On an impossibly sunny day in October 2022, I found myself at L&D Stables in Nicholasville, Kentucky, looking at a very handsome chestnut gelding for my first OTTB restart project.
Despite his flashy presence, my eye kept drifting to a small herd of mares in a nearby paddock. I made my way to the fence line and was met immediately by a pair of kind eyes and an inquisitive pink nose, searching for my face and neck. Sixty seconds later that nose was gently resting on my shoulder. I was won over. Three days later, Hoosier Artist came home as 'Frida'.
This chance meeting was not the beginning of Frida's story of course. Not even close! By the time we were serendipitously united, this little five-year-old mare had already endured and overcome so much.
Hoosier Artist was rescued from an extreme neglect situation in April 2021 by Lonnie and Diana Winkelspecht, the owners of L&D Stables. Literal skin-and-bones and struggling to stand, she was fighting for her life. After weeks and weeks without food, water and care, other horses on the same property had already perished and for some the only option was euthanasia. The scene was a nightmare. Despite her condition and against the recommendations of veterinarians, Lonnie and Diana knew they had to give this little filly a chance. They began nursing her back to health, sparing no resources. She was small, weak and unable to eat anything, but water-soaked hay and she was scared of everyone. Over the next few months they not only nourished and strengthened her body, but earned her trust.
Frida with Taylor | Taylor Tricarico
Hoosier Artist exceeded everyone's expectations and by mid-summer she was thriving! She began race training in earnest and showed grit and grace. Her first race left everyone who knew her in awe, and in some cases tears of joy. How was this the same horse that had to be supported to stand? How was this the same filly that had a body score of one, not six month earlier? And now she was doing what she was bred to do.
Despite a promising first time out, her racing career was short-lived, lasting only a half dozen times. Following a mismatch of training styles, the difficult decision was made not to push her, but to bring her back to L&D. This is where she stayed as the farm favorite, for several months before our accidental meeting.
I had no specific plans for Frida when she stepped off the trailer at my little farm in Versailles, Kentucky. All I knew is that this was a special soul and I was lucky to now call her mine. During our first off-track ride she couldn't turn right to save her life, as her gates were erratic and she held her head so high I wondered how she could see where she was going. But she was reasonable, responsive and had the best stop I'd ever sat. Two weeks later, we were riding bareback in a halter. Two months after that, she'd mastered all the groundwork I could throw at her. Before I knew it, my seven-year-old son was piloting her. This was a good horse. But what to do with her?
I'd missed the application window for the 2023 Retired Racehorse Project Thoroughbred Makeover (RRPTM), when a ISO Facebook post caught my eye. A young trainer was looking to buy an RRPTM horse that matched Frida's description exactly: kind, quiet, slow, small. I messaged her asking, “I know this is a long shot, but would you be willing to partner and take my mare to the RRPTM? She's not for sale, but she is just what you are looking for.” The next day Blakely Releford was in my round pen working with Frida, swooning over her quick brain and sweet demeanor. I could tell immediately that this was a perfect match. A partnership was born and Hoosier Artist, the little-mare-that-could, was RRP bound!
–Taylor Tricarico, Versailles, KY
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