#Coronavirus Soundbites

By Bill Heller

We asked trainers how they are handling the coronavirus pandemic and what advice they have for getting through this ordeal

Todd Pletcher

We had to close down our Belmont division. There were workers with symptoms. They went to the clinic and were quarantined. More than anything, it was making it difficult to have a safe workplace. At that time, we thought there wasn’t going to be racing in New York for a while. We had 20 horses at Belmont. That normally would be the time we’d be sending horses to Belmont. We had to put that on hold.

We left it up to owners to decide what to do with their horses. Some went to their farms; a couple went to Fair Hill; some went to Ocala and some went to Palm Beach Downs. We did not move any workers [but] have about 100 horses at Palm Beach, a small string at Gulfstream Park [and] four at Oaklawn scheduled to run. We’ve been fortunate with Gulfstream being able to run. We’ve been able to keep some schedules. It’s juggling a lot of schedules. It’s trying times for everyone. We want to make sure to keep our horses and our employees healthy.

Current practices at Palm Beach?

We’re just going by the recommendations as to what the government is saying. Masks are optional. Some are wearing them; most are not. At Gulfstream, we’re just trying to use common sense, keep people from congregating, keep six feet apart. The one thing we are learning is that social distancing is working. We try to keep that policy in mind.

Planning ahead?

That’s something I have to work around. I’m a target-oriented trainer. I like pointing to specific spots. At Aqueduct, the condition book is in the garbage—Keeneland, too. These are unique times. You have to adjust on a daily basis. Everyone’s in the same boat. Everyone’s facing several challenges.

Suggestions?

Use common sense. Take care of your horses and your staff. In time, we’ll return to normalcy. Try to remain positive.

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Eoin Harty

It’s been no harder for me than everybody else. You worry about your family, in California and Europe. Every day you wake up, that’s the first thing on your mind. With horses, you have to take care of them every day. It would be a lot worse for me if we were home 24-7.

Eoin Harty

Precautions?

You can feel that tension in the air. I check every person in the barn; nobody’s coughing. Everyone is wearing gloves and masks—masks for sure around the barn. You don’t have to ask people twice.

Racing?

There’s been a lot of speculation about Santa Anita using Los Alamitos. I don’t know if it’s viable. I think we could be racing at Santa Anita again. The best case scenario is racing at the end of the month or in May. We haven’t had a single case on the racetrack. There hasn’t been a single one. That’s a good thing.

Personally?

I keep six feet away—don’t touch anything.

Suggestions?

Do what you have to do to protect yourself and your family. Right now, it’s common sense. Look out for your friends. Racing will take care of itself.

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Graham Motion

Graham Motion

My family is all home. My wife is trying to run the business from home. As far as the barn, we’re taking a lot of precautions. We have one person disinfecting everything first thing in the morning and last thing in the evening. He takes everybody’s temperature when they come in the morning. We’re trying to have employees not group up in the tack room. After a week or two, you have to remind them.

Six feet away?

We try to. It’s not totally realistic. You have to give a leg up. Most of the time with gloves. We try to do the best we can.

We’re going to try to get everybody to wear masks. We tried to order some. We have 100 employees all told at all the locations: Fair Hill, Palm Meadows. Normally, we would have pulled out from Palm Meadows for Keeneland, but now we’re staying at Palm Meadows.

Normally I train down there while my son, Chappy, goes to spring break. We got from Fair Hill to North Carolina. We planned to overnight in North Carolina. Once we got there, things were getting bad. We spent two nights in North Carolina, and we decided we’d rather be in Maryland. We went back to Fair Hill. It kind of reminded me of 9-11.

Advice for horsemen?

I think in general, the horsemen are lucky. We get to keep on doing what we do. The horses have to get out of their stalls. I think the unsettling part is not knowing when we’ll race again. We worry about our owners who are paying training fees every day. I’m worried about them. We have 60 horses at Fair Hill and 20 at Palm Meadows. I just brought in a few two-year-olds.

When new people come in, they stay away for two weeks. We’re trying to follow the guidelines.

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Tom Proctor

 I’m in a little better shape than most. Other than Gulfstream and Tampa Bay, I have horses at Oaklawn, and the rest are at Glen Hill Farm south of Ocala. Most of my horses are gathered up at Ocala. We probably got 25 in Ocala and a dozen are at Tampa Bay. I’m spending most of my time in Ocala.

Precautions?

We did have horses at the Fair Grounds. We kept those people from Fair Grounds separate for two weeks. We did get out of New Orleans pretty early—about the middle of March. 

Tom Proctor

In Ocala, gloves and masks?

Most of our people don’t leave the farm. We’re not really wearing masks. We’re washing our hands. The zip code we’re in hasn’t had a single case.

When you go to the track, do you take precautions?

I’ve stayed away from people—social distancing when I can. For a trainer, it’s easier than most. I check on the horses when nobody else is around.

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Tom Amoss

(Tom Amoss was exposed to the virus by being with New Orleans Saints Coach Sean Payton, who contracted the virus, at the Fair Grounds. Amoss self-quarantined for two weeks while continuing to work from home for TVG.)

Did you have the virus?

 I never really found out. When it happened, it wasn’t easy to test. I stayed at home for two weeks. Now I’m going to work every day. They really don’t want us up and around in New Orleans. I’m here at my barn every morning from 6-10. My routine is the same.

Protocols at Fair Grounds?

 That’s an evolving thing. Our temperature is taken when we come into the track. We’re not allowed in the buildings. Social distancing is a requirement. Fifty percent of the people on the backstretch are wearing masks. We’ve had zero issues in my barn, and none in other barns as well. There’s a reason for that. My help lives on the racetrack. They’re self-contained. There’s a grocery on the backstretch—Canseco’s. We’re the opposite of how New Orleans is doing. We have nothing bad in our barn. I haven’t heard of one case.

Suggestions for other horsemen?

It’s a tough question. Look, there’s a difference between our horses and the horses in California. Our horses are allowed to ship to Oaklawn. No people are shipped. I’ve got a barn up there. I’m blessed in the fact that I already have people there.

Stables?

Ever-changing. There are a lot of horses I have who race on grass. They have been sold or turned out. Other horses who don’t fit the condition and book at Oaklawn have been sold or turned out. We’ve down-sized about 20 percent.

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Linda Rice

Linda RIce

Handling this?

We’re doing very well. We’re being very careful on Long Island. We know New York City has a lot of cases. We’ve been using masks, gloves and social distancing. We’ve been doing that for three weeks now. We have a regular training schedule at Belmont. It’s good to have a routine. We’re happy to go to work every day. A lot of people are stuck at home. They can’t work. We can.

Response so far?

The help is doing great. Everyone is concerned. We watch the news. It scares the hell out of you. But it’s the old adage: the outside of a horse is good for the inside of a man, or a woman.

What’s going on with racing in New York?

Aqueduct, obviously, is being used as a hospital. I think everyone here is under the impression that we’ll be racing at Belmont. It’s just a matter of when. We’re looking at June 1st. If it’s sooner than that, great.

Outlook?

The entire world is dealing with this. If there is small business assistance, that’s great if it can get processed. Unemployment for those out of work will help. We’re making sure of helping everyone on the backstretch who needs it. We’re making sure our horses and our people are safe.

#Soundbites - Is turf racing safer for horses than dirt?

By Bill Heller

With ongoing concerns about equine welfare and speculation in the industry about reintroducing synthetic tracks to replace dirt tracks, we asked trainers, “Is turf racing safer for horses than dirt?”

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Christophe Clement

I don’t like the question. You can compete on a safe turf course or an unsafe turf, a safe dirt or an unsafe dirt. I don’t think one surface is safer than the other. With synthetics, they shouldn’t have dirt or synthetic tracks; they should have dirt and synthetic. And turf, too. Why not have all three?

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Peter Miller

Peter Miller - Yes. Synthetic and turf are safer; they mimic each other. Both are safer than dirt racing. Statistically, it’s safer. I would imagine the reason is that they stay on top of it, instead of going four to six inches into it. There is less pressure on the joints. And there’s more bounce to it, like running on grass instead of sand. It’s more forgiving.

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John Servis

Statistically yes, but there are a lot more dirt races. I don’t necessarily think turf is safer.

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Brian Lynch

Brian Lynch - I would say for sure. It might be a lot more forgiving. You see a lot of eight and nine-year-olds running on turf and you don’t see that on dirt—those long-tenured horses running in big races. I’ve had a lot of luck keeping grass horses around longer and keeping them going. I’ve had a lot of experience on the poly, but what keeps horses around for a long time, I’d say, is turf.

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Joe Sharp

I think absolutely that turf racing is safer than dirt. It’s more consistent. Statistically, the numbers show they are much safer, and to me, personally, I think turf is much safer.

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Peter Eurton

That’s a hard question to answer. To be honest, I really don’t know. I haven’t had too many bad accidents on turf or dirt, knock on wood. I’ve had more on dirt obviously because I race more on dirt. I’ve had accidents on turf and dirt. I’ve had turf horses get hurt on dirt while training.

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Barclay Tagg

Michael Stidham

No question that turf is safer, especially on a firm course vs. a yielding or a soft turf. On firm turf, as long as it’s not too firm, they’re going over the top of the turf. On a soft or yielding course, they sink down into it. And I’m a big believer in synthetic tracks because I believe they are safer to train on it. And the numbers back it up. Some horses might not race well over it. They should have three surfaces: turf, dirt and synthetic.

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Barclay Tagg

My answer would be definitely. And I’m a firm believer that they don’t bleed as easily on turf. I do believe that. From our experience, Robin (Smullen) and I both believe that turf racing is easier on the horses.

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#Soundbites - Would creating a uniform standard for drug testing horses be good or bad?

By Bill Heller

The Horse Racing Integrity Act currently before the U.S. Congress would create a uniform standard for drug testing horses that would be overseen by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. Would that be good or bad?

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Ralph Nicks

It would probably be good. It would level the playing field. We need standard medication rules.

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Rick Schosberg

The jury’s out. I think uniform medication rules are a good thing. Whether it’s the government’s job to do, I’m not sold on that. A lot of people have been working very hard in the industry to get all the jurisdictions on the same page without government intervention. But absolutely it’s important that it gets done. 

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Eoin Harty

I think it would be good. Anything that’s going to enhance the public perception of our industry would be good. I believe this is a step in the right direction. I think it’s very important to enhance confidence in our industry. I think it’s at an all-time low. Anything that would improve that is a good thing.

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Norm Casse

I’m all for uniform rules, but I’m not in favor of the government being involved. It doesn’t seem like it ever works. I think we’re an industry that should be able to regulate ourselves rather than have someone else do it.

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Tom Proctor

When is the government getting involved ever a good thing?

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Ian Wilkes

Bad. I don’t think we need Congress getting involved in our sport. I think our testing is very sophisticated now anyway. I think it’s quite good. Yes, we need uniform rules, but we don’t need Congress involved.

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Jim Bond

It would be bad, though the way it is now is chaos. It’s sad. Ninety-nine percent of the people in our business are good people. You can have all the rules in the world, but they don’t punish the people that have overstepped boundaries hard enough. Not 60 days or 90 days. Make it real. Put some teeth into it. But getting the government involved would not be good. It never seems to work.

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Tim Hills 

If it’s properly instituted, I think it would be good; but horsemen must be included on how it would be set up and how it would be implemented. The horsemen have to have a seat at the table. They would have to be included in setting guidelines. We must be included in how it’s written up. 

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Chris Englehart

I guess it all depends on what the rules were. You’re talking about uniform rules. That would be fine, unless the rules included banning Lasix. I wouldn’t be in support of that. Where would we race our bleeders? I think it would be a good thing to have uniform testing. In a lot of ways, it would be great.

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#Soundbites - Should rules be added to limit or eliminate a jockey’s use of the whip?

#Soundbites

Compiled by Bill Heller

Robbie Davis

Yes. When a horse is beat, he shouldn’t be beaten up. Horses are competitive for the most part. Once they’re tired, you’re not going to get any more out of them. Or if he’s winning by several lengths, he shouldn’t be getting hit. It doesn’t take long to look right, look left and see how far ahead you are. I’ve seen the whip do more trouble than not. You’re not supposed to steer with the whip. That’s what the reins are for. In Canada, they limit the number of hits from the quarter-pole home and you can’t go above your head to whip.

Carla Gaines

It’s interesting. At this stage, the whip is so soft. Here in California, our sticks are as soft as can be. We used to use a stick which was far more severe for decades. It left welts. I rode horses all my life. I think the stick is necessary. You’re sitting on top of an explosive, thousand-pound animal. The stick will help control the horse. A lot of people advocate no stick. I understand that public concern is we’re hitting the horse, but it’s used to control the horse. People who work with other animals know you have to have some sense of control, not abuse. You have to keep them going in a straight line, or they could endanger somebody’s life.

John Velazquez (Hall of Fame Jockey)

We have rules already, but there are different rules. Would uniform rules be nice? Yes. But we talk about it, and nothing happens. It would be nice to see it happen before I retire. About eliminating the whip, absolutely not. It’s a tool we need. We need something to get the horse’s attention. We need it to get horses to go straight. Also, horses need to be encouraged. I’m not concerned about the perception because we use new whips that are much softer, much different now than the ones we used to use. 

Jeremiah Englehart

I can see a limited use of the whip to a certain degree. I like what Ramon’s (Dominguez) whip has done. I think from before, the old whips, you would get more whelps. With Ramon’s whip, it will be enough to get a horse’s attention. There are times when the whip has a good use. With a green horse, you’re trying to keep everyone on the racetrack safe. They’re not going to run in a straight line all the time. The use of the whip is necessary. I don’t think eliminating the whip is the answer. There should be panel looking at it with riders involved.

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#Soundbites - Is there too much racing?

By Bill Heller

Once upon a time, racing in most locations had an off-season. That created anticipation for its return. In the Northeast, when racing only lasted from March through November, you actually missed it in the off months, and you got really pumped up for its return. Those days are long gone.

Racing these days is year-round, and some tracks offer massive cards on Saturdays, as many as 14 races a day instead of eight or nine.

So we asked trainers: Is there too much racing?  

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Bob Hess Jr.

I don’t think there’s too much racing. But I think nowadays, eight, nine races a day with huge fields is ideal, not 12. I think the average person doesn’t want to be stuck there for more than three hours. In terms of promoting it with young people, eight would be ideal. Again, they don’t want to be stuck there. They get bored.

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Al Stall

I would say, no, there’s not too much racing. The foal crop is going down, so maybe that will inspire us. There are less opportunities. It could change if we wanted to do it. Cards at Gulfstream Park wear you out with 12 or 13 races. But you don’t have to stay the whole card. Young people now, there’s so much more to do. I would love to be able to educate them about our game.

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Bill Mott

I think the boutique meets seem to do the best. Longer meets—they never seem to end. People get bored. I think you wear people out with 14 races a day. Eight or nine is enough. I understand what they’re thinking, These guys aren’t stupid. And they look at the numbers. Most places need five days a week. Different people who work around the track need it. You can’t have a full-time employee and race two days a week. It makes no sense. But Instead of running 11, 12 or 14 races, you should run eight or nine. There’s going to be hard-core gamblers who would sit there for 12 hours, but I think they wear other gamblers out. I think they’re wearing people out.

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Graham Motion

I think there is too much racing. Look, every race office in the country is looking for horses. I believe that less racing would bring a better product for the bettors. I think less racing, at the end of the day… it’s just common sense to me. People want to see good racing and good fields. Twelve races a day—it’s way too much for everybody, bettors, horsemen and their employees. It’s very stressful for everybody. When your boys are at the track at 4:30 in the morning and still there at 6:30 or 7 or 8 (pm), I think it wears on everybody. Probably the gamblers as well. Jockeys begin at 5:30 in the morning, and they’re there until 7 or 8 (pm). How could a jockey be at his absolute best the entire day? They’ve got to be sharp, thinking quickly and making decisions. How can you keep doing that at 7 o’clock in the evening if you’ve been there all day?

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