by Jonathan Horowitz|09.29.202109.29.2021|1:58pm2:01pm Horowitz On OTTBs, Presented By Excel Equine: ‘Victory’ At The Thoroughbred Makeover Looks A Little Different For Everyone The performances that make me smile the biggest and appreciate the retired racehorses and the trainers that care so much for them at the Retired Racehorse Project Thoroughbred Makeover the most are not necessarily the ones that win ribbons or even make the Finale. Don’t get me wrong: as the announcer of the Thoroughbred Makeover since […]
by Jonathan Horowitz|08.26.202108.26.2021|2:29pm8:42pm Horowitz On OTTBs, Presented By Excel Equine: Finding The Right Personality Match For Horse And Rider Certain things just go together. Mike Smith and Zenyatta. Bill Murray and a Wes Anderson movie. Peanut butter and jelly. As great as those ingredients are individually, there’s something magical that happens when they come together. How a horse matches up with its rider in an equestrian sport is very much like a director trying […]
by Jonathan Horowitz|07.29.202107.29.2021|2:58pm9:11pm Horowitz On OTTBs, Presented By Excel Equine: Like Snowflakes, No Two OTTBs Are Alike If horses could talk, this is what I imagine the responses would be if my wife and I asked each of our top event horses, “Can you do (fill in the blank with something we’d like our horses to do)?” Ashley’s chestnut mare Tiny Dancer (JC: Emily’s Pegasus) would respond, “Yes, I’d love to!” There […]
by Jonathan Horowitz|06.30.202107.06.2021|4:35pm11:25am Horowitz On OTTBs, Presented By Excel Equine: Shifting Gears, For The Good Of The Horse I began this column at the start of 2020. I had no idea where it would lead, nor did anyone have an idea how the entire year of 2020 would play out. The goal, which the title of the series, “Thoroughbred Makeover Diaries,” reflected, was that I would chronicle my journey to the 2020 Retired […]
by Jonathan Horowitz|05.27.202106.01.2021|3:20pm1:28pm Thoroughbred Makeover Diaries Presented By Excel Equine: The Next Generation Sees Aftercare As The Future, Not A Charity Heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali, who was born and raised in Louisville, changed boxing, as well as society at large. Quarterback Johnny Unitas, who played college football at the University of Louisville, was the architect of the two-minute drill. German immigrant J. Frederick Hillerich pioneered the modern baseball bat and founded Louisville Slugger. In horse racing, […]
by Jonathan Horowitz|04.28.202105.04.2021|5:51pm3:06pm Thoroughbred Makeover Diaries Presented By Excel Equine: Riding Lessons About Nothing I had my most valuable but optically boring riding lessons ever at the Super G Sporthorses farm my wife and I run in Parker, Colo., this month. I loved them, but I recognize that it was in the same way that George Costanza in Seinfeld loved pitching TV executives to create a show about “nothing” […]
by Jonathan Horowitz|03.25.202103.30.2021|3:52pm3:22pm Thoroughbred Makeover Diaries Presented By Excel Equine: What To Do About ‘Trainer Fatigue’ Writers usually write about topics on which they are an expert. That’s not the case here. I’m attempting to write about something I’m experiencing but don’t quite know how to diagnose or solve…yet. Hopefully, this space, which has come with all the support you have given me over the past year of sharing my riding […]
by Jonathan Horowitz|02.25.202103.02.2021|3:21pm12:42pm Thoroughbred Makeover Diaries Presented By Excel Equine: Do You Love Your Racehorse? Show Them There is no word in the English language as deep or mysterious as “love.” Love is explored in songs, poems, and books. There’s a Greek god and goddess of love, Cupid and Aphrodite. There’s an entire holiday devoted to expressing our love for others. I love a good picture of a jockey, trainer, or owner […]
by Jonathan Horowitz|01.29.202102.02.2021|4:41pm12:00pm Thoroughbred Makeover Diaries Presented By Excel Equine: Dressage As Relationship Counseling For An OTTB And Her Human My wife gave me permission to cheat on her during the holidays. In fact, she facilitated it. You see, before Ashley became my wife on July 23, 2020, she was my trainer for learning to ride horses. I took my first lesson with Ashley on May 30, 2015, and immediately fell in love with eventing […]
by Jonathan Horowitz|12.21.202012.21.2020|1:07pm9:59pm Thoroughbred Makeover Diaries Presented By Excel Equine: Riding An OTTB Isn’t So Different From Playing Poker Buying a recently-retired racehorse to retrain to be a sport horse or pleasure horse is like anteing up to play Texas hold ’em poker. The initial cost to see your hand — the antes and blinds for poker or the cost of horses at the end of their racing careers — is relatively low. The […]