Imagine: A
Thoroughbred trainer has five horses competing in an important event at Pimlico
on the same Saturday. He needs to find
four more excellent jockeys to ensure the horses get the best ride possible in
the competition. Fairly normal situation, right? Except these Thoroughbreds chase cows for a
living, not the finish wire.
Sometimes it really is a matter of the
more, the merrier. And when the Retired
Racehorse Training Project (RRTP) asked ranch horse trainer Dale Simanton to
bring his full crew ranch and cattle-trained off-track Thoroughbreds to Baltimore
for the RRTP Thoroughbred Makeover and National Symposium on October 5 and 6,
nobody really thought about who was going to ride them.
“That was when we conceived this idea of
inviting a group of jockeys to take the mounts on these horses,” said RRTP
President, Steuart Pittman. “We can’t imagine anything more fun than having
some of America’s most well-known riders taking the reins on this group of ‘cow
horses’ for this event.”
The event, named “Who Let the Cows
Out?”, will pair celebrity jockeys with retired Thoroughbred racehorses from
the Gate to Great training program of Newell, South Dakota to compete on the
Pimlico track in a “team sorting” event.
Each
team of two horses and riders will have a maximum of two minutes to sort a
small herd of numbered cattle into a corral in numeric order. The team with the fastest time and correct
sorting order wins the competition. The event requires cow sense, teamwork and
fast thinking on the part of both the horses and riders.
And to help select the final group of
jockeys to appear at the event on Saturday, October 5, the Retired Racehorse
Training Project is inviting the public to weigh in on who they would like to
see answer the call to the post and mount up for this cow-chasing
challenge. An online nomination form can
be found on the RRTP’s website at www.retiredracehorsetraining.org. Fans are
invited to nominate any rider, active or retired, to “cowboy up” and join in
the fun. Nominations will close Monday,
September 9. The final group of selected
jockeys will be announced on the RRTP website and Facebook page on Thursday,
September 12.
The “Who Let the Cows Out?” event will
take place as part of the “Western Invasion” of Pimlico Racecourse on day one
of the RRTP Thoroughbred Makeover and National Symposium. In addition to the team sorting competition,
Kentucky Derby-winning owner, Bill Casner, will join trainer Dale Simanton in a
team roping demonstration and a barrel racing event with the Thoroughbred
Makeover’s own Nikki Egyed and her horse, Symphonic Cat as well as the winner
and top four horses from this summer’s Extreme Retired Racehorse Makeover
Barrel Race held in Ohio.
“We are
excited to have this opportunity to highlight the versatility and trainability
of the Thoroughbred breed in creating this truly unique event, “ says Steuart
Pittman. “Not only will this event be fan-friendly and fun to watch, it truly
shows that retired racehorses are capable of just about anything you can ask.”
The western
invasion will take place on Saturday afternoon and evening during the
Thoroughbred Makeover and National Symposium at Pimlico Racecourse. More
information and tickets are available online at
www.retiredracehorsetraining.org.
Media Contact:
Steuart
Pittman, President
Retired Racehorse
Training Project
Phone: 410-507-3351
Email:
steuart@retiredracehorsetraining.org
Photo Credits:
Dale Simanton
and his all Thoroughbred ranch rodeo team--Photographer Dorothy Snowden
From Left to
Right: Thoroughbred geldings Marcade, Race with a Plum, Drake’s Dancer, Swingn
Slew and Finn McCool with Dale Simanton up.
Additional photos or interviews may be granted upon
request.
The RRTP Thoroughbred Makeover and National
Symposium will be held October 5 and 6 at Pimlico Racecourse in Baltimore,
Maryland. The event will feature two
full days of educational seminars, meetings, demonstrations, and the
culmination of the Thoroughbred Makeover. 26 trainers from 15 states in ten
equestrian disciplines will demonstrate what their horses have learned in just
three months of second career training. Polo, dressage, eventing, barrel
racing, cattle work, police work, hunters, jumpers, natural horsemanship, and
tricks will be featured both by the Makeover horses and in special
demonstrations from top horses in many of these disciplines. The weekend
includes a trade fair and an evening celebration with Thoroughbred Storytelling
by very special guests.
The Retired Racehorse Training Project (RRTP)
is a 501©3 charitable organization working to increase demand for retired
Thoroughbred race horses as pleasure and sport horses through public events,
clinics, training publications, videos and internet tools. Our mission is to
facilitate the placement of retired Thoroughbred racehorses in second careers by
educating the public about the history, distinctive characteristics,
versatility of use, and appropriate care and training of the iconic American
Thoroughbred. More information may be
found at www.retiredracehorsetraining.org .
The Gate to Great training program is a
division of Horse Creek Thoroughbreds
in Newell, South Dakota. Located on a
large ranch in Western South Dakota, the program entails rehabilitation process
that gives ex-racehorses a chance to recover from the rigors of a racing career
and time to develop new skills outside the backside environment. Horses in the
program learn to handle themselves in new ways both mentally and physically as
they are ridden across the sweeping expanses of South Dakota ranges moving
cattle, negotiating creek crossings and riding over varying terrain, all the while
developing reining and maneuverability under saddle. The resultant graduates of the program are
ready to move on into new careers in both traditional Western disciplines such
as roping and barrel racing as well as eventing, dressage and jumping. More information may be found at www.gatetogreat.com .
