The need for Old Friends

The biggest benefit to come from Joe Drape's expose on the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation is that the conversation on how the Thoroughbred industry should care for its horses following their career (if they even had a career) has gone more public.

I choose those words carefully because the conversation was occurring. This is not an issue that the industry ignored. Many bright minds who have enjoyed successes on the racetrack, in breeding, and in other endeavors have devoted their time and money to Thoroughbred welfare.

What is unfortunate about the public's perception of the industry following Drape's piece is a misunderstanding by some that the TRF is an official industry organization, and that any of its failings as a separate entity are somehow the industry's failings. In addition to that not being the case, it's very unfair to all retirement organizations doing great work throughout the country.

Old Friends Equine comes to mind. Founded by Michael Blowen in 2002 in Georgetown, Kentucky, and since expanded to New York with the Cabin Creek Farm-Bobby Frankel Division, Old Friends is a wonderful story of Thoroughbred enthusiasts using their entrepreneurial spirit to do good.

A more enterprising and/or self absorbed individual than Blowen may have used Drape's story as a launching pad to bring attention to his own cause, but the key word there is individual, and Blowen is the type who will always put the horses first. I.e., the horses are his agenda.

Five weeks ago I attended Old Friends Along the Kentucky Bourbon Trail, a benefit for Old Friends. Blowen was a superstar to many people in the room, but the movie critic always demurred toward people's affections and promptly shifted the focus to helping ensure Thoroughbreds receive a dignified retirement.

When it comes to dealing with Thoroughbred retirement on a macro level, however, Old Friends is more a bellwether than a prototype. The industry needs Old Friends not because Blowen hopes to one day care for all retired Thoroughbreds (though perhaps he'd like to!) but because the good will and excitement the facility generates is infectious.

Many of the attendees of the bourbon event were not directly involved in the Thoroughbred industry but everyone I spoke with loved horses and understood the need not only for Old Friends but also organizations like Old Friends, and in addition to the contributions the organization has made to the horses themselves, one of Blowen's biggest successes is to spread the word that this industry needs help taking care of its own.

And it resonates. Several people at the Bourbon event told me that they support Old Friends financially but have been involved with retiring horses with other groups. And that is an important area of success for Old Friends: it drives action. Old Friends works so well for the industry at large not because it makes people want to support Old Friends but because it makes people want to support retired Thoroughbreds.

The TRF fallout has generated some great discussion about what more the industry can do and how to fund it, but lost in the fervor is that many individuals are doing their part. This doesn't excuse those who aren't, but I do think we can all learn something from those who are.