By Katie Petrunyak
On the racetrack, News Carver (Curlin) did not meet the lofty expectations set by his talented full-brother Vino Rosso, but the 3-year-old gelding has all the potential to one day become a star in a different arena.
After News Carver finished a distant sixth in his debut in May this year and showed little interest in pursing a racing career, his owner and breeder John Gunther decided to send the homebred to New Vocations. News Carver, who bears the same lustrous chestnut coat and blazed face as his older brother, arrived at the racehorse adoption program's Lexington location last month.
“He definitely came off the trailer just like you would expect,” said New Vocations Thoroughbred Program Director Anna Ford. “He is very proud of himself and has that presence of a quality horse. He does look a lot like Vino Rosso and he knows that he is of royal blood.”
Ford said that News Carver is a perfect example of the type of retired racehorse that frequently lands in their program.
“He came from the best bloodlines, but simply didn't have the same ability as his brother,” she explained. “We really appreciate owners like the Gunthers who, instead of dropping him down into claiming ranks which he might have been able to do, opted to retire him early and let him go on to a second career. We feel really proud that they trust us to take good care of a horse like News Carver.”
Ford explained that just as New Vocations does with every horse that goes through the program, their first task has been to allow News Carver to let down from his time on the racetrack and acclimate to a group of pasture mates.
“He has settled in really well,” Ford said. “He goes out daily and has a buddy that he's getting socialized with, which is a really important part of the transitional training process. He's learning how to let down and get some good R and R. Once he gets comfortable with that, we'll bring him back into training probably over the winter.”
From there, Ford said they will evaluate what News Carver might be best suited for in a second career.
“It's too early for us to know right now, but if I were to guess I'd say he definitely could excel in a lot of English disciplines like dressage or jumpers or maybe eventing. Really the sky is the limit. It just depends on what he physically and mentally is able to do.”
Until then, the team at New Vocations hopes that their new trainee can serve as an advocate for aftercare with the Breeders' Cup World Championships fast approaching.
New Vocations recently launched its 13th annual Breeders' Cup Pledge, where connections of Breeders' Cup contenders can pledge a percentage of their earnings to support the program. Last year's pledge was supported by over 60 Championship contenders.
“This year I'm really excited that we will break $1,000,000 total in 13 years,” Ford said. “So far we've raised $950,000 and last year alone we raised $150,000, so this year we're excited to hit that million-dollar mark and hopefully we can go way over it. It's a really exciting time. A lot of our supporters are people who have donated horses to our program and we've helped those horses transition into second careers, so this is their chance to give back to a program that has been able to help them and their horses in the past.”
The 2019 Breeders' Cup was a memorable one for New Vocations when they raised $130,000 thanks in large part to GI Classic hero Vino Rosso.
“2019 was one of our record-breaking years for the pledge and it really launched the fundraiser into a new level,” Ford explained. “Both of Vino Rosso's owners, Mike Repole and Vinnie Viola's St. Elias Stables, along with his trainer Todd Pletcher all pledged that year. It's really neat to be sitting here three years later with Vino Rosso's brother in the program as we head into Breeders' Cup season and are hoping to get more people to join the pledge.”
In addition to their million-dollar milestone on the horizon, New Vocations, which is the oldest and largest racehorse adoption program in the country, is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. Ford credits the support they have received from the Thoroughbred industry that has helped their program thrive over the years.
“We definitely couldn't do what we do every year without the support of the industry and specifically the owners who are donating horses to our program and entrusting us to take care of them and get them transitioned,” she said. “We're so thankful for everything that the industry has been able to give to us and their support of what we do.”
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