Colonial Downs '04 By Amber Carlisle

Last summer I was privileged to be one of five members to participate in the Kids to the Cup internship program sponsored by the Virginia Horsemanís Benevolent and Protective Association (VaHBPA) at Colonial Downs. The program is designed to give young people who are interested in horse racing an opportunity for hands-on experience at a racetrack.

Each KTTC member stayed at Colonial between two and six weeks. Even though we had the times of our lives, it was no summer vacation. Each intern worked on the backside and just like the horsemen with ten, twenty, or thirty years of experience there.

From the moment we stepped into the barn, we were no longer horse racing obsessed teenagers. We were hired help. We would wake up at 5:00 a.m. in order to be at the barn by 6:00 a.m., when the track opened for works. Before the first sets went out, we would clean and fill water buckets and empty out feed tubs. As soon as the horses came back from the track, exercise riders would hand them over to us, the trusty hotwalkers, to hold during the horsesí baths, and to walk around the barn until they were cooled out and dry. Then the next set would go out and the process would be repeated until each horse had been out of its stall. After all the horses were back in their stalls, there would still be work to do around the barn, such as feeding, rolling bandages, and raking the shedrow. Sometimes we wouldnít be done at the barn until 11:00 or 11:30 A.M.

But the day was far from being over. Weíd head over to our KTTC office in the HBPA trailer for a daily meeting and discuss the work that needed to be done for the HBPA. During the time before first post, two interns would deliver lunches to locations throughout the backside. The lunches were free and available to all workers. Other interns would copy results from Equibase and record the winners of the Best Turned Out Awards from the day before. As each field would leave the paddock, $20 would be awarded to the groom who had the best looking horse.

On Fridays, all of us would go around the backside and pick out the Best Kept Barns, large and small. Hats and a cash reward would be awarded to the trainers. At the end of the meet, grand prizes were given to the groom who had the received the most Best Turned Out Awards and to the overall Best Kept Barns. Still other interns would head up to the Racing Secretaryís office to pick up overnights and programs to update HBPA records.

If we were lucky, weíd be able to sneak in a little nap before it was time to go back to the barns for the races. If an internís trainer had horses racing that day, the intern would walk up to the race and back with the horse, then cool it out. If somebody didnít have a horse in, he or she would help with feeding. When done at the barns, we would finish up any benevolent work we hadnít done, and over to the front side to watch races or go home.

On dark days, when there was no racing, the HBPA sponsored educational programs for all the backside workers. The Groom Elite Program is one of those programs. Classes taught basic horsemanship, from how to groom a horse, to secrets on how to make a horse look its best, to understanding why horses spooked. In the coming years, the classes will get more advanced. Progressive Horseman Dave Seay also came on dark days. Trainers and owners brought their problem horses to him, and with the help of his own horses, Dave would develop the problem horseís trust and get his attention. He would then proceed to teach the horse to not want or need to bite, kick, rear up, or do any other unwanted behaviors. Dave also taught horsemen some lessons about a horseís psyche and what they like and donít like.

On Sundays, Colonial Downs would have Family Days and we would have a Kids to the Cup booth. We had contests with prizes and recruited new KTTC members.

Once at home, weíd hit the showers, eat dinner, and go to bed. Working a 6 A.M. to 9 P.M. day, is rugged on growing teenagers. But we loved it. Sure, we complained about being too tired to eat and too hungry to sleep, but we lived for the horses. We got up before the crack of dawn for the love of horses and the horse racing industry.

I encourage all young people to join Kids to the Cup by going to kidstothecup.com, and for horse lovers and hard workers at least 14 years old to get active and be an intern at Colonial Downs. It is the experience of a lifetime, and everybody who participates in this unique program gains valuable experience in the horse racing industry, and in the real world.