Aiken Training Track - a center of excellence for training racehorses | Trainer Magazine | European Trainer Article Index

Feb 5

Feb 5 Aiken Training Track - a center of excellence for training racehorses

T’S nestled quietly in the beauty and charm of the Deep South, and for nearly seven decades, some of Thoroughbred racing’s most successful horses have trained over the hallowed ground of the Aiken Training Track. A total of 39 champions have been conditioned over the facility’s surface adding to the mystique of the track in the small southern city as the training facility continues to make a resounding statement in one of the industry’s most idyllic settings: Aiken, South Carolina’s historic horse district. But it’s not just the track’s rich history that has caught people’s attention, it’s the consistently high level of quality horses that are broken and trained at the Aiken Training Track, and their ability to compete against the nation’s best and on the world’s biggest stages. The 2009 Breeders’ Cup featured five entries who had trained over the facility’s surface: Spring Hill Farm’s Nite Light and Quality Road; Dogwood Stable’s Aikenite; Godolphin’s Midshipman; and Robert and Janice McNair’s Cowboy Cal. The Aiken Training Track was established in 1941 by father-and-son horsemen Fred and William Post. The facility features a one-mile track with a red clay base and sandy loam cushion, and a 5/8-mile sand track. Those who train there have access to a turf course, and are within hacking distance of Aiken’s renowned Hitchcock Woods, a 2,100-acre urban forest. The city’s horse district offers ample dirt roads to provide trainers with a variety of ways to condition and keep horses fit. The Aiken Training Track also features a six-stall United Puett starting gate and published works. Such historic owners as Greentree, Rokeby, Charles Engelhard’s Cragwoood, Brookmeade, Phipps, Claiborne, Buckland, Bwamazon, Bostwick, du Pont, William Haggin Perry, Firestone, and Vanderbilt; and trainers MacKenzie “Mack” Miller, Woody Stephens, James Maloney, G.H. “Pete” Bostwick, William Burch, John Gaver, Buddy Raines, Mike Freeman, and Al Darlington, have been associated with Aiken. The list of champions, Classic winners and stakes performers is a virtual Who’s Who, including Devil Diver, Gallorette, Conniver, Capot, Tom Fool, Kelso, Hawaii, Gamely, Shuvee, Stage Door Johnny, Halo, Relaxing, Smart Angle, Heavenly Cause, Pleasant Colony, Conquistador Cielo, Swale, Java Gold, Forty Niner, Pleasant Tap, Pleasant Stage, and Sea Hero. Legacy Stable’s Ron Stevens, who is the track’s president, has been based at the Aiken Training Track since 1986, and has had a great deal of success for owners such as Dogwood and Spring Hill. A star-studded roster has gone through his program, among them 1990 Preakness winner Summer Squall; 1996 champion two-year-old filly and Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies winner Storm Song; millionaires Summer Colony, Limehouse and Gygistar, and Grade 1 winners Christmas Kid, Cotton Blossom and Quality Road. “I think there are a number of reasons why there’s been so much success with the horses who’ve trained in Aiken,” said Stevens. “People have said it’s everything from the water to the grass. The racetrack is in wonderful condition and everybody is singing its praises. I think we have enough of a season here and that’s healthy for the horses. I think the surface of the racetrack has proven itself over the years that it’s a good racetrack. It’s local cushion here. The horses thrive on it and they stay sound. I think the racetrack surface has a lot to do with it, that and the climate.” And although some of the sport’s major families no longer have barns at the facility, many important owners still send their horses to trainers to be broken by trainers based at the Aiken Training Track, said Stevens. The track has nearly 300 horses in training – the most in a long time – for the 2009-2010 season, said Stevens. A new barn that was built in 2006 is completely full. “I think the number of two-year-old winners that have come off of the training track is the best number we’ve had in years,” said Stevens, who produced 23 juvenile winners in 2009. “The horses are running from here; people seem to recognize that and want to come here. I’ve had to turn people away from the lack of stalls.” Godolphin’s Midshipman, 2008 champion two-year-old and winner of the Del Mar Futurity and Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, became the 39th champion from the Aiken Training Track. The colt was broken and trained by Tim Jones, who had previously worked for Robert and Janice McNair’s Stonerside Stable and is now training for Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum’s Darley Stable. Among others the horses to receive early training from Jones in Aiken are multiple Grade 1 winner Congaree, who earned more than $3 million; Grade 1 winner Bob and John; multiple Grade 1 winner Country Star; and multiple graded stakes winner and millionaire Cowboy Cal. “I’ve been very fortunate to have worked with and to continue to be able to work with quality horses,” said Jones. “There are a number of variables of why the Aiken Training Track is a great place to train a horse: the surface of the training track, the weather and the environment.” “The surface of the racetrack has proven itself over the years that it’s a good racetrack. It’s local cushion here. The horses thrive on it and they stay sound. I think the racetrack surface has a lot to do with it, that and the climate” Ron Stevens South Carolina’s climate is conducive to training Thoroughbreds as the area does experience cooler temperatures, but misses very few days of training. Horses that are conditioned in the Palmetto State seem to acclimate better when returning to the racetracks in the northeast and the Midwest because of having been exposed to the cooler temperatures, said Jones. “There are successful horses that come from different training centers from all over the country,” said Jones. “I feel very fortunate to be here in Aiken. It’s a horseoriented community. People cater to the horsemen.” Mike Keogh, who spends spring, summer and fall at Woodbine, winters at the Aiken Training Track. The former assistant to Canadian Hall of Fame trainer Roger Attfield has trained a number of major stakes winners, many of those for Gustav Schickedanz, including 2003 Canadian Triple Crown winner and Horse of the Year Wando; champion Woodcarver, who won the Queen’s Plate; Canadian champion sprinters Langfuhr and Glanmire; millionaire Mobil; and multiple graded stakes winner Last Answer. “It’s nice and peaceful. It’s great for the yearlings,” said Keogh. “They get exposure to other horses but not too much exposure. Some racetracks are really busy, but this is not. I really like it for the yearlings. The turnout facilities enable me to keep the babies out all day, and bring them in at feed time. The track itself is wonderful.” ONE of Thoroughbred’s most recognizable owners has had its youngsters based in Aiken for nearly a quarter of a century. Dogwood Stable’s president Cot Campbell, the pioneer in Thoroughbred racing partnerships, made the move from Georgia to Aiken in 1986. “When I decided to sell the farm in Georgia, I was looking for a place for the horses to train,” said Campbell. “Mack Miller was a good friend of mine, as were Mike Freeman and Frank Wright, and I came over here [Aiken] first. They were helpful in bringing us here, and they were anxious to have us, and thought we’d fit in well. They paved the way and made some facilities available for us. So, we came, and it was the logical thing to do. I loved the tradition of Aiken and the good horses that have come out of here. It was just the place you would want to be.” Campbell is like so many other horsemen who have lauded Aiken for its vast number of variables that have made it a preferred destination to train horses and prepare them for their upcoming campaign. “I think it’s a combination of factors and I can’t say it’s any better than the surface you have in Camden or that of a training facility in Ocala would have,” said Campbell. “The weather is good, and it’s in a great geographical location. It’s situated on the mainline between Kentucky and Florida and New Orleans and New York. It’s a concentration of high-class facilities and people, good veterinarians, blacksmiths and grooms. There are so many different factors coupled with the ambiance of the city and its appreciation for the horse. That’s what makes Aiken a great place to come to.” The Aiken Trials have been a fixture at the facility since 1942, and are the first leg of what has come to be known as the Aiken Triple Crown. The event held each March attracts between 5,000 and 10,000 people, and serves as a great way to give young horses additional exposure before they go on to the races, and to tighten older horses as they prepare for their return to competition. It was one of the sport’s greatest athletes, Bohemia Stable’s five-time Horse-of-theYear Kelso, who served as an inspiration to Campbell. “I had always known Aiken, and when I was in Atlanta, I had associated it with the greatest tradition of racing,” said Campbell. “I came to Aiken in 1963 or 1964 to see what I’m sure was the greatest horse who ever lived, Kelso. I came to see him work a half-mile. The son-of-a-gun clipped 47 seconds, just going around the track galloping. I’ll never forget that. It happened during the Aiken Trials.” Suzy Haslup has conditioned her horses at the Aiken Training Track since 1993 after first looking at several other locations. “When I came to Aiken, there was no comparison as far as facilities and the ease of making a move to some place for the first time,” said Haslup. “Ron Stevens made it very easy for that to happen.` “I understand Woody Stephens said, ‘If you bring a bad footed horse into Aiken, you’ll come out with a good footed horse.’ That’s true. It’s a great place to train, and there’s a relaxing atmosphere. The town is very horse-friendly, it’s easy to find housing, the help likes it here, and overall it’s just a great place to be,” Haslup concluded. ■ RACING “I

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