'Rough track @ Ellis Thomas Downs killing our horses!’ – Violet ‘Letty’ Hodge
According to photographs taken by this news site’s roving camera, the surface is in dire need of ‘ploughing’, a process where a tractor pulls a piece of equipment on the surface of the track, tilling the soil and evening it out for the horses to run comfortably on.
In the absence of this process, the horses risk stumbling and hurting themselves and in some cases may have to be put down as a result of the injury.
How many more horses have to die?
Horse owner, Violet ‘Letty’ Hodge, expressed her displeasure on the situation which to her has become unbearable. She recently lost a champion horse – Really Up Town – to a leg injury.
“Government is giving us a track and we are not having the proper equipment to deal with the track. The equipment that had been given to the track is not working properly so we have to depend on Paraquita Bay [Department of Agriculture]. I don’t know how many more horses will get injured and put down because of this situation,” she said, speaking to this news site on Sunday March 29, 2015.
“Certain people telling me don’t call VINO but I said listen let me tell all you something…I gon call VINO because when I call VINO they does put what I have to say out there. It is time that the people to know what it is. Everybody believe that at the racetrack everybody making the world of money,” she said.
According to Hodge, there was an incident at the track on Saturday March 28, 2015 where a person walking a horse got hurt as the horse stumbled while walking and fell on him.
“You have so much horses coming here now…this horse racing thing getting so hot. How much more horses are people going to lose. People here are spending their money buying nice horses and they want to keep them. And you cannot spend to have a racetrack with good horses and you have no place to exercise them. They are taking a chance,” she said.
Hodge said that some persons in an attempt to find short term solutions made makeshift ‘ploughs’ an dragged them along the track to try to even it out.
“But this cannot work because you have to get down to the bottom to get those horse hooves that are already imprinted in the sand,” said Hodge. “Sometimes they would send a water truck to water the sand…how could you water a track when you’re not raking it,” said Hodge.
'It's out of my hands!' - Karen B. Smith-Aaron
When contacted for a comment, President of the Virgin Islands Horse Owners’ Association Karen B. Smith-Aaron said today March 30, 2015 that the Association is not the body responsible for the upkeep of the track.
“All the horse owners know that this is an issue that the Recreation Trust is dealing with. The tractor isn’t working,” she said. Asked whether she wanted to comment on behalf of the Association with regard to the condition of the track she declined.
Efforts up to post time to reach Chairman of the BVI Recreation Trust Roy E. Barry and Minister for Education and Culture Honourable Myron V. Walwyn proved futile.
Horse owners biting the hand that feeds them
Another source who declined to speak on record told our news room that the horse owners might be snapping at the same hand that “feeds them” and that they know that this matter is being dealt with but that a tractor is an expensive piece of equipment to acquire.
“What they have been doing is using Department of Agriculture’s tractor for which they have to pay for each time it goes on the track. It’s the same hand that is paying for this thing that you biting at the same time,” said the source.
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28 Responses to “'Rough track @ Ellis Thomas Downs killing our horses!’ – Violet ‘Letty’ Hodge”
Either gov properly finances the upkeep or community residents and other users pay for entrance and usage of the tracks.
This is why I don't want Government involved in no damn drag racing. They want Government to do ever $%^&& thing. Lobby the Government for para-mutual betting so that you can raise your own funds, otherwise close down the $%^& track! Why should this be a Government problem? Horse Owners need to form a company, demand certain things so that you can raise your own funds. Of course Government can contribute as horse racing is good for economy especially for Summer and Xmas but just to plough the track and Government still to blame? Man you all got no dam shame. Government went as far as giving cash to assist with buying horses now this.
Let those that spent "their" money on horses spend "their" money on maintaining the facilities.
Well at least he never thief any of the money unlike others so go talk that you crooks who should be in jail! The NDP treat the dead, animals and all of we like pi$$ they care nothing about us only about themselves sad sad sad. Not even a little track they can up keep. Where are Roy Barry and Myron Walwyn?? Seeing how they can get OJ in office which will never happen
This is such a backward argument. Without the horses how will there be races. The guys must spend thousands of dollars monthly feeling there horses and paying helpers? Does the government give a dime for that? You all are just a set of oppressors the NDP and Myron is a total waste of time...they have done nothing for the lil place in four yes my fingers wet and waiting for them son of ah b*t*h*s to come to my house
Hope the vip get rid of r** he just there to carry news to funny man