Lesmore Smith keeping an 'open mind' as underdog
Mr Smith explained that races were in the final stages of preparation with raking and cleaning being done on the track and in the grandstands. “Everything is moving along smoothly so far,” he assured.
The owner of Good Prospecting, a key participant in the feature race on December 26, 2012, was quite calm and assured even though he admitted he was going into the race as “the underdog”.
“I ran the Triple Crown… I came back and won the Governor’s Cup when they said I shouldn’t even be there,” he revealed.
There would be no difference in preparations this time around the owner related. “I keep the same mentality every day for horse racing,” he said while explaining that ultimately, in horse racing, horses were meant to beat each other.
Smith also noted that different circumstances can affect a horse’s performance in a race as well, “It could be a bad break, it could be a bad ride, anything could cause you to lose the race... cause you to win the race.”
“At the end of the day,” said Mr Smith, “I’m just being optimistic about [everything]… going out there, I’m hoping for the best for all of us, I hope that the horses are in good health and good condition… may the best man win.”
The horse owner also noted the fact that owners had to be alert with their horses and constantly monitoring their conditions, “you never know, because with the horses and the horse racing industry… you can leave [the horses] now and come back this afternoon, and observe that there is some problem.”
“They can’t speak to you,” he continued, “you can leave them in good spirits, go up the road, come back for regular afternoon training and then you observe something that is not in place, or you come tomorrow, ready for the race and something else is not in place…”
“I’m just staying focused… I keep an open mind, my team and I are working, doing our best to be there and be ready for the races, we are trying our best to be.”
The outgoing President of the horse owners Association also noted that weather was not much of a factor in tomorrow’s races as different horses might thrive on different tracks depending on their preference.
He further noted there was no animosity or tension between the horse owners being exhibited before the feature race, “It’s not about being personal about it, it’s about going out there and having fun… some of the fans are the ones you might find getting personal and having attitudes… we are among each other every day…”
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karen smith is the president and he is the vice president