He's Won One Race, but What a Race it Was

Thousands of trainers can look back at their first win as a special moment in their careers and their lives, but none can ever match Chad Summers when it comes to the time, place and magnitude of that occasion. He broke his maiden in a $2 million race.

Any thoughts that the 32-year-old newcomer to the training ranks might have been in over his head when he sent out Mind Your Biscuits (Posse) in the GI Dubai Golden Shaheen were put to rest when the New York-bred cruised to a three-length win last Saturday. It was Summers's first win after sending out five losers to begin his career.

“I know how hard it is to accomplish something like that,” he said. “I got a lot of texts from other trainers saying, 'Well, you know it's all going to be down hill from here.' We know what we did and we don't take it lightly. It wasn't me. It was the horse and the entire team involved. It means lot to get your first win as a licensed trainer in a race of that magnitude. It's not something you take lightly at all.”

Summers took a circuitous route to the winner's circle. He grew up in Long Island and his father would frequently take him and his brother to the New York tracks. Summers wanted to go into racing as a career and tried just about everything there is to try–he worked as a hotwalker, a clocker, a racing manager and even tried his hand as a turf writer. He ultimately settled on becoming a bloodstock agent.

He came across a yearling by Posse at the 2014 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Preferred New York-Bred Yearling Sale. After the horse RNA'd, Summers put together a group to buy the horse after the sale that included himself, his father and his brother. His next stop was the 2015 OBS Spring Sale of Two-Year-Olds where Mind Your Biscuits again did not meet the reserve. Throughout the process, the ownership group changed and now consists of the Summers family, J Stables LLC and Head of Plains Partners. So did the trainers. Mind Your Biscuits began his career with Roderick Rodriguez before being turned over to 23-year-old trainer Robert Falcone Jr.

Summers was content to remain in the background.

“I didn't really want to be a trainer, to be honest with you,” he said. “Being a trainer, when you have a family and a young son at home and with all the hours you have to dedicate to it, its not easy.”

But he had a change of heart. Some of the people he worked for in the industry were encouraging him to take out a license and the money he was making thanks to a handful of shrewd moves as a bloodstock agent gave him the financial peace of mind to enter a business that can be treacherous for newcomers.

He said he made the decision that he would begin his training career and move Mind Your Biscuits into his new barn at the start of 2017. But it was not a move that looked particularly good on the surface. In his last start for Falcone, Mind Your Biscuits won the GI Malibu. A few days later, Falcone was fired.

“I love the kid to death,” Summers said of Falcone. “He's like a brother and that won't ever change. I think we worked very well together. I think he has a really bright future ahead of him and by no means did he do something wrong. It was the plan, that in 2017 we would make the change. I was happy he was able to get the Grade I in the Malibu. In this situation, going out on my own and doing the things that I did, was it a little bit selfish on my part? Yes. Absolutely. But it was something I had to do to further my career.”

Despite having just the one victory on his record, a win on the Dubai World Cup card will get you noticed. Summers has 11 horses under his care, but is expecting about 35 2-year-olds to join his stable shortly. He said some have come as a direct result of Mind Your Biscuits' win.

“Picking up new owners, it started the next day, after the race in Dubai,” he said. “SF Bloodstock were out for the race and called me the next day and asked me if I would take a horse for them. It was that quick. There were other people who had already committed to me, but they hadn't told me the names of horses or numbers of horses until after the race was over. I have to think the win affected their decisions. People want to see what you can do and once you win a race like that everybody wants to jump on board.”

SF's Tom Ryan said that they were sending Summers a Gemologist filly out of Dance Alexa (Southern Halo), a half-sister to GII Santa Ynez winner Dance Daily (Five Star Day), adding, “He's such a charismatic and confident character. Chad has a very bright future ahead.”

Maybe you don't have to sink before you can swim. Summers has a number of prominent owners ready to back him and says his goals are nothing short of winning the GI Kentucky Derby and Breeders' Cup races.

“Yes, I just experienced a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” Summers said. “But for me, it just made me hungrier. I want to do it again, go back there and defend our title. I want more horses. I want to be on the big stage.”