Horowitz On OTTBs

Racehorse trainers will be part of many decisions in their horses’ careers. Dirt or turf. Sprint or route. Put on blinkers or take them off. Trainer Linda Loftin was part of the two biggest decisions someone in racing can make for a horse’s welfare when it comes to Grand Lily. — Number one: when to […]

If there’s one thing that’s predictable when it comes to horses, it’s that they’re unpredictable. And, that’s a big part of their intrigue and attraction. In 2022, a year when crowds returned to racetracks at full capacity, an 80-1 longshot won the Kentucky Derby and a once-in-a-generation star emerged that was worthy enough to be […]

When Prince of New York arrived at Morning Line Equestrian in Paris, Ky., in the spring of 2021, his new owners needed to come up with a barn name. Chris and Celia Bennings’ first idea was “Pony,” the first letter of each word in the horse’s name. “We thought that would be cute, but then […]

There are many decisions to be made in the life of a racehorse, with no guarantee that they will work out. When 15-year-old Isabel Wells calmly walked 5-year-old chestnut gelding Hieronymus over to the final obstacle of the competitive trail course during the finale of the 2022 Retired Racehorse Project Thoroughbred Makeover and raised a […]

The Retired Racehorse Project Thoroughbred Makeover has led more people to find their next sporthorse at the racetrack, providing more homes and new careers for OTTBs. It also goes the other way, and the off-track Thoroughbreds are inspiring new people to head to the racetrack. Like Samantha Fawcett, a lifelong equestrian from Ontario, Canada, who […]

I began this column in January 2020 because my goal was to go from announcing horses to riding them. (See “Horowitz’s Unlikely Journey from Broadcasting to Riding Horses”) Specifically, it was to compete with an off-track Thoroughbred at the Retired Racehorse Project Thoroughbred Makeover. Unfortunately, I did not get to compete in the 2020 Thoroughbred […]

Sunday, July 24, 2022, will go down as an historic day for Bally’s Arapahoe Park — and not just for what took place at the racetrack in Aurora, Colo. On the track, Collusionist won his tenth career stakes race at Bally’s Arapahoe Park in the six-furlong Arapahoe Park Sprint. The 6-year-old dark bay Colorado-bred gelding […]

Amy Bowers knew she found something special when she first saw Del Mar Belle. The bay Thoroughbred filly had raced seven times as a 3-year-old in 2018, including a win in a maiden race at Bally’s Arapahoe Park, followed by an attempt against the top horses of her age in Colorado in the Encantadora Stakes. […]

I’ve been a sports fan for as long as I can remember. I didn’t play sports in high school or college, but at the age of 37, I did finally get the chance to take on some of the best riders in the Rocky Mountain region in the equestrian sport of eventing because of the […]

“Is that an Arabian?” I took that question as a compliment when asked it at the Spring Gulch Combined Test in Highlands Ranch, Colo., on April 23. That’s the first horse show I competed at with the precocious 4-year-old grey Arabian racehorse AA Two Face. The reason that question was a compliment was because the […]