Thoroughbred Makeover

Edited Press Release Some 512 trainers have been accepted to the 2023 Thoroughbred Makeover and National Symposium, presented by Thoroughbred Charities of America, officials with the Retired Racehorse Project (RRP) have announced. The event takes place Oct. 11-14, 2023, at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington and offers prize money in excess of $100,000. "On behalf of TCA, we congratulate all of the trainers accepted into the 2023 Thoroughbred Makeover," said Erin Halliwell, executive director of TCA. "We appreciate the time and resources trainers dedicate to transitioning Thoroughbreds into their...

More than 6,700 awards and classes at more than 1,400 shows in 43 states and six Canadian provinces will be offered for off-track Thoroughbreds in 2023, The Jockey Club's Thoroughbred Incentive Program (T.I.P) announced on Tuesday. Awards are available for multiple disciplines, including eventing, dressage, Western and English pleasure, ranch riding, hunter/jumper, endurance, barrel racing, polo, and polocrosse. T.I.P. Championships in hunters, jumpers, combined test, dressage, English pleasure, and English in-hand will return this year to Stable View in Aiken, South Carolina, from Oct. 5 through Oct. 8. T.I.P. Western...

Applications for the 2023 Thoroughbred Makeover and National Symposium, presented by Thoroughbred Charities of America, are now open for submission, the Retired Racehorse Project announced Tuesday. The application period closes at 5:00 p.m. EST on Jan. 20. Accepted trainers will be announced no later than Feb. 15. Interested applicants can start the application process now by logging on to Retired Racehorse Project website. Entering its ninth year at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, horses and trainers will compete for more than $110,000 in total prize money, plus the coveted...

Prince of New York, piloted by professional trainer Chris Bennings, won the People's Choice Award, sponsored by Achieve Equine, at the 2022 Thoroughbred Makeover. The achievement comes not only with the recognition of a job well done, but the liberty to choose an equine-related 501(c)3 nonprofit to receive a $2,500 donation sponsored by Achieve Equine. For Bennings--who's first introduction to retraining off-track Thoroughbreds was with Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance (TAA)-accredited Florida TRAC--choosing the TAA as the beneficiary of the People's Choice Award was a no-brainer. "My wife Celia and I knew...

The Retired Racehorse Project (RRP) will include a pilot program for broodmares to compete in the 2023 Thoroughbred Makeover and National Symposium, presented by Thoroughbred Charities of America. Recently retired broodmares will compete alongside traditional entrants in all ten offered disciplines, but will be recognized separately and have a separate $10,000 in prize money. "As the Thoroughbred Makeover has made a proven impact on the population of horses retiring from racing, we've gotten an increasing call in recent years for a channel for Thoroughbred broodmares who are ready for their...

Edited Press Release The Thoroughbred Aftercare Summit, a joint effort of the Retired Racehorse Project (RRP), Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance (TAA), The Jockey Club Thoroughbred Incentive Program (T.I.P.), and Thoroughbred Charities of America (TCA), returns to the Thoroughbred Makeover Oct. 11, 2022 at the Kentucky Horse Park. The summit will be held from 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM in the TCA Covered Arena Lounge, one day prior to the start of preliminary competition at the Retired Racehorse Project's Thoroughbred Makeover and National Symposium, presented by Thoroughbred Charities of America. The 2022...

Thoroughbred Charities of America (TCA) will again serve as the title sponsor of the Retired Racehorse Project (RRP)'s Thoroughbred Makeover and National Symposium. The Thoroughbred Makeover is a retraining competition and showcase, featuring trainers from across North America who have worked throughout the year to prepare recently retired Thoroughbred ex-racehorses to compete for more than $100,000 in a variety of equestrian sports. TCA has worked to support Thoroughbred aftercare, as well as programs that provide health and human services for backstretch and farm workers, for more than three decades. TCA...

After serving for four years as Retired Racehorse Project's executive director and five years prior to that as a board member, Jen Roytz will be stepping down from her leadership role at the end of the year. Longtime staff member and current managing director, Kirsten Green, will serve as interim executive director while the organization conducts a national search for the role. Under Roytz's leadership the Retired Racehorse Project (RRP) has expanded in both size and scope. The Thoroughbred Makeover and National Symposium has become the largest and most lucrative...

Keeneland will return as the sponsor of the Arrival Exam and Finale Jogs at the combined 2020 and 2021 Thoroughbred Makeover, the Retired Racehorse Project announced Wednesday. First instituted at the 2019 Thoroughbred Makeover and National Symposium, presented by Thoroughbred Charities of America, the Arrival Exam requires each horse to have proof of current vaccinations, vitals (temperature, respiration and heart rate) within a normal range, be scanned for a microchip that has been registered with The Jockey Club, pass a walking soundness exam, and score a four or higher on...

The Retired Racehorse Project (RRP) has expanded the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) Makeover Marketplace catalogue to include adoptable Thoroughbred Makeover prospects eligible for the 2022 competition. The catalogue also will continue to feature sport horse prospects who are offered for sale by their trainers at the conclusion of the Makeover process. The expanded catalog is expected to include hundreds of transitioned and restarted Thoroughbreds, most of which will compete at the 2020-21 Thoroughbred Makeover this October at the Kentucky Horse Park. Up to 100...

The Retired Racehorse Project (RRP) and The Jockey Club Thoroughbred Incentive Program (T.I.P.) will hold the inaugural T.I.P. Barrel Racing Championships at the Thoroughbred Makeover and National Symposium this October at the Kentucky Horse Park. The annual T.I.P. Championships features competition in disciplines including hunters, jumpers, English pleasure, Western pleasure, and classical and Western dressage. The 2021 T.I.P. Barrel Racing Championships will feature prize money and additional prizes for the top horses. "Thoroughbreds have made their presence known in recent years in Western disciplines, particularly barrel racing, so we are...

Applications are now open for the 2021 competition year of the Thoroughbred Makeover and National Symposium, presented by Thoroughbred Charities of America. Applications will be accepted through Jan. 15, 2021 and accepted trainers will be announced Feb. 15, 2021. As the 2020 Thoroughbred Makeover was postponed to 2021 due to the impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic, the 2021 edition of the Retired Racehorse Project's banner event will include competition groups both for horses that would have competed in 2020, as well as those entering for 2021. The two groups...