Joe Gorajec

This is one of those instances where it’s better late than never. Recently, I wrote a piece about the unfairness of trainer Glenn Thompson’s ongoing disciplinary travails for Horse Racing Reform called, “New Jersey drug finding: Bad regulation and poor judgment equals injustice for Monmouth Park trainer.” In brief, a horse of Mr. Thompson’s that […]

We all knew we’d be seeing something like this soon. Well, now it’s here. I am referring to a state legislative effort in California to address last year’s public nightmare involving the catastrophic breakdowns at Santa Anita Park. Last week, California General Assembly member Ash Kalra introduced Assembly Bill 2177 titled, “Equine Welfare and Safety […]

In 2019, according to records maintained by The Jockey Club, out of the 272,553 U.S. starts, only 10,065 were made by horses that were not administered Lasix. That equates to only 3.7 percent. The number of starters without Lasix is virtually unchanged from 2018 when 10,148 horses started without the race-day medication. Lasix is the […]

Do you remember the 2012 TheNew York Times(NYT) exposé on horse racing titled, “BREAKDOWN, Death and disarray at America’s racetracks?” The lead photo accompanying the story was the dead carcass of a racehorse. The text beneath photo read as follows: “A 2-year-old quarter horse named Teller All Gone broke a front leg in a race on […]

I believe that for many horsemen, administering performance-enhancing drugs to our horses — if they can get away with it — is based on the sad fact of trying to stay competitive at all cost. For those of you who have already begun to do a slow burn just reading this — stay with me. […]

I listened to last Thursday’s audio broadcast of the California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) meeting as it withdrew, by unanimous vote, as a member of the Association of Racing Commissioners International (RCI). I was an active member of the RCI for 25 years when I was the executive director of the Indiana Horse Racing Commission […]

The Kentucky Derby is just a few days away. In a typical year the focus leading up to the race would be on analyzing contenders, making selections (plural, because of all those exotic wagers), and planning your Derby festivities. There is nothing typical about 2019. The public outrage regarding the 23 equine fatalities during the […]

In 2018, according to records maintained by The Jockey Club, 10,146 starts were made by horses without Lasix in the U.S. out of a total of 279,774. That equates to only 3.6%. Lasix is the commonly used name for the potent diuretic furosemide (though its trade name was changed to Salix). This medication can mitigate […]