OTTB Showcase: Above All Odds (a.k.a. "Red")

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1 OTTB Showcase: Above All Odds (a.k.a. "Red") by Jen Roytz THE DEETS: Name: Above All Odds (a.k.a. Red ) Born: 2005 Height: 17 hands Color: Chestnut Sire: Western Expression Dam: Reign or Shine Sale History: None Race Record: Race Earnings: $11,197 This week s featured off-track Thoroughbred is a one-eyed wonder named Above All Odds (a.k.a. Red ), who got his Jockey Club name because of his innate desire to overcome the hand he was dealt and thrive in live. It s a story we can all draw inspiration from and relate to.

His owner, Martine, who has known him literally from Day 1, gives a funny, yet heartwarming account of his journey from, his black sheep/ugly duckling days to growing into the full-fleeced superstar

2 His owner, Martine, who has known him literally from Day 1, gives a funny, yet heartwarming account of his journey from, his black sheep/ugly duckling days to growing into the full-fleeced superstar eventing swan that he is today. Jen Roytz (JR): What is your equestrian background? Martine Britell (MB): My grandparents had a small farm and we would just get on the horses or donkeys and come back at dinner time. Those childhood experiences turned into a lifelong love of and friendship with horses (and long-ears, too), and of both Western and English riding alike. I became interested in Thoroughbred racing about nine years ago. JR: How did you get Above All Odds? MB: It was a private sale (after years of begging). He was starting to sour at the track and his trainer at the time, Allen Jerkens, suggested sending him home for the winter. One of the racing partners, Tim Whitbred put it best: You fell in love with that horse, and that horse fell in love you. It was the right time for them to sell. Timing is everything! JR: Do you know anything about his life before you had him? MB: Yes, I raised Red for the racing partnership that owned him and other horses. To put it mildly, he and his mother did not have the most nurturing relationship, so he and I became buddies. Red was a loner and one of the smallest colts in the herd. I would try to feed him lunch, but that usually turned into a fight in the field if the other colts came to the fence. One day, he saw me coming and slowly meandered away from the herd, very casually came up and over the hill (he was in a huge 20 acre field) and when he past the run-in which obscured him from the others, he started running to the fence. He cleverly slipped away from the herd every day for weeks before they caught on and all I could think was, jeez, this is a smart colt.

3 Red was one of the smallest colts in the field and would get beat up, bitten and kicked by a big, bully of a colt in the herd every day for almost a year. I would think, Oh, Red, you need to get much tougher if you re going to be a race horse. One day, Red just snapped and he went after that big, mean colt. Red chased him up and down hills and every time the colt tried to stop Red bit him on the butt and kept him going. This went on forever, so I ran and got Lenny. By the time we got back to the field the bully colt was lathered in sweat and Red was cool as a cucumber. Lenny said, Well, either Red s going to kill him or there will be a new sheriff in town. There was a new sheriff in town. The herd dynamic forever shifted and Red moved to the first feed bucket on the fence line. JR: Do you know anything about how he got his name? MB: They wanted to name him Against All Odds but the Jockey Club cited copyright issues with the movie of the same name. The thought was if he was going to win with one eye, he would have to beat the odds, so Mr. Whitbred went with Above All Odds. JR: Does he have a nickname? MB: Red and no, not because he is a chestnut. He grew up on Lenny Hale s farm (the former racing official and dear friend of Penny Chenery) and I needed an easy, monosyllabic name to call him in from a huge field something simple. In retrospect, I was clearly influenced by all the Secretariat memorabilia in Lenny s house. I remember thinking, Wow, that unnamed colt in the field looks a lot like those photos of the big, red horse in the house, -- who also happens to be Red s great, great grandfather. Had I known at the time that Red would become his lifelong nickname and that he would be mine, I would have been more creative! JR: How did he loose his eye? MB: His mother kicked him in the head at four days old. JR: What s his personality like? Do you think his last life experience have influenced it? MB: There s a dirty, old man with a wicked sense of humor trapped inside that horse!! Red is a very independent horse. Alpha male. Stubborn. Very smart crazy smart. And a bit of an enigma (just ask the Chief). Red looks for/seeks out your weaknesses. He does things just to see how one will react. It s very hard to figure out what makes him tick. He ll take a lot (from other horses or people) but if you push him too far, he s a fighter. And you cannot fight with him, he will win. At the track, they loved his aggressiveness, his fighting spirit but he also drove Allen crazy trying to figure him out. All that said, Red is a very kind horse. Not easy, but kind, and loves to have his picture taken. JR: What do you do with Above All Odds (type of riding)? MB: He has just started competing in Eventing. He thinks, he is part Lipizzaner and, unfortunately, the dressage judges do not appreciate his exuberance er, athleticism. JR: What s the process been like to retrain him? MB: Three words: Sloooow and steady First year, Red was out of control. We had to get his feet on the ground. Then get him off his hind legs. He would walk from the field to the barn on his hind legs. He jumped out of every

fence you put him behind (including a seven foot round pen) or jumped over any obstacle (tractor, car, whatever) in his path.

Second year, we slowly started him working walk, trot, canter and over jumps in the ring, an occasional hack and a lot of grazing in the field.

The calmed him down and gave him herd to care for. We also gave him some weanlings to foster and that calmed him as well.

4 fence you put him behind (including a seven foot round pen) or jumped over any obstacle (tractor, car, whatever) in his path. He walked it off the first year home in a field and a little Natural Horsemanship. Second year, we slowly started him working walk, trot, canter and over jumps in the ring, an occasional hack and a lot of grazing in the field. We also, introduced Red to his two companions, Trixie and Lola, (two minis from Last Chance Farm, a Pennsylvania-based horse rescue). The minis changed Red s life. The calmed him down and gave him herd to care for. We also gave him some weanlings to foster and that calmed him as well. For the last six months, Red has been training with an upper level eventer, Dustin Craig. Dusty s 6 5 with legs that go for miles, quiet and patient. Dusty s known for taking difficult horses or in Red s case, exuberant horses. The pair just started at the horse trials and they re doing great. Cross-country is Red s favorite part, then stadium jumping, but that pesky dressage with its exacting and controlled movements is a challenge for him. They seem to have a mutual respect for each other and Dusty s the first person that can look Red in the eye they re about the same height!! And Trixie and Lola are still his pasture mates. JR: What are some of your biggest accomplishments together? MB: Red was a loner as a young horse and for the first year or so I worked with him he seem to

5 connect with anyone or even, me. And I knew he needed to connect with people so that he could work with them and race well. The day he came home from getting broken in (at about a year and half old), he saw me from his field and called and called to me. Yes, I finally reached him! It may seem like a small thing but he had started trusting humans the vet, trainers, handlers, farriers, etc. Now, of course, he is Mr. Personality and needs an audience. Coming in third, out of nowhere (as in back of the pack) at his first race at Belmont that was a great accomplishment for all of us. I knew he had what took to race. Getting him into a sport, Eventing, where he can use his talents and be productive. Red s not a pasture pet, he is a work horse. Eventing requires athleticism and boldness and it is the only sport that we could think of that makes a dent in his stamina. The Chief thought Red needed a two mile race just to warm up! JR: Any funny quirks he has/funny stories from your time together? MB: Jorge, his groom at the track, taught him, ever so cleverly, to grab just the corner of a woman s T-shirt and pull it up and over her head in about a second and a half. He never rips it and he only does it to women. Great, trick! Red has to smell anything and everything you are going to put on his body before you put it on him. otherwise, it is a battle royal! Red also loves mango/pineapple smoothies from McDonald s! JR: What are your goals for the future? MB: Finding the right sport for Red. Helping him integrate his great mind, body and spirit and use his powers for good otherwise, he would be a difficult horse. He is an extremely athletic horse who needs to work. When I brought him home from the track, several trainers called to say, they would take the horse, forgo their fees and split the purses. I came to believe that racing wasn t the right sport for him and feel a big responsibility for finding the right outlet for him. I questioned that decision (Who was I to think I knew more than some big time trainers?) but I believe he is headed in the right direction now. JR: What is your favorite thing about Thoroughbreds/OTTBs? MB: They are wonderful horses! Thoroughbreds have such great minds, agile bodies and they are always ready to go! OTTB s tend to have a good work ethic and they ve have already been exposed to so much more than life on a farm. If you have or know of a retired Thoroughbred with an interesting story to tell, we d love to hear about it! Just Jen Roytz (Jenlroytz@gmail.com) with the horse s Jockey Club name, background story, and a few photos. Jen Roytz is the marketing and communications director at Three Chimneys Farm in Midway, Kentucky. She also handles the farm s Thoroughbred aftercare efforts. She currently owns two retired Thoroughbreds: Point of Impact (by Point Given; a.k.a. Boomer), who retired from racing in late 2011 and is just starting back under saddle to find his forte as a riding horse, and Shotgun Shine (by Tale of the Cat, a.k.a. Gage), who is in training as a hunter/jumper. Contact Jen on Facebook and Twitter.

OTTB Showcase: Tall Glass (Show Name: "Admit Nothing"; Barn Name: "Kadin")

OTTB Showcase: Tall Glass (Show Name: "Admit Nothing"; Barn Name: "Kadin") by Jen Roytz THE DEETS: Name: Tall Glass Born: May 15, 2001 Height: 16 hands Color: Bay Sire: Canyon Creek Dam: Tensia, by Marquetry