Our Voices: Social Media Critics Don't Know Whole Story

I got involved with Thoroughbred racing back in the 1980s when I was just a young guy. Over the past 40 years I've seen so many changes in the sport I've come to love.

One thing we didn't have to deal with when I first got started as an owner was the pressure and ridicule we receive from those who choose to berate us on social media. Yes, there have always been animal rights activists who have been critical of our sport. But the open forum we have today to just rip apart those of us trying to succeed in this majestic sport is something I never would have imagined.

Personally, I am not one that avails himself of any social media. I still have an AOL email address and carry around a flip phone. Despite being the dinosaur my kids label me, I do hear from my partners and friends in the sport on a regular basis how this trainer or owner was being ripped to shreds by mean-spirited and often uninformed critics on social media.

As one who has always tried to do things the right way in the sport, I never really cared what critics had to say. I've always tried to put my horses first and listen to my trainers when it came to what was best for my horses. I believe we're supposed to go the extra mile for these incredible equine athletes.

Trying to do the right thing all of these years does not make one immune from criticism. Most recently, I was informed that there were critics out there questioning why me, my partners, and Bill Mott were still sending Channel Maker to the races. We were portrayed in the most negative light as a group of guys that seemed not to care about the well-being of our Eclipse Award-winning star. Nothing could be further from the truth. We all care deeply about Channel Maker.

Sign up for BloodHorse Daily

On July 30 I was blessed to be the partner in attendance to watch our 9-year-old champion strut his stuff again. Remarkably, Channel Maker won yet another graded stakes when he was victorious in the Bowling Green Stakes (G2T) for the second time in his career—his first win in the race came in 2018.

The thing the social media critics did not know was that as a group we had regular discussions about Channel Maker's career. It really boiled down to one thing that Bill Mott eloquently pointed out to reporters after the race. Channel Maker was the happiest horse in the barn. He loves to train. He loves to race. And, you couldn't ask for a horse to look any healthier.

This dappled out 9-year-old looks as good as he did five years ago. When asked after the race when we would retire him, I said that we would retire him when Bill Mott says it's time to do so. My partners, Gary Barber, Dean Reeves, and Randy Hill, are all aware of how special a horse we own. We have all dedicated so much of ourselves to the sport. The last thing we would do is send our champ over to the starting gate if it wasn't the right thing to do. Certainly, our Hall of Fame trainer wouldn't allow it.

To you haters who just want to criticize decisions made by owners and trainers in the sport, just know that most of us care very deeply about our horses and try to honor them every day. Perhaps you should not jump to conclusions and condemn those of us trying to do the right thing when you do not have all of the facts.

Sadly, no matter how much we care for our horses and no matter how much we try to do the right thing sometimes things just go really wrong. I think I speak for all of us who are involved in Thoroughbred racing when I send my deepest sympathy to the connections of Maple Leaf Mel. To owner Bill Parcells, trainer Melanie Giddings, and everyone connected to this phenomenal filly, we are all thinking about you and the very sad loss you sustained.

Thoroughbred owner Adam Wachtel races as Wachtel Stable.