Dual purpose Racehorse Trainer based @ Fair Hill 🐎 1st American to train an Irish hurdle & bumper winner 🐎 7x Grade 1 winning trainer 🐎 Eclipse Award Winner
Quiet afternoon at Fair Hill after all training is done and lunch is fed… crazy to think 3 years ago I set up here paying for 20 stalls with just 8 horses, trying to find a way to survive. Today we filled up all 62 stalls, plus have the string in Florida. Grateful ⭐️
Headed home from Ireland as the first American trainer to trainer a bumper winner and a hurdle winner in Ireland 🇮🇪. Thank you to my amazing owners for making this all happen, we will be back! 🐎
We lost a really special horse this AM to a horrible bit of colic. He was just enjoying a winter vacation…it’s always the good ones 😥 RIP Dandy, thank you putting me on the map in the flat racing game. Always a star , we will miss you dearly ⭐️
Further scans show that French Light has ligament damage to his hind leg and although prognosis is good, he’s been fabulous to us and the decision has been made to retire him from racing. He will have a forever home with me and will be a lead pony at FH when he is recovered 💕
Jimmy P super pleased with himself after winning the G1 by 30+ lengths. He’s on his way home to fair hill where he will get turnout in his grass paddock tomorrow AM with his bestie, Crabs n Beer ❤️
My first Saratoga FLAT winner 💥 Fabulous job by my whole team to get this horse back from a 2 year layoff… 2nd start back out from the layoff and first time going long he’s a winner at the spa ⭐️
This game is just never easy. We lost Despite Odds to an apparent heart attack this morning 😢 Luckily, Victor is ok and it was quick. He was a lovely horse who tried super hard for us and had just won 3 weeks ago. RIP buddy 😔
In a heartfelt gesture, trainer Brendan Walsh, left with assistant Charlie Lynch delivered the winning Test (G1) flower blanket to trainer Melanie Giddings in honor of Maple Leaf Mel at her Saratoga barn. Image copyright Skip Dickstein 2023
@BloodHorse
@TimesUnion
Good news after a long day at John Hopkins… Richie does NOT need surgery on his back and will be fitted into a brace tomorrow AM. He should be released within the next couple of days 👍🏻
She’s getting very close to her 2022 debut and she is getting meaner by the day! That’s how you know she’s ready to go… when she starts acting like this she’s ready to run 😈
#TheMeanQueen
Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought I’d have the support to do something never done by an 🇺🇸 before in selecting 6 top class stores from the sale after only training on my own a year and a half.I’m so lucky to have the owners I do,hopefully this venture proves lucky🍀
Very humbled to learn I am only the 2nd trainer in 🇺🇸 jump racing history to break the million dollar earnings mark. HOFer Jack Fisher is the only other one to do it (5x!)Huge accomplishment in my 2nd year of training & couldn’t have done it without my team, owners & horses🐎
How often do you see a jockey take the time to hose off his own horse after a race? Fair enough it was the last race of the day but nonetheless Carloun appreciated you
@VCarrasco28
😬😬
That’s a wrap on our 1st summer stabled in Saratoga 👏 15 starters, 4 winners, a 2nd and a 3rd. Winning at 27% w/ 1 G1 win & 1 G1 place (both over hurdles) & 3 flat winners. A massive thank you to my whole team, owners, and horses who make it all possible ⭐️ 🐎
Proof right here that you don’t need to spend 100s of thousands of dollars from Ireland and England to get a grade 1 winner. A mediocre allowance winner on the flat, Jimmy P is now a Grade 1 winner. Thank you
@MadaketStables
&
@AFRUKUS
for the opportunity. Good boy Jimmy 🌟
Thank you everyone !!! What a day that I will never forever 🐎 I can never thank Mr. and Mrs. Naylor enough for all of their support, and I am thrilled for Dan Nevin this also being his first track winner. Here’s to hoping this is the start of a memorable week 🐎
DEMANDRIVINGDOUVAN is going to look really good in the purple/pink colors of Buttonwood Farm 🤩 Thrilled to announce this exciting new venture having purchased this special horse to race in Ireland⭐️ He will be headed to
@gelliott_racing
to train!
@_Davy_Russel_
@BaltimoreStable
It’s been great to get the horses out back after the rain has made the ground so nice…it’s so great to have this option at Fair Hill, it really helps their minds!
Absolutely over the moon for
@jenaantonucci
and her team and all connections of Arcangelo- THATS how you make a 3 year old champion!!! Thank you Jena, you’re doing more for all of us small trainers than you realize ⭐️
Thank you everyone! A double on the day at the biggest race meeting in America, unbelievable!! 4 Grade 1 wins in 2021 and definitely have an eclipse award winner. What a literal dream! Thank you to my whole team, and thank you Queen. What a day 🤯🤩
Everyone seems to enjoy the videos of the horses galloping across the top of the field! This is what the beginning of that gallop looks like before they crest the hill and go across the top! These are a few older turf horses leading a few 2 year olds ⭐️
Thank you to everyone who has been in my corner over the last few crazy weeks! It all came full circle today with the first runner in my name at Clonmel w/ a horse I sourced to Mr. & Mrs. Naylor a year ago from
@BaltimoreStable
finishing a very good 2nd. Exciting times ahead ⭐️
2 older fillies lead 3 of our newest additions to the stable (all 2 year olds) up our “across the creek hill gallop” today for their first time. It’s great to get this hill work into 2 year olds… gives them an added type of fitness, and great for their mind!!
It’s been a slow June but today that changed when I got career win
#100
at
@TheNYRA
! If you told me 3 yrs ago Johnny V would ride my 100th winner, I wouldn’t have believed it. So grateful to Three Diamonds Farm who have helped me take my flat career to the next level ⭐️
Big week ahead but big news while closing out this week… with the help of my fabulous owners, Mr. & Mrs. Moorhead, KB Racing is now a permanent part of Fair Hill. Thank you to ALL of my owners, b/c without all of you, I wouldn’t have been in a position to work @ owning a barn!
Lord Flintshire ran huge today as our last Saratoga runner. We had some hard luck between cancelled races & tough calls, & weren’t able to get our Saratoga winner this year. We finished the meet with 11 starters- 4 seconds and 2 thirds, including 3 Grade 1 placings. Onwards ⭐️
Thank you to my owners, staff, friends, and colleagues who offered unwavering support during a very stressful time for me. The facts have prevailed and I hope that my experience will help make sure this doesn’t happen to others in the future. Happy to move on…
Incredible to think I started with 8 horses in January of 2021 and all of these stalls will be filled by February 1st of 2023. I am so lucky to have a top class team, owners, and horses. Here’s to 2023 🥂
#KBRacing
Richie is being transported to John Hopkins this AM for a neuro surgeon consult to determine if T7 is stable or unstable and if it requires surgery or if a brace will do. 🙏🏻 that today is a day of better news. Thank you to my team whose keeping things going at home today.
Thank you simply isn’t enough. Rest in Peace to a true legend. I will carry on your methods to the very best of my ability, I’m so grateful for all you taught me.
Thank you everyone for all of the messages !!! I thought it was fitting to post this photo taken in Ireland in December of 2019… me tacking up an unnamed 3 yr old by Sholokov who would be named BALTIMORE BUCKO. I picked him out unraced and he’s now a grade 1 winner!
#BabyBucko
Our first horse has arrived in Saratoga and the rest will follow very soon🎉 Pretty surreal to be back at the Annex across 5th Ave where I was so many summers while working for Jonathan Sheppard. Here’s to our first official Saratoga summer 🥂Thanks for the help
@SkylarMckenna1
!
Thank you everyone! What an incredible day. My first two winners in 🇺🇸 since going out on my own with two horses I sourced to owners from the Irish ptp circuit. The Mean Queen from
@BaltimoreStable
and Galway Kid from
@mickgoff5
. What a day for
@irishp2p
in America!!
Unfortunately, Crabs never got a hold of the firm inner turf course and struggled to travel early on in the race yesterday. Fortunately, he has come out of it in good order and he will bounce back 💪🏻
Could it be deja vu all over again?! The Mean Queen’s 3 year old brother in
@BaltimoreStable
this morning 🤩🤩🤩 I’m sure we’ll be booking his plane ticket soon enough 😝
Kudos to my awesome team… tracks closed but we got all the horses galloped in the snow as the snowstorm gets rolling. Its not too fun out here, but we’re getting it done 😆😆
Lucky to have someone like
@jenaantonucci
in my corner, and racing is lucky to have her period. Always doing right by the horse even in the most difficult situations… this whole interview is class and if you don’t tear up at the end you’re not human 🥺
Memories that will last a lifetime. Thank you for all of the knowledge you shared with me and for all of the support you always gave me. My 11 years learning from you is why I am where I am today. Rest easy x
Lucky ran a massive 2nd on debut in Saratoga and was very unlucky to not be put up for the win after interference down the lane. Proud of his effort ⭐️
Wanamaker’s
@nytbreeders
Horses of Racing Age Sale grad He’s A Lucky Guy is in the paddock for the last race at Saratoga. $12,000 purchase by
@Keri145
. Good luck to the connections!
Going Country leads a mixed group of flat horses, jumpers, and 2 year olds on a few hill gallops this morning at Fair Hill. ⭐️ Even the horses need a mental health day every once in awhile 💜
How many other 3 yr old NY bred fillies are training like this this morning?! 🙃😬 Rumint LOVES training on the hills out back at Fair Hill, what a cool filly ⭐️
@BlueStreakLLC
@VCRacingStable
@NYDarkHorse
Wow, what a week! 4 runners- 3 winners and a 2nd by a nose. A huge thank you to both FL and Fair Hill teams as well as our fabulous owners and horses ⭐️ 🏆
Unfortunately The Queen has had another very minor setback that is going to keep her from defending her title at
@FarHillsRace
. The horses always come first and if there’s any question, we take no chances. Disappointing, but she’ll see you all in the spring ⭐️
Thank you all for the kind messages- I think it’s REALLY important to note the first THREE finishers in this grade 1 were bought out of
@BaltimoreStable
. What an amazing accomplishment.
Find an owner who hot walks their own horses … and never let them go! ⭐️ Paul Willis and Carloun post race today at Saratoga… it’s owners who truly appreciate their horses that make this job worth it 💕
@AFRUKUS
Cross Border back at Fair Hill and happily resting up with buddy Nigel after breaking his maiden over hurdles yesterday ⭐️ What a class horse!
@jordanwycoff
Thanks everyone for your concern… I am headed to hospital now to be w/ Richie… sounds like a fracture of T6 with more scans pending. Think good thoughts. 🙏🏻🙏🏻
Thank you everyone for all of your nice messages. Bucko was loved by everyone and it’s absolutely heart breaking to say he’s no longer with us. He went out doing what he loved doing, but it doesn’t make it any easier. Queen is an absolute super star, no other words for her ⭐️
This training gig is something else…. Just thinking as I make the close to 5 hour trek to Colonial Downs this morning for Caroline Krystyna … I’m driving 5 hours for literally 58 seconds, as she’s a 5F sprinter. Nothing we do makes sense 😂😂
My last morning at Fair Hill before heading to Ireland tonight for a much needed break but also to recruit new horses and owners. What a wild 2 years this has been and I am just so incredibly grateful to my team that keep things rolling every day all year. It takes a village ⭐️
All I can say is WOW. 4 winners on the day and winning the G2 Temple Gwathmey w/ Iranistan is just so special to me. Thank you to my amazing team, fabulous owners, and incredible horses 🤩🤩🤩🤩
2022 Jump season is over! Officially the 2nd trainer in history to break $1mill in earnings & one of the few to train 30+ winners in a season. All of this accomplished w/ 1 timber winner this spring & NO timber horses in the barn this fall. I know that’s a first, Well done team!
How lucky are we to have been allowed at the incredible Tapeta Farm this morning to work on the 6F irrigated turf course w/ our Aqueduct runners. Good gauge working w/ good flat horses. Even better to be reminded of just how special The Mean Queen is 🤩 Thank you Michael & Joan!
Pleasecallmeback under
@iradortiz
gives us our first ever
@GulfstreamPark
winner 🎉 Thank you
@UplandFlats
for the opportunity. Huge shoutout to my assistant Lilli who had him ready to roll today 💪🏻
OWNERS / TRAINERS IN IRE & UK - our summer jump races have very small fields with big purse money. 6 horse field running for $150k or $75k. If you have a horse that is speedy and wants good ground, I would encourage you to consider bringing them over. Send me a msg, I can help!
We finally got much needed rain and the horses were so happy to be able to train out back today. Just a small glimpse of what Fair Hill has to offer. We didn’t train one horse on the track today… 2 year olds to seasoned veterans all got to gallop up hills out back ⭐️
So fun having the jumpers and the turf horses back galloping 🤩 There’s a little bit of everything in this set from a just turned 3 year old filly, to a few flat horses and a few jumpers. So great for their minds, what a fabulous place to train! 🥰
Just an update on the most spoiled horse on this planet… French Light is cleared for big turnout now and will be ready to start learning pony duties in March. In the meantime, you see his life is quite hard. He’s lucky I love him 😒🤣
HeyMackItsJack gives us our first flat winner in New York!! A fabulous gate to wire ride by
@iradortiz
… thank you to the connections for the opportunity to train this speedball! We can do more than just win with jumpers 😉 After a bad weekend, our team needed this!
5 to get on a plane back to 🇺🇸 and one to grow up and learn the ropes here for a bit longer 😍 And I might not be completely done yet….the support from my owners on this shopping trip in 🇮🇪 has been incredible… 2022 is going to be exciting 🤩🤩
Thank you Patrick, for your patience and trust in all things regarding Freddy, I am so happy we could get you your first Grade 1 Winner ⭐️ Here’s to many more 🥂
Missed the flight this morning but Freddy didn’t care as he willed out his and our first Grade 1 win. 👏🏻
@Keri145
for finding the special boy for us and giving him such impressively patient training. Incredible ride by Stephen Mulqueen. Champagne is on ice. 🏆
8 years ago I lost the strongest woman I’ve ever known to a long 9 year battle w/ cancer ❤️ Not a day goes by I don’t miss you, Mom. Wish you were here for everything going on in my life… Eagles signed Saquon Barkley so we are trying for another superbowl down here 🦅
I stopped dead in my tracks after seeing how much The Mean Queen’s brother has grown up, he is a spitting image of his sister now 🥹 Excited to spend the next few days watching him train… it’s the dream that keeps us going! 🌟
Jockey Flavien Prat earns his 34th win of the Saratoga meet aboard 6-year-old
#1
Lord Flintshire in the 1-3/8 mile turf journey for trainer
@Keri145
in today's 3rd race.
How many other racehorses were crossing streams this morning?! And no, these aren’t jumpers! Western Lane leads the group back home after a long gallop 2x up “the hill across the creek” 😉
Absolutely over the moon with French Light’s performance today. 25/1 he came out in a listed race today against very good horses to be beaten 2 lengths. Perfect ride by
@sirgerry29
... Thank you to The Naylors for backing us and this venture...hopefully the win is coming!!!
🇺🇸US jumping fans -
@Keri145
trained FRENCH LIGHT runs a cracking race in the Listed Novice Hurdle at Punchestown.
Jumped beautifully & finishes a close 2nd behind the hot fav. Better ground in the Spring & he’ll be very exciting.
@TVG
@RacingTVi
🤩
St James the Great feeling GOOD ahead of another stakes try on Saturday at Delaware Park 🕺🏼 It’s fabulous that every horse here gets to get turned out before they train daily, it’s so great for their minds ⭐️
For those of you who know me know that this is not an accurate depiction of my operation. I have retained a lawyer & we will fight to the end to clear my name. She came back w/a lvl under 200 PICOgrams-clear contamination. I’m hopeful facts/ common sense will prevail 🙏🏻