Louisville Networking Trip Recap
By Caleb Keller
On Friday November 19th, the IUSMA took a trip to the Bluegrass State to visit Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The day started off at the Kentucky Derby Museum. Our group got a tour of the front side of Churchill Downs. We got to see the paddock, winner’s circle, and a retired Derby horse, Perfect Drift. The tour guide gave us a history of the Kentucky Derby throughout including interesting facts on past winners like Affirmed and Sir Barton. The Derby Museum also included a unique 360-degree high definition film about the Run for the Roses. There were also two full floors of exhibits and activities. Members had the chance to test their skills on a simulated horse and even call a race. There was even a whole room devoted to the new movie Secretariat.
Our next stop was an exclusive tour of the backside of Churchill Downs where all of the racehorses reside. Steven Shaffer and Jason Barkley, two students at the University of Louisville Equine program who also work in the barn area, gave the IUSMA members an up close look at the daily operations that go on in the barn area at Churchill Downs. The group saw the barns of legendary trainers such as D. Wayne Lukas, Nick Zito, and Carl Nafzger.
The next stop was the Churchill Downs press box where the group learned the basics of how to read a horse racing form. John Asher, the VP of Communications at Churchill Downs explained the daily responsibilities of the communications department and talked about recent trends in the horse racing industry. John was a great storyteller and just like all race-track-goers, he had plenty of amazing stories to tell about lucky days at the track.
After John spoke the group got to have a question and answer session with horse racing radio show host EJ Clark. EJ is the host of Kentucky’s longest running horse racing radio show, The Kentucky Winner’s Circle. He gave us a history of the show including some stories from his favorite interviews. He talked about problems facing the radio industry as well as the trend of online streaming. EJ went around the room to ask the IUSMA members what careers they wanted to pursue and gave some advice along the way.
After an amazing look at the horse racing industry packed into one afternoon, it was time to relax and enjoy a night of racing at the most famous racetrack in the world. For almost all of the members, it was their first time at Churchill Downs and for a few members it was their first time at any racetrack. The IUSMA was privileged to see almost every single facet of horse racing in one day and members even cashed a few winning tickets.
Our next stop was an exclusive tour of the backside of Churchill Downs where all of the racehorses reside. Steven Shaffer and Jason Barkley, two students at the University of Louisville Equine program who also work in the barn area, gave the IUSMA members an up close look at the daily operations that go on in the barn area at Churchill Downs. The group saw the barns of legendary trainers such as D. Wayne Lukas, Nick Zito, and Carl Nafzger.
The next stop was the Churchill Downs press box where the group learned the basics of how to read a horse racing form. John Asher, the VP of Communications at Churchill Downs explained the daily responsibilities of the communications department and talked about recent trends in the horse racing industry. John was a great storyteller and just like all race-track-goers, he had plenty of amazing stories to tell about lucky days at the track.
After John spoke the group got to have a question and answer session with horse racing radio show host EJ Clark. EJ is the host of Kentucky’s longest running horse racing radio show, The Kentucky Winner’s Circle. He gave us a history of the show including some stories from his favorite interviews. He talked about problems facing the radio industry as well as the trend of online streaming. EJ went around the room to ask the IUSMA members what careers they wanted to pursue and gave some advice along the way.
After an amazing look at the horse racing industry packed into one afternoon, it was time to relax and enjoy a night of racing at the most famous racetrack in the world. For almost all of the members, it was their first time at Churchill Downs and for a few members it was their first time at any racetrack. The IUSMA was privileged to see almost every single facet of horse racing in one day and members even cashed a few winning tickets.
