Cross Breeds

trying to find pictures of ex-racehorses...?

hey there! I have a few OTTB's I'd LOVE to find racing pictures of. any help of what websites I may find pictures of them on or anything that could be of help w/ finding older pictures of them would be great. here is some of the info for the first horse... "blast master". bay horse. foaled march 13 1991 in flordia. 27 starts. 2 wins. sold for 4k as a 2yo. raced from '93-'95. did race at church hill downs. out of Prospectors Halo and Polar Night. his jockey was James S Bruin. and his breeder was Carol J. Mobley. any info of where I can find pics would be great. something like the JC website where I can type in a name or tattoo register ID and get pictures would be FANTASTIC! Thanks so much!

Public Comments

1. I found (equibase.com) that his two wins, were at Birmingham. I was thinking copies of the winner circle pictures. (There is not a file of pictures for racehorses, corresponding to registration, unfortunately.) Birmingham is no longer in business. Perhaps you can find the name of the track photographer in '95(google). Then track that person down, and see if they have the winner photo's on those days Blast Master won. Good Luck.
2. I'm sorry, but there is no website where you can just get pictures of an ex-racehorse, expecially one that's now 10 years old. But with a little bit of leg-work and some letter-writing, I think you have a good shot at getting pictures. For starters, your horse is stakes-placed. He finished second to Shalimar's Book in the Master Fairmount Stakes for 2-year-olds at Fairmount Park in on 09/21/93. This is their website: http://www.fairmountpark.com/ . Since the race was a stakes race, it's likely that there were publicity pictures taken of the finish. You want to direct your inquiries to the Racing Office. This is their information: Racing Office: Bobby Pace, Racing Secretary Phone: (618) 345-4300 ext. 150 Fax: (618) 345-2174 Let them know that you're looking for pictures of your horse, and that he finished second in the 1993 Master Fairmount Stakes on 09/21/93. If I were you I'd call them. Make sure that you get the names of everyone you speak with, and let them know that you now own the horse and would love to know more about him. (FWIW, a lot of racetracks are very concerned now with letting people know that there is a "second life" for racehorses after the track, and that if they would like to get information and pictures from YOU for a story, you'll be happy to provide them.) You said that your horse was sold as a 2-year-old in training. Do you know which sale? If you know which sale, you can contact the sales company. Virtually every sales company videos the horses as they go through the auction ring. I don't know how long they retain the videos, and I don't know if they even did videos in '93, but if you know the sales company you could contact them and ask. Since it was a 2-y-o in training sale, they may also have video of your horse working under tack at the pre-sale workouts. If you have access to the catalog for the sale and can find the name of the consignor who handled the sale, you can contact them and find out if they have pictures. Most consignors take pictures of every horse they sell for advertising purposes. Your horse's catalog page should say who the consignor is. You could also contact the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders' and Owners' Association and ask them for help in finding contacts, since your horse is a Florida-bred. This is the FTBOA website: http://www.ftboa.com/ Because your horse was stakes-placed, the FTBOA magazine, The Florida Horse, may have photos of your horse in the September or October 1993 issue of the magazine since he was stakes-placed. This is their page on the website: http://www.ftboa.com/index.php/fl-equine-pub/the-florida-horse Your horse raced at Turfway Park: http://www.turfway.com/ Ellis Park: http://www.ellisparkracing.com/ Birmongham: http://www.birminghamracecourse.com/ Fair Grounds: http://www.fairgroundsracecourse.com/ Churchill Downs: http://www.churchilldowns.com/ Your horse was trained during his entire career by Valerie Statler, who also owned him for at least part of his career. The latest information I found about her was a ruling by the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission restoring her to good standing as an assistant trainer at Turfway Park in 2009. It looks like she works on the Kentucky track circuit, and if you contact the horsemen's office at any of the Kentucky tracks (Turfway, Ellis, Churchill), they may be able to put you in touch with her. Since she's the person who worked with your horse day-in and day-out while he was in training, it's likely that she would have photos of him and may be able to tell you about him. If you contact the Kentucky tracks and ask to be put in touch with her, explaining that you now own a horse she trained in 93-94, there's a good chance you can get her contact information. I'm sorry I can't give you one place where you can get the information you want, but there isn't any such place or website. If I were you, I'd start with trying to find Valerie Statler since she's the most likely source of information. General advice: be polite, be patient, let people know you are willing to pay for photographs or send them self-addressed stamped envelopes so they can send you stuff, and don't give up. Good luck!