Kind of a Big Dill (formerly known as Vineyard Harbour) has had a rough start to his career in barrel racing. On his first turn out, Big Dill got a bit over excited and ended up getting tangled up in the fencing. Luckily, the cut was superficial but he did end up needing a handful of stitches in his back fetlock. He has had half of the stitches removed already and is now doing stretches in his stall to prevent him from getting stiff before his big debut back to training. Despite the minor injury, he is still as goofy…

1.What does the Retired Racehorse Project do? At its core, the mission of the Retired Racehorse Project (RRP) is to increase the value and demand for Thoroughbreds after racing as riding and show horses. We do this through a number of ways, including putting on the annual Thoroughbred Makeover and National Symposium (the largest and most lucrative retraining competition for recently retired racehorses in the world), publishing Off-Track Thoroughbred Magazine (a quarterly magazine on-par with MidAtlantic Thoroughbred or Blood-Horse, but focused on all topics related to Thoroughbreds outside of (and often including) racing); putting on demonstrations, clinics and seminars around…

1. Where are you based out of? Our main farm is located in Chesapeake City, MD - there we do some rehab, most of the retraining and adoptions from this location. We have satellite farms in Thurmont MD (rehab), Westminster MD (retraining) and Salley SC (retraining). 2. How long has your group been active? Ginny Suarez and I started in September 2002 with 3 horses on a rented 3-acre field with a shed. We built our program gradually from there. Today we have a permanent home on 158 acres along the Sassafras River, just south of Chesapeake City MD. The…

Wasabi Ventures Stables recently had an interview with Beyond The Wire, an industry-wide initiative between the Maryland Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association, the Maryland Jockey Club, the Maryland Horse Breeders Association and Maryland jockeys, that is designed to facilitate safe and enriching placements for retired Maryland based racehorses. 1.What are some factors that can contribute to a horse retiring? Horses retire for a number of reasons. Some are just too slow to be competitive, some sustain injuries and still others have raced for years and the owner and trainer make a decision to let the horse go on to new, enriching activities.…