The fact that he was even in the starting gate last year can be considered a miracle, not to mention that he won with authority.
The story of the Louisiana-bred Awesome Bet gelding did not get off to a good start. Sold for just $1,000 at a yearling sale in Louisiana, he and two other yearlings were dropped off at a feedlot for unwanted and ownerless horses. The presence of such young thoroughbreds in that situation caused a stir on social media and a Facebook post soon appeared on the feed of Resolute’s marketing director, Sarah Stewart.
Stewart called her father, Resolute founder John Stewart, to inquire about rescuing the horses. When she didn’t contact him, she and now CEO Chelsey Stone Stewart, John’s wife, decided to just go ahead and pay for their rescue.
“I thought, ‘Chelsey, I’m just going to go for it,’” Sarah Stewart said. “We can hide them on the farm, we can ask for forgiveness.”
No forgiveness was necessary as John Stewart was fully in favor of adopting the three yearlings who would be nicknamed Ed, Edd and Eddy.
The trio ended up spending two days in the pasture before being transported to Resolute’s farm near Midway, Ky. Sarah Stewart said they arrived in fairly good physical condition, but John Stewart noted that they had a few mental problems. They were then handed over to Summer Harris, Resolute’s track and rescue coordinator.
“It’s so exciting to be part of a program that believes in all horses,” Harris said. “To take three yearlings that someone had absolutely given up on, we wanted to give them another chance. We treated them like any other yearling that Resolute had acquired and bred, and look where we ended up. It’s just really exciting to show people that even though horses get into trouble, they still have a lot to prove.”
Two of the yearlings would not make it to the track and will be given time to mature before embarking on a career as a sport horse or joining the Resolute trail team. However, Awesome Hawaiian showed the capabilities of a racehorse during his early training at WinStar Farm, and after passing vet checks, the Stewarts decided to put him in training with Will Walden.
“We were willing to take the gamble and the risk and spoke to Will and made sure he was up to the task,” John Stewart said. “We have kept this moment in mind to put this topic at the center of the sector.”
Walden, who himself has taken advantage of a second chance after overcoming addiction to start his training career, said the gelding made his job easy. He compared the gelding to a boxer dog, which always kept its ears forward, waiting for the next task.
“That horse showed up, put his boots on and went to work every day,” Walden said. “With every breeze you could see he was starting to build muscle and fitness. I thought he looked fantastic when he walked around the paddock today, really well muscled and defined.”
Because Awesome Hawaiian is a Louisiana-bred with not the most well-known names in his immediate pedigree, Walden was realistic about the gelding’s ability. Feeling that a $20,000 tag was too little and a $50,000 tag was too much, he opted for the $30,000 tag, knowing that this was a place where Awesome Hawaiian could be competitive, and that this might be their only chance to win with him.
“I didn’t know with Fair Grounds coming up if it would be claimed the first time it came out,” Walden said. “We wanted to make our first shot count because we thought we might only have one chance with him. It felt like this was the right spot, and he proved us right.”
Under Irad Ortiz Jr. Awesome Hawaiian quickly shot out of the gate and took the lead. After passing an early test from Alter Boy, he stayed strong down the stretch and pushed back Romantic Ride’s challenge. He finished two lengths clear as he covered six furlongs in 1:11.75.
The Resolute team erupted in cheers the entire way, all dressed in their awesome Hawaiian sweatshirts as he was welcomed into the winner’s circle.
“Our goal was just to get him to the track. That’s great if he just goes to the track,” Sarah Stewart said. “I kept saying he could run last and I’ll be here cheering my heart out. This horse has heart, he has passion, he went for it.”
“I was super excited and very proud of Sarah,” said John Stewart. “It brings to light all the work our team does in rescue, and it’s also a positive story around the rescue horses.”
Since it was a claims race, there was a risk of losing to Awesome Hawaiian no matter what they did. The gelding was claimed by trainer Joe Sharp and owner Larry Romero. However, it may not be the end of his story with Resolute.
“We’re going to find out who claimed it and try to buy it back,” John Stewart said.
#Great #victory #Hawaii #inspiring #story #rescue #horses