Tom Noonan

There’s a popular racetrack aphorism: “If you didn’t have bad luck, you wouldn’t have any luck at all.” That could describe the state of the sport in recent months, particularly among casual or non-fans. At Derby time, a spate of deaths at Churchill Downs, including on Derby day itself, sparked yet another of the existential crises racing too often confronts. Saturday at Saratoga – again, one of the sport’s preeminent sites – an absolutely devastating fatal breakdown occurred in the final yards of The Test Stakes, a Grade 1 event for three-year old fillies.

The day was all set for the feel-good story of racing for the past two years: Cody’s Wish, named after a young man with a serious illness, was going for his seventh straight win in one of the track’s premier events, the Grade 1 Whitney Stakes. Namesake Cody Dorman and his family were there.

Another feel-good story would be developed in an earlier event, The Test. The trainer, Melanie Giddings, is a cancer survivor with a small stable in her first year of training one her own. She brought Maple Leaf Mel, her undefeated New York-bred to face some of the big fillies in the country, including the winner of the Kentucky Oaks. They were the subject of a feature segment on the Fox broadcast. Literally seconds away from what would be the first Grade 1 win for either, the filly broke down. (Cody’s Wish was later defeated.)

Even though I no longer live there, I subscribe to my former home-town paper, The Boston Globe. They cover horse racing that is not reporting the result of a Triple Crown race as often as The Daily Racing Form covers the debt limit. So, on Sunday I was interested in seeing if they had anything to say. It was an AP report with the headline opening with “Horse dies ….” No mention of the Whitney.

I anticipate this will spur another round of commentary from the mainstream media about fatalities in horse racing. It was the second fatality in a stakes race at Saratoga in three days. There was yet another the following day, the fourth in 14 days. There have also been three during training since the meet began. While I think a common thread in these articles – if the past is any guide – will be a lack of knowledge about racing and what is being done to improve it.

The knee-jerk response by many in the racing community will be to blame “the media” as is so often the case in other spheres where unpleasant (and undisputed) facts are presented. Nonetheless, we all need to confront what is an unfortunate and inevitable reality. Questions of safety have also become an increasing subject of friends and colleagues. It is not easy – indeed it is becoming increasingly difficult – but there are answers, if only hopeful ones.

There are significant events that are positive, including the implementation of a uniform and national program of Anti-Doping and Medication Control (ADMC). As with all things in racing, of course, there are the naysayers who want to end this positive development. (That may not make racing unique since that is a characteristic, seemingly, of most events in our country these days.)

The ADMC Program was implemented over two months ago under the auspices of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA) established by the U.S. Congress in 2020. While it was delayed because of litigation, the enforcement arm, the Horseracing Integrity & Welfare Unit (HIWU), has hit the ground running. (Sorry for all the initials, but they are ones we will get used to.)

As with any initiative that attempts to impose national standards on an industry that has been correctly characterized as fractious and inconsistent in its oversight, there have been hiccups in the HISA implementation. The CEO, Liza Lazarus, and her leadership team have demonstrated their willingness to listen to complaints and make corrections to their rules. They have been readily available in all forums to the extent that Lazarus may be the only racing figure now more prevalent than Bob Baffert.

The complainants, primarily the National Horsemen Benevolent and Protective Association and their state affiliates, have raised a laundry list of issues regarding HISA. I do not think they rise to a level of serious concern. One need only listen to the objection of the NHBPA’s General Counsel, Peter Ecabert, to appreciate the fatuousness of their complaints. One of his major issues is that the medication control rules were implemented “nearly a year late.” He does not say the reason for that was the injunction obtained by his client, the NHBPA (later overturned on appeal).

But the other response to those raising questions is the horse and those who care for them. It is one thing to appreciate a Cody’s Wish on the racetrack, but seeing his interaction with his namesake human makes one appreciate the intelligence, sensitivity and nobility of the thoroughbred.

The love of most of those responsible for the care of the racehorse, whether it be the stable hand, groom, trainer or owner makes one realize how important the animal’s welfare is.

I did not go to the track this past Saturday and instead followed the races on Fox. While I tend to focus on my wagering, I did see the feature on Melanie Giddings and Maple Leaf Mel. I have not been able to describe the last scene of that to my wife, who was at the track, because I could not get through it without crying.

Maple Leaf Mel was lying down in her stall and Melanie went in and lay down beside her. When Mel raised her head, Melanie brought it into her lap and the two of them lay together like that.