3 minute read
Who Trains that Horse? Saddle Towel Guide
from Equicurean 2022
WHO TRAINS THAT HORSE?
WRITTEN BY BARRY POTOKER | PHOTO BY SUPERSOURCEMEDIA.COM |THOROFAN IMAGES PROVIDED
The setting is a crisp, misty and sometimes foggy early summer morning at Saratoga Race Course.
As the sun begins to burn through the haze on a beautiful summer dawn at this historic track, the infield trees are very still with only a hint of a breeze while the geese in the pond behind the tote boards are beginning to stir. The morning dew certainly smells sweet but there is a pungent aroma from the steaming hay filling the air. Things become clearer as first light pours down on these storied grounds, and yet the stables and the backstretch have been alive for hours. What a feeling to be part of the awakening of the track in the am! Both the Oklahoma training track and the Main flat oval in the morning are much like being backstage before a Broadway play. It's simply exhilarating knowing that later that day, the place will be bustling with fans ready for the main event.
Around you are trainers, jockeys, agents, clockers, exercise riders, grooms, hot-walkers and owners. It’s an up-close and personal festival of the Sport of Kings. The majestic star performers are not only working out and training, but are meticulously being attended to – bathed, groomed, schooled at the starting gate and, of course, fed breakfast. There is an abundance of activity, yet it is a calm, pristine and organized scene.
So, if you’re heading “to the barns” or backstretch or the grandstand for the morning experience of workouts, don’t go without picking up one of these….
Now in its 14th year of publication, ThoroFan’s 2022 Saddle Cloth Guide is your companion to the morning workouts. It’s the essential guide to identify “Who Trains that Horse” quickly and easily from their saddle cloth. This 60-page “program” is broken down TWO ways - by saddle cloth color and alphabetically by trainer name. There are also feature stories and interesting facts about trainers, horses, and happenings in and around the hallowed grand old oval.
ThoroFan is a non-profit organization dedicated to the philosophy that "An educated Fan is a better Fan" and this simple yet useful guide to the Saratoga workouts is a winner. Its original idea came from the late trainer Rick Violette, and is now curated by local, Bob Giordano. The vision was to help new, casual and seasoned fans learn more about the sport of thoroughbred horse racing. This handy pocket guide is now also used by clockers, owners, photographers, and even handicappers to spot specific horses.
The FREE 2022 edition will be available opening day (July 14th) and can be found at many locations. These include The Whitney Stand at the Oklahoma training track, the horsemen's Morning Line Coffee Stand in the backstretch barn area, the Saratoga Visitor's Center, the Chamber of Commerce booth on Broadway, several Saratoga businesses - and for the first time at the breakfast on The Porch. It will also be available to view online at ThoroFan.com.
Misty morning workouts at Saratoga are amazing, mesmerizing, and so much more enjoyable nowadays with the official ThoroFan Saddle Cloth guide at your fingertips… along with an egg sandwich and a piping hot cup of coffee!
