Winning with Warhorses

Can a war horse do this? Yes. Yes he can.

I tell people that I like the thoroughbred war horses who've been there/done that on the track, but I didn't realize just how deep that ran. I was doing a little thoroughbred research recently and ran across some interesting info. Let's look at my horses.

Absolute Courage
You all know my little man as the blaze-faced sport horse that could. I knew him on the track and I knew he ran extensively. His equibase profile tells me that he ran 33 times, won two races, and had career earnings of $40,802.00. That's respectable, right? I mean, he's hardly a graded stakes winner, but he's a pretty classy horse and he ran 2007-2013 with one year off in the middle, so basically six years.

Always taking care of himself

Acuna
He's my beloved Hakuna Matata thanks to the helpfulness of show secretaries after he started his show horse career, but Cuna was no slouch on the track either. Again, equibase indicates that he ran 41 times and despite winning only once, he earned $25,747.00. He ran a mere 5 (!!) years, from 1997-2001. He wasn't a hugely successful racehorse, but he paid his bills.

Look what a wee young thing I was

Klasi Renee
I don't talk about her much on the blog, but this is the mare I leased and adored all through highschool. She evented, dressaged, jumped, showed, and taught me about being quiet and calm at all times lest we lose our brains completely. We had horrible disasters and we won giant trophies. I looked up her race record just for kicks. She ran 58 (!!!) times and won 9 races from 1994-1999. Despite those numbers, she ran at tracks that are maaaaybe a step up from bush league and only won $22,944.00.

Just Courage, winning a race

And those are just my horses. I certainly understand the mentality of wanting a young, barely started thoroughbred if you're trying to make it to the upper levels or something, but I'm not. I love horses and I love riding and I want to do 3'3" or maybe 3'6" jumpers. Maybe. Mostly I want a horse that's fun to be around, no matter what we're doing any given day. I want to jump and dressage and trail ride and chase cows and pony racehorses (not with Courage apparently) and do all the things.

The best at new careers

I guess it's because I'm something of an old soul myself, but these been there, done that types just speak to me. Whether it's because they've seen it all or because they hold up under high stress or because only a certain personality makes it that long on the track, I really can't tell you. I can tell you that every one I've met is a unique and cool in a very special sort of way. They maybe don't want to race anymore, but they are athletic and intelligent and like having a job.

They might not be for everyone, but they're definitely for me.

Weekend Fun: Meet the New Guy

Courage says "HELLOOOO TRACK HORSE"

Those of you who follow me on instagram or facebook have probably noticed a new face started popping up last week. I mean, I always have random cute racehorses, but one was cuter than the others and then he was meeting Courage and going under saddle...

Yep. Dapple bay and all.

A couple of you have asked about him. I mean, it's hard not to. His face is ridiculously adorable and he's built like a champ.

Ladies and gentlemen, meet Prisoner, pedigree here.

He's a Kentucky-bred 2007 model TB who we put the OT on last Saturday. He's something less than a stunning success on the track, netting just over $4,000 in four years of racing.

Yes, you read that right.

Looking cute on the back side

As I rule, I stay away from horses for sale on the backside because I want (almost) all of them, but this guy is special. I had my eye on him, and when his trainer said he was available, I immediately started taking crappy pictures of him and sending them to my good friend Ellie. I really can't be doing two boarded horses and a car payment, but this guy needed a soft landing with lots of love and Ellie needed something sweet and fun and pretty.










Because she is brave (and knows us really well), Ellie agreed to buy him even though she'd only ever glimpsed his adorable white nose over the stall for like ten seconds one time this summer.

Prisoner (working on the new name, ok?) moved in to Courage's barn for the next month to get nicely restarted. I think he's looking at much the same schedule Courage had--light riding through the fall, winter off, and then getting going for real next spring.

First ride off the track. HE'S SO FANCY I COULD DIE.

In the mean time, yours truly gets to play with him and take pictures of his cute little face. Redheadlins is doing the heavy lifting in terms of training, but Alyssa and I can do useful things too and of course Ellie will join us as much as her schedule allows.

He's aimed for a dressage/trails/open shows/all around type career and yes, Ellie assures me she will blog about him. Plus she is a kick ass photographer, so expect to be inundated with pro-quality pictures instead of my usual camera-phone business.

ERMEGERD KISS HIS NOSE ALREADY

If I had room in the budget for two, I'd never let this little guy slip away. He and Ellie are going to have so much fun together. I'm glad I got to be a part of his rehoming team and I look forward to their continued adventures together!

And yes, you can always count on me for Prisoner updates. This is my first time helping out with a resale, and he sort of feels like my little god pony already.

VCBH: Interested Parties

In the latest (I think?) edition of the Viva Carlos blog hop, L asks, "What made you interested in your current horse that lead you to buying them in the first place?"
 

Racing in CA before he lost his tail

This is a bit of a complicated question, because I wasn't interested and didn't buy him. I mean, I liked him well enough, but I already had a horse, didn't want to own two horses, and certainly wasn't planning on augmenting the herd.

First time I saw him

So there's that. I went to the races with my friend Ellie (aka "our personal photographer"). I knew redheadlins could get us on the back side, so I called her up. As we met the horses in her barn and casually chatted about who they were and what they were doing, we met this cute little blaze-faced bay horse. He was calm, even with races going by, and quite friendly.

When we left, Ellie said, "That's going to be your horse."

I blew her off.

Don't tell me he can't handle bling

Then I started spending my free time at the track, trying to find a way to enjoy horses without all the stress of show barn/lame horse problems. Courage was one of the more senior horses in my friend's barn. I told redheadlins to find me baby Cuna. I wanted a clone. She and Alyssa (yay track friends!) also decided that Courage was supposed to be my horse.

He didn't exactly run the walker

So they sort of just set us up. I groomed him. I bathed him. I put him on and off the walker. I spent lots of time with him, and I really came to appreciate that same quiet brain I saw the first night I met him. He's confident and brave and cocky and he takes care of himself, but at the same time, he's sweet and endearing and loves attention.

Because he is.

I've blogged before about how it is that he ended up coming home with me, but I will add that it wasn't until the night before he left the track that I realized what I was getting in to. Redheadlins and I took a series of pictures of him. As I drove away from the track, she texted me a conformation shot.

"Oh my god," I said to myself. "He's f***ing beautiful."

At the Track

I've spent my entire horsey career hanging around the show world. Dressage, jumpers, eventers, the occasional arab or breed event. RedHeadLins works on the racetrack near me, and I thought it was high time I figure out that one strange bit of the horse world in which people appear to be able to make a living.

Quarter horse race

I came with a couple of friends the first night. We watched the horses in the paddock, then tried a couple of different positions to watch the races. The stands, the rail by the gate, the rail by the finish. All were fun. I've never spent time watching live racing before, and I was surprised by the intensity of the atmosphere, especially as the horses came galloping down to the finish. 





I don't bet money because I have the worst luck in the world, but some people seem to enjoy that sort of thing too. I figure if I'm going to blow $5, I'd just rather end up with a margarita. It's a known quantity.

One of the racehorses

Then RedHeadLins offered to show us around the backside. Omg. Yay! Off we went. We got to meet her string of horses in their stalls and watch them watch the races.

They were remarkably composed about the whole thing. For some reason, I thought they'd be more amped up, but they just munched on dinner and visited with us.

View from the backside

We also got to watch a race from the back side. It was pretty hilarious to hear the commentary the jockeys have going when they think no one can hear them. We tried our best to be non awkward and stay out of the way, but I loved being around the horses and seeing what it was like. It was also incredibly strange to not be working in the barn, but I'm sure I wouldn't have been any help.

We watched a horse get ready and went up to watch her race. It was pretty exciting, but she didn't end up winning.







After that, I managed to convince the cool track people that I could come out and watch the horses work in the morning later that week.Again, it was a really cool experience. I got to go in the stalls and help brush them to get ready. After watching some gleaming specimens go by on their way to work, I was determined that not a single spot of dust would be left on the horse I was with. After all, I'm a show groom. I can do this.

But he was clean!

I stood back to admire my work and my guide said, "You have to be faster. We need to keep them moving."

Oops.

I picked up the pace, though I'm still nowhere near fast enough to blend in with the legit race people.


I also got out of the stalls and watched from the rail. There were quite a mix of people working. Some horses got ponied all the way to the track, while others walked on a loose rein. Gallop girls, exercise riders, jockeys, pony riders, and trainers were all around.

Headed out to work

Particularly impressive was the commentary that the experienced riders gave when they came back to the barn. They were so in tune with the horses that they would mention problem physical areas that they thought the horse might need help with.

Brakes!

After the horses worked, they were given a drink and put on the hot walker by experienced handlers. I was warned that some impressive antics happen there on occasion, so I steered clear. That day, the horses were more interested in making the walker stop and wait for them.

All in all, it was a super cool experience. I'm hoping to spend some more time there this summer and get to know the world a little bit. I have no desire to gallop baby racehorses, but I love the shedrow of gleaming horses and the power and speed of the track.

Can't wait to go back.