July, Trainers, Tracks

Time flies in racing. 2011, midpoint! I'm in feel along mode with problematic horse and fairly significant forward steps just ahead.

Next week, hopefully a trip to Lincoln State Fair meet to acquire Nebraska trainer's license, the Kansas Racing Commission being history. And, finish of engineer work to truck and horse trailer that has been on-going--redo of new floor and machinations involving adjusting old trailer built for 17 inch truck to 18 inch wheel base on 2008 Ford F350.

Week after next to a track would be the plan. Rushing it, and will see. Plan is the horse break :14 barrier tonight. He'll get speed easily once he figures out what's going on. Rodney's other problems are the concern. Outline them later.

So for us we have a mini-version of the daunting preliminaries involved in getting one's horse to come out of the gate in an actual race--primarily a large commitment involving a good bit of one's time, energy and money. Deeper pockets can hire all this out, and you sit in your office directing some trainer with your horse, if you've got the dough.

However, and imo, this also involves horse racing's current central problem on the horse side--finding a trainer that will actually train your horse and care for your horse to your standards. Regrettably, my experience has been that my horse in someone else's shed row gets about the equivalent care as my child in some one's day care center. It's both hardly ideal and counter productive since we're in competitive athletics. We're essentially hoping that our day care center is superior to the next person's.

I figured out some time ago for myself that the odds of farming out a horse to someone else and covering expenses, much less avoiding injury to the horse which is another story altogether, are only a gambling proposition very akin to planning to make money going to a track for an afternoon's handicapping. What are the odds of coming out in the black--for a very good handicapper, maybe 25%.

25% chance of avoiding losing your shirt preparing a race horse is hardly an economic proposition for most, and in particular for the huge expenditure of effort that goes along with the money.

Since I am unable to recommend "doing it all yourself" unless you want to spend a quarter of your time in that effort, the question for an owner, given the realities of trainers and the race track, involves--"what do I do with my horse."

If you have just a little more money available than the normal training expense--there is a third way that I have tried in the past. I will put my horse in a race track shedrow but with the proviso to the trainer--I pay my own employee to supervise and care for the horse. This worked for me quite well as solely an "owner" early 1990s at Prairie Meadows.

Training:
Thurs. June 1: Off. Rain.
Fri. July 1: Riderless only--speed work 3 x 4f all out with horses racing each other. Nice work!
Sat. July 2: 3 times up and down the hill--aborted when large insect flies into horse ear and he begins severe head tossing. One heat in sub :15s. Finished with 2 riderless slow miles with Rodney very willing, interesting for lazy Rod.
Sun. July 3: Off. rain