to be great horse land. This week we have been attending the Keeneland January Mixed Sale and thus far it’s been a humbling experience. Many of the horses I liked made the amount that I thought they would but there were a few that I really liked that made far less than I had figured. I must have missed something on them, haha. I guess I still have a long way to go. We’ve also been to many stallion shows in our free time. We’ve visited Pin Oak, Lane’s End, Vinery, Ashford, WinStar, and Hill N’ Dale. It was great to see Zensational and Pioneerof the Nile again right before they start their new careers. Hopefully we’ll have the chance to go to more stallion shows and that I’ll continue learning about yearling evaluations over the rest of the week.