The February 2018 edition of the Horsemen's Newsletter is now online and available for download. To view this edition click here
The Horsemen's Newsletter is published monthly by the Maryland Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association and is mailed to licensed owners and trainers in the state of Maryland.
The Maryland racing and breeding community will celebrate the state's champions at the first Renaissance Awards dinner Feb. 12.
Awards will recognize excellence in 2017: Maryland-bred champions by division, Maryland-bred Horse of the Year, Maryland Owner of the Year, Maryland Trainer of the Year, Maryland Jockey of the Year, and the MTHA Grooms of the Year.
The event will be held at the Sagamore Pendry Baltimore, which is located at 1715 Thames Street, from 6:30-10:30 p.m.
Tickets are $150, which includes valet parking. Tickets can be purchase online at http://bit.ly/2AKPXFA. Those that prefer a vegetarian dinner option should email Jordyn Egan at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Please note that tickets won't be mailed; your name will be at the door. A portion of the proceeds will benefit Beyond The Wire, Maryland's aftercare program; the Maryland Horse Industry Foundation; and horse industry scholarships.
The Maryland Jockey Club Jan. 23 announced that a second test on a horse for equine herpesvirus-1 tested negative, so the quarantine of Barn 20 has ended.
The horse, English Tudor is trained by Tony Aguirre. He tested positive for the virus Jan. 19, and soon after the barn at Laurel Park was quarantined. Given the new development, horses in Barn 20 are now free to leave the barn and train.
In a related matter, the self-imposed EHV-1 quarantine at the University of Pennsylvania New Bolton Center also has been lifted. English Tudor was among the horses that had visited New Bolton for surgery; all owners of horses that visited the facility after a horse there tested positive were urged to have their horses tested.
Barn 20 at Laurel Park was placed under quarantine by the Maryland Department of Agriculture Jan. 19 after a horse tested positive for equine herpesvirus-1.
The horse, English Tudor, was removed from the grounds, according to Maryland Jockey Club President Sal Sinatra, and biosecurity measures have been put in place.
English Tudor—trained by Anthony Aguirre, who recently got him from King Leatherbury—was tested because of a recent visit to the University of Pennsylvania New Bolton Center, where he was gelded. The test was precautionary because New Bolton recently ordered a quarantine of its facility after a horse there tested positive for EHV-1.
Horsemen in Maryland and beyond remember Edmond “Eddie” Gaudet not only for his horsemanship, but for his love of family and friends and for his sense of humor.
Gaudet, who had Alzheimer’s disease, died Jan. 4 at his home in Upper Marlboro, Md. He was 87. He is survived by his wife, Linda, who took over the stable several years ago; and daughters Lacey, now the trainer of record, and Gabrielle, a racing analyst and reporter in New York and Florida who began her on-air career in Maryland.
“Do you want the PG version?” Laurel Park-based trainer Ferris Allen said with a laugh. “Eddie was certainly among the most colorful members of the backside—always. He was sometimes irreverent but with a humorous bent on everything, and erroneously thought he was a poet.”
Arturo Pinones considers himself very fortunate to have been the primary groom for Ravalo, a winner of 18 races and more than $1.34 million in his career. And people associated with the Laurel Park-based Donald Barr stable feel fortunate to have had Pinones on the team for more than two decades.
Pinones, selected as the Groom of the Year at Laurel Park for 2017, came to the United States from Mexico in 1984 and spent 12 years in California. He moved to Maryland and has worked for Barr for 22 years.
Pinones became the go-to guy for Barr when the trainer was vacation, and often traveled with horses that raced out of town. One of Barr’s clients said Pinones is invaluable not only for his work ethic but his love of family.
