David O’Farrell, Chairman
Everett Dobson, Vice Chairman
Dan Metzger, President
Doug Cauthen, Secretary
Garrett O’Rourke, Treasurer
Board of Trustees
Tim Cohen
Tim Cohen, a California native, is managing partner of Rancho Temescal, a diverse agricultural operation of 6,000 acres in Piru, Cal. Mr. Cohen, a second-generation horseman, was initiated to racing by his father, Jed Cohen of Red Baron’s Barn, with whom he currently enjoys co-ownership with of over 50 horses in training. They have campaigned many successful runners, including recent millionaires River Boyne, Itsinthepost and Sharp Samurai. Rancho Temescal has dedicated over 150 acres of irrigated pastures and barns in support of racing interests. Mr. Cohen has previously served on the board of directors of the California Thoroughbred Breeders Association, and resides in Del Mar, Cal.
Carrie Brogden
Born and raised on her family’s Thoroughbred farm in Warrenton, Va., Carrie was riding before she was walking. Her parents were both small animal veterinarians and her mother, Sandra Fubini, brought her first pony home in the back of the family station wagon when she was nine-months pregnant. Carrie grew up showing ponies with her sister Kristy on the Va. and Fla. show circuits.
After graduating from James Madison University with a degree in Psychology with a minor in Biology and a bent towards genetic counseling, her life took a turn when her mother asked her to manage the family’s animal gift stores right before the Beanie Baby craze hit. The business boomed and was sold in 2000 after an incredible run.
In 2000, Carrie made her way back into Thoroughbreds via her mother’s investment in mares boarded at Buckland Farm in Warrenton, Va. Carrie moved to Ky. in 2001 after she met her husband, Craig, an Australian national, and her mother followed her move several years later, buying a house in Paris, Ky. In 2001, Machmer Hall, inspired from the hall that bears her great grandfather’s name, Dean Machmer, at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and where she attended her first year of college, was born. Today, Machmer Hall is one of the most recognizable names in the Thoroughbred breeding business and is home to more than 250 horses. Horses bred, raised and/or sold by Machmer Hall include Search Results, Tepin, Flat Out and Mind Your Biscuits. Carrie, along with her husband and mother are partners in the Machmer Hall Sales with Amy Bunt and Michelle and Tom Mullikin. Carrie lives in Lexington, Ky. with her three kids, four dogs and a cat and loves life with all the animals!
Dr. J. David Richardson
Dr. Richardson is chief of surgery at the University of Louisville Hospital and vice chair of the Department of Surgery. He is the past president of the American College of Surgeons, the largest surgical organization in the world. Dr. Richardson served as chairman of TOBA from 2015-19 and previously served as chairman of the American Graded Stakes Committee.
Peter S. Willmott, Vice Chairman
Rosendo Parra, Vice Chairman
Mr. Parra retired from a career in the high technology industry in early 2007. He spent 14 years at Dell in numerous senior executive roles including senior vice president and general manager of Dell Americas. He is the founder of Daylight Partners (Venture Capital) and is a member of the board of directors of PG&E. He is currently a member of the TOBA board of trustees and the executive committee.
Craig Bernick, Treasurer
Glen Hill Farm raced such horses as Relaunch, Convenience and One Dreamer and more recently, Banned, Marketing Mix, Pontchatrain, and Diversy Harbor. He is an officer of the Lavin Family Foundation which supports education, after-school and health programs in Chicago and around the country. A graduate of Tulane University, Mr. Bernick was an executive at Albert-Culver Company before entering the horse business.
Michael McMahon, Secretary
Mr. McMahon founded McMahon Bloodstock LLC in 2001 and formed McMahon and Hill Bloodstock, LLC with his business partner Jamie Hill in 2010. In the 16 years since, the firm’s loyal customers have raced, bred and sold 200 stakes horses including 63 graded stakes horses. While pinhooking and breeding have been the hall mark of McMahon’s experience in the horse business, McMahon and Hill Bloodstock is also well known for the weekly flyer “The Bottom Line” a seasons and shares offering of the week’s hottest stallions and for “Bourbon Lane Stable” a zero markup partnership open to the racing public.
Mr. McMahon has served as president of the New York Thoroughbreds Breeders and vice president of the Belmont Child Care Association. He currently serves on the board of the TOBA and as President of the TCA. He has served as a member of his class council at Cornell University and recently was name ia member of the University Council at Cornell University. His family operates McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds, New York’s longest continually operating Thoroughbred farm. He is married to Natanya Nieman DVM and the couple have two children, Madison and Aidan. The McMahons live on WinStar Farm in Versailles, Ky., where Natanya is the resident veterinarian. The couple also operates Spruce Lane Farm in Versailles, KY.
Everett Dobson, Vice Chairman
Everett Dobson splits his time between Kentucky and Oklahoma. He is the owner of Candy Meadows Farm, a broodmare farm with about 30 mares in Lexington, Kentucky, and races under Cheyenne Stables. He graduated with a B.A. in Economics from Southwestern Oklahoma State University.
Mr. Dobson serves as the executive chairman of Dobson Fiber, a fiber optic transport company based in Oklahoma City. He is also a minority owner of the Oklahoma City Thunder NBA team and serves on their board of directors. Mr. Dobson is a member of The Jockey Club in addition to Breeders’ Cup Ltd. and is the current chairman of the American Graded Stakes Committee. He is also a trustee of the Keeneland Association. Other board memberships include the Dobson Family Foundation and National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum.
Dan Metzger, President
Dan Metzger was appointed TOBA President in July 1999. Dan represents TOBA on a number of committees, including the International Cataloging Standards Committee, the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium and the International Breeders Meeting.
Prior to joining TOBA, Dan directed various aspects of communications, simulcasting, marketing and licensing for Breeders’ Cup Limited and was general manager of Cawood Ledford Productions, a sports broadcast and publishing company in Lexington. Dan is a 1984 graduate of the University of Kentucky. He is a past president of the Turf Publicists of America, previously served as an officer of the Thoroughbred Club of America and serves on the board of directors of the Winner’s Federation.
Shannon Bishop Arvin
Shannon Bishop Arvin is the eighth president of Keeneland Association and the first woman named to the position. She began practicing law in 2002 at the Lexington firm Stoll Keenon Ogden (SKO), where she represented Thoroughbred owners and industry organizations in Kentucky and around the world.
As an SKO partner, in 2008 she began serving as corporate counsel to Keeneland, and she has been secretary and advisory member of Keeneland’s board of directors since 2015. Ms. Arvin serves on the board of directors of the University of Kentucky’s Gluck Equine Research Foundation and Stock Yards Bancorp, and is the Chairman of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association. She is a trustee of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association and The Lexington School. She became a member of The Jockey Club in 2019 and a trustee of The Jockey Club Safety Net Foundation in 2021.
Barbara R. Banke
In addition to the flagship Kendall-Jackson and La Crema wineries, Mrs. Banke and her family shaped over two dozen small, high-image wineries located across Sonoma, Napa, Monterey, Santa Barbara and Mendocino counties as well as wine estates in Bordeaux, Tuscany, Chile and Australia.
Mrs. Banke is a UCLA and Hastings Law School graduate as well as a former land use and constitutional law attorney, spending more than a decade arguing cases before the United States Supreme Court and Courts of Appeal.
Mrs. Banke also raised three children, Katie, Julia and Christopher Jackson. Her Stonestreet Stables raced Horses of the Year Curlin (2007 and 2008) and Rachel Alexandra (2009), as well as homebred Eclipse Award winner My Miss Aurelia. A leading commercial breeding operation, Stonestreet Farm has produced the winners of 20 Graded Stakes since its inception in 2005. A member of The Jockey Club and Breeders’ Cup Ltd., Mrs. Banke serves on the boards of the Racing Hall of Fame and the Belmont Child Care Association.
Joe Appelbaum
Joe Appelbaum purchased his first horse in 2001 and 20 years ago founded Off The Hook LLC – a breeding, racing and sales company. Off The Hook has raced and developed 43 graded stakes winners, most notably, Breeders’ Cup and Eclipse Award winner Informed Decision.
Off The Hook graduates can been seen winning all over the world as millionaires Zivo, Gamdonguibada, Spun To Run, City Man and A Shin Wezen can attest. United Nations (G1T) winner Turbo Compressor raced in the Off The Hook name and G1 winners from the Off The Hook graduate ranks include And Tell Me Nolies, El Deal, Paola Queen and Zipessa.
Mr. Appelbaum currently serves as president of the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association and is a board member of the New York Jockey Injury Compensation Fund. Mr. Appelbaum graduated from Yale University and has had three careers; coaching college football (working with Wayne Chrebet and Victor Cruz) founding Oasis Children’s Service LLC and now with Off The Hook. He lives in New York with his wife and two children.
Clifford Barry
Mr. Barry also values his association with the stallion Maria’s Mon, sire of Kentucky Derby winners Monarchos and Super Saver. Mr. Barry currently serves as president of the board of KTA/KTOB and trustee of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association. He has been a member of the Kentucky Thoroughbred Farm Managers’ Club since 1991, having served two terms as director and two terms as treasurer and honored as “2007 Farm Manager of the Year”.
Mr. Barry is a past director of the Thoroughbred Club and a current member of the Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation. Mr. Barry and his wife are breeders of multiple Graded Stakes winners High Limit and Soldat.
Antony Beck
Mr. Beck graduated from London University in England and has been actively involved in the Thoroughbred industry for 32 years, owning and operating farms in England and South Africa. Mr. Beck is director of Graham Beck Wines, his family’s wine company in South Africa, and currently serves on the board of directors for Breeders’ Cup Ltd., Blood-Horse Publications and the NTRA Horse PAC. He also serves on the board of trustees of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association and Transylvania University.
Antony, Angela his wife, and their five children make their home in Lexington on Gainesway Farm.
Price H. Bell, Jr.
Returning to Nashville he became involved in its blossoming downtown community revitalization. Always promoting and passionate about Thoroughbreds and Central Kentucky, in 2010 Mr. Bell jumped at the opportunity to return to Lexington and work with his father, Headley, at Nicoma Bloodstock – the consulting arm of Mill Ridge Farm. With conviction for the sport and believing in the great opportunity to develop our fan base, he became actively involved with many industry initiatives. Working with a key group of stakeholders, the not for profit Horse Country, Inc. was created to help fans connect with the horse and racing through experiences on Kentucky’s farms; he now serves as that organization’s president.
Mr. Bell is passionate about introducing people to the horse and celebrating the amazing animal that is the Thoroughbred. In addition to Horse Country, he serves on the board of the KTA-KTOB, Fayette Alliance and the NoLi CDC.
Jeffrey Bloom
Jeffrey Bloom is a Thoroughbred industry veteran of 40 years. He was a professional jockey, as well as a marketing and media relations consultant and broadcaster. During his riding career, Mr. Bloom raced at many of the major tracks throughout North America including his first race at Del Mar in front of a hometown crowd having grown up in San Diego, California.
After retiring as a jockey, Mr. Bloom became the main workout rider for leading trainers that included Hall of Famer Charlie Whittingham where he was privileged to have worked out countless Grade 1 winners with the 1989 Kentucky Derby winner Sunday Silence among them. Following his riding career, he earned a B.S. degree in Financial Services from San Diego State University and his business resume includes a successful venture in corporate business development in the software technology industry.
Mr. Bloom founded and currently runs Bloom Racing Stable, LLC, a fully integrated horse racing company that offers portfolio and racing management, bloodstock services, pinhooking and other related investments. Mr. Bloom has both selected and managed the careers of numerous graded stakes winners including the 2019 Eclipse Award Champion and multiple G1 winner Midnight Bisou. He is extremely passionate about racehorses and their overall welfare both on and off the racetrack. He is currently the president of the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance. Mr. Bloom lives in Texas with his wife Susan and enjoys spending time with his daughters Hannah in California and Ashley in New York.
Brett Brinkman
Brett Brinkman, owner of Lemesa Stallions in Carencro, Louisiana is a licensed Thoroughbred trainer and Thoroughbred breeder. A native of Louisiana and raised in Williston, Florida, he grew up on a full-service Thoroughbred farm, Waldermar Farms, with his aunt and uncle, Joe and Betty King.
After attending college, he accepted a position as yearling manager at Arthur Appleton’s Bridlewood Farms in Ocala, Florida. During his seven years at Bridlewood he assisted in the selection of Serena’s Song as a weanling.
Following his tenure at Bridlewood Farms, Mr. Brinkman assisted Bill Heiligbrodt of Heiligbrodt Racing Stable in the management of his racing stable and equine holdings. While there he selected and developed such horses as Posse, Lady Tack, Four Gifts and other Graded Stakes winners. It was during this time that the Louisiana breeding program was growing and with the encouragement of Mr. Heiligbrodt and partners, he established Lemesa Stallions, a full-service breeding and race training facility.
Lemesa Stallions stands Yankee Gentleman in conjuction with Airdrie Stud and Flashpoint, whom is owned by Spendthrift Farm. Mr. Brinkman currently serves as a vice president of the Louisiana Thoroughbred Breeders Association and trustee of TOBA.
Doug Cauthen, Secretary
Thanks to a lifetime of experience in the Thoroughbred industry, Doug Cauthen brings a unique blend of hands-on experience and business management skills to the Thoroughbred industry. He received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Kentucky in Equine Marketing and Management and graduated from the University of Kentucky law school in 1993. He briefly practiced law in Lexington with Wyatt, Tarrant and Combs before returning full-time to the Thoroughbred industry.
Mr. Cauthen currently owns and operates Doug Cauthen Thoroughbred Management, a full-service advisory consulting service, and is also a board member at Three Chimneys farm. He is currently a TOBA trustee, chairman of K.E.E.P. and a member of Breeders’ Cup Limited. Mr. Cauthen lives in Lexington with his wife Katie, and his daughter Campbell.
Mike Caruso
Mr. Caruso is the Owner of Bethlehem Stables, LLC in Bethlehem, Pa. He races in partnership, primarily with Michael Dubb, a NYRA trustee, with over 80 horses in training under the care of Chad Brown, Brad Cox and Mike Maker. He has been an owner since 1978 and campaigns under “Bethlehem Stables, LLC.” He attended Lehigh University where he was a three-time NCAA wrestling champion. Many of his horses have names related to collegiate wrestling including Grade I winner Grace Hall (the renowned wrestling arena at Lehigh). Lehigh’s state of the art wrestling practice facility was named the Caruso Wrestling Complex in 2013. He is a trustee emeritus at Lehigh, as well as Northampton Community College, a member of the Lehigh Valley Partnership Board and the Saucon Valley Country Club board of governors. After coaching wrestling at both the University of Virginia and Lehigh, he founded Caruso Benefits Group, a healthcare benefits consulting firm, in 1971. In 2005, National Penn Bank acquired his firm. He became a widower in 2002, after 33 years of marriage to his wife, Sandra. He resides in Lower Saucon Township, Pa., just outside of Bethlehem.
James Covello
Mr. Covello is an avid fan, handicapper and owner of horses. Some of the horses he has campaigned include Graded Stakes winners Lilacs and Lace, Testa Rossi, Swift Warrior, Power Alert and Falling Sky, Graded Stakes placed horses such as River Rocks and Citrus Kid and listed stakes winners Oscar Party and Majestic Affair. Mr. Covello has qualified for the National Handicapping Championship four times and is a frequent contributor on handicapping shows and websites. He has been a supporter of the New Vocations Racehorse Adoption program which has found good homes for the racehorses that he has retired.
Mr. Covello lives in New Jersey with his wife and three children.
Robert M. Devlin
Mr. Devlin was able to dedicate himself to his passion of horses after retiring as CEO and chairman from American General Financial Group in 2001. Since then he has enjoyed many more days at the track, primarily Belmont, Aqueduct and Saratoga, where he is also a member of the Saratoga Reading Room. He has brought a number of other racing fans into the game through Curragh Stables, campaigning horses such as Manuka Honey, winner of the Suncoast Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs and runner-up in the Fantasy Stakes at Oaklawn Park; Harp N Halo, winner of the Avowal Stakes at Woodbine; Harlan’s Harmony, winner of the Skidmore Stakes at Saratoga and Caledonian, winner of the Lost in The Fog Stakes and the Jimmy Winkfield Stakes both at Aqueduct.
Mr. Devlin has served on a number of corporate boards, including Discover Financial Services, LKQ Corp and ConocoPhillips. He has also served as a trustee at both Tulane University and Boston College. He currently is a board member of the Irish
Arts Center and the Joe Torre Safe at Home Foundation. Mr. Devlin and his wife Kate live in New York City.
Marette Farrell
Marette Farrell grew up on her parents’ stud farm in Ireland. She obtained a B.A. in Physical Education and English. She played on the Irish U21’s and Senior International Field Hockey Teams. She also coached at Regina Mundi College and the Munster Regional U16 Hockey teams.
Preferring a life with horses she gained valuable international experience on the racetrack in Dubai, France and the U.S. After working as racing manager for trainer Gai Waterhouse in Australia, she set up her own independent bloodstock agency in 2008, concentrating on the sales circuit. She works in an advisory capacity for long-term clients, who rely on her to assist with their matings, yearling, two-year-old and mare purchases. She has helped select numerous G1 winners including three Breeders’ Cup champions. She likes to give back by mentoring many young people trying to make their way in the business, who spend time with her and her team. She is also a big supporter of Thoroughbred aftercare and various retirement programs. She is currently a board member of TOBA and the Thoroughbred Charities of America.
Terry Finley
Terry Finley is the founder and CEO of West Point Thoroughbreds, Inc. – the largest Thoroughbred partnership management company in the United States.
Mr. Finley grew the company from one investor and one claiming horse in 1991 to its current state of over 500 investors and more than 65 horses under his management. West Point horses regularly compete in elite races including the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, Belmont Stakes, Dubai World Cup and Breeders’ Cup World Championships. West Point’s Commanding Curve finished second in the 2014 Kentucky Derby and the company is a minority owner of 2017 Kentucky Derby winner Always Dreaming.
Mr. Finley has served on numerous Thoroughbred industry boards of directors including Breeders’ Cup Ltd., NTRA Horse PAC, Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association and the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association. He currently serves on the boards of the Jackie Robinson Foundation, the Thoroughbred Charities of America, Catholic Leadership Institute and the Johnny Mac Soldiers Fund.
Mr. Finley graduated with a degree in Mechanical Engineering from West Point and earned a Master of Science in Business Administration from Boston University. In 2014, he completed the Owner/President Management Program – a three-year executive education course at the Harvard Business School for CEOs and executive leaders. He lives in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. with his wife and business partner Debbie. His daughter Erin is the communications director and racing manager at West Point Thoroughbreds. His son Ryan is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame and played professional soccer in the MLS and Europe.
Marshall Gramm
Marshall Gramm grew up in Washington, D.C. and, despite having no connection to horse racing, became interested in the sport from childhood because of the statistical and problem-solving aspects of betting. As an Economics Ph.D. and professor, his primary research focus is on gambling and betting markets. He has over a dozen academic publications related to the sport of horse racing.
Mr. Gramm bought his first horse in 2008. In 2010, he and Clay Sanders partnered together on their first horse and later co-founded High Point Thoroughbred Partners, the ninth-leading owner in the country by wins and leading owner at Parx Racing and Monmouth Park in 2013. In 2016 Gramm and Sanders co-founded Ten Strike Racing. Ten Strike Racing has won over 200 races at 24 different racetracks including seven stakes wins and was leading owner at Parx Racing in 2016 and 2017. Ten Strike Racing currently has more than 50 active partners and 50 horses in training. From a small breeding operation, Mr. Gramm has bred two stakes winners.
Drawn to the sport from his interest in handicapping, Mr. Gramm is an avid bettor and has qualified six times for the National Handicapping Championships (NHC). He finished ninth in the 2019 NHC and fifth in the 2018 Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge. He earned a B.A. from Rice University and a Ph.D. in Economics from Texas A&M University. A resident of Memphis, Tennessee, he is currently a Professor and Chair of the Department in Economics at Rhodes College. He serves on the board of the Thoroughbred Idea Foundation (TIF).
Stephanie Hronis
Stephanie Hronis, part of the Eclipse Award-winning ownership Hronis Racing family, has been swept up by horse racing and its many facets. She was born and raised into agriculture in California’s Central Valley and returned after attending college. Stephanie received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Deaf Studies and Master of Arts Degree in Education with an emphasis in School Counseling. She was in education for over 20 years as a school counselor for kindergarten through adult aged students, adjunct college and university instructor and Family Resource Center director. From this experience and her upbringing, she has a passion for life-long learning, earning your place “on the planet”, in-depth understanding of an organization or task she is involved with and especially the opportunity to collaborate with others.
Ms. Hronis cares about the backside workers and their well-being. Because of this, she is honored to be on the board of directors for the Edwin J. Gregson Foundation. During the past seven years, horse racing has become a significant part of her life. Due to the great respect for their trainer, John Sadler, the family’s stable has grown rapidly since her husband Kosta and his brother Pete founded Hronis Racing, LLC in 2010. They have campaigned Eclipse Award and multiple graded stakes winners Accelerate and Stellar Wind. Collectively, their stable has trained eighteen G1, fifteen G2 and eight G3 stakes winners. They have also won leading owner awards for Del Mar, Santa Anita and the Thoroughbred Owners of California. Ms. Hronis attends the races regularly and has quickly learned much about the sport. She has great regard for the stable they have built. Her respect towards the horses and the advancement of the industry are her priorities.
She and her husband Kosta enjoy their family and sharing the racing experience with them when possible. Together they have five children; Demetri (Marcie), Hailey (Kyle), Nia, Kailee and Corey and four grandchildren; Adoniah, Nikoletta, Kosta and Alexandria. They adore them each greatly.
John Greely IV
Mr. Greely has worked for Hall of Fame trainer Mack Miller and trainers Criquette Head, Alex Scott and Tom Proctor. While running Wintergreen, he has raised and sold such top horses as Borrego, Timber Country, Favorite Trick, Fort Wood, Pollard’s Vision and Five Star Day. He is a graduate of the Baylor School in Chattanooga as well as the University of Kentucky.
Billy Koch
Billy Koch was first introduced to the world of horse racing when he was six-years-old. His grandfather, the late Hollywood legend Howard W. Koch (Airplane, Ghost), owned Telly’s Pop with partner Telly Savalas (Kojak).
After graduating from Northwestern University, Mr. Koch put together partnerships with friends and became convinced sharing the experience of horse racing was more rewarding than owning alone.
He founded the Little Red Feather Racing Club (LRF), named for a fictitious Indian chief who was the centerpiece of his grandfather’s bedtime stories, in 2002 with one horse. Since that time LRF had campaigned Grade 1 stars Singletary and Egg Drop.
LRF is currently considered the largest racing club in California with over 300 active partners and 25 horses in training. Mr. Koch has served on the board of the Thoroughbred Owners of California and currently serves on the board of Carma, the California Retirement Management Account.
Brant Laue, Chairman
Brant Laue is the owner of Laue Ranch Racing Stable, a Kentucky-based racing and breeding operation. Mr. Laue entered racing through a partnership in 1996 and started his own stable in 2000. He has bred, raced, or sold ten individual stakes horses, including three homebred stakes winners, among them Grade I winner Gun Salute and Grade II winner Glorious View.
Mr. Laue is a partner in a Kansas family ranching operation that breeds and markets purebred Charolais cattle and Quarter Horses. A graduate of the Cornell Law School, Mr. Laue practiced law in Kansas City for 25 years, and previously served in the U.S. Justice Department, as chief counsel to two Kansas governors, and as the Solicitor General of Kansas. He is the former chairman of the American Royal Livestock Show & Rodeo, president of the Kansas Charolais Association, and chairman of the rules and ethics committee of the American-International Charolais Association. Mr. Laue has served as chairman of TOBA since 2019 and is a member of the American Graded Stakes Committee.
Solomon Kumin
Mr. Kumin currently serves as a director on the board of Starwood Property Trust (“STWD”). He also serves on the boards of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD, The Fessenden School in Newton, MA, The Trust Board at Boston Children’s Hospital and Team Impact in Quincy, MA. He is currently serving as Chairman of the US Lacrosse Foundation Board and is a member of the Johns Hopkins University Lacrosse Advisory Board.
Mr. Kumin is also a member the Breeders’ Cup Board, Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association Board, and the Belmont Child Care Association Board.
Mr. Kumin holds a BA in political science from Johns Hopkins University.
Kevin Lavin
Jason Loutsch
Jason Loutsch is a native of Des Moines, Iowa and his passion for the sport of horse racing has never been higher. Loutsch, the general manager and owner of Albaugh Family Stables beside his father-in-law Dennis Albaugh, is a longtime Iowa Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association member.
Albaugh Family Stables has fielded Kentucky Derby horses in three of the last four years. Loutsch, an admirer of Thoroughbreds since childhood, purchased his first horse in 2005 – Miss Macy Sue. She produced Liam’s Map and Not This Time. Loutsch has been addicted to the sport ever since.
Away from the track, Loutsch is a local businessman who specializes in real estate and digital media. A father of two girls, Loutsch is a 1998 graduate of Iowa State University.
Kenneth McPeek
Mr. McPeek has found and/or trained such quality racehorses as Dream Empress, Curlin, Einstein (Brz), Flashy American, Frac Daddy, Golden Ticket, Harlan’s Holiday, Hard Buck (Brz), Her Temper, Java’s War, Kathmanblu, Leah’s Secret, Noble’s Promise, Prince Arch, Pure Fun, Repent, Rosalind, Salty Strike, Sarava, She’s A Devil Due, Sweet Talker, Tejano Run, Take Charge Lady, War Dancer and Wild Desert, among others. Mr. McPeek has won over 155 stakes so far in his career with over 50 of them Graded.
Mr. McPeek earned his first Graded Stakes win in the 1994 Grade II Beaumont Stakes with Her Temper. In 2002, he gained his first Grade I stakes win with Harlan’s Holiday in the Florida Derby and then won his first Toyota Bluegrass Stakes. That same year, he also earned his first Classic win, with Sarava in the 2002 Belmont Stakes. He has won back-to-back Spinster Stakes with Take Charge Lady in 2002 and 2003 and back-to-back Gulfstream Park Breeders’ Cup Handicaps with Hard Buck (Brz) and Prince Arch in 2004 and 2005. Other Grade I victories include the Travers Stakes, Hollywood Starlet, the Ashland Stakes twice, Dixiana Breeders’ Futurity and the Darley Alcibiades Stakes three times in his career. He races primarily at Keeneland, Churchill Downs, Gulfstream Park, Saratoga and Belmont Park, as well as keeping a division at his Magdalena Farm in Lexington.
Bernard McCormack
Mr. McCormack also served as a member of Equine Canada’s industry committee and acted as an advisor on the Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse advisory committees to the Ontario Racing Commission. He is a member of The Jockey Club of Canada.
Mr. McCormack and his wife Karen started their Cara Bloodstock horse operation in 1996 and purchased their own farm, Mapleshade, in 2004. In 2008 the first sales agency horses under the Cara Bloodstock banner were offered and it presently offers consignments to most of the major sales. A recent milestone was breeding and selling the winner of the Queen’s Plate in 2016. The farm is home to 10 mares and their offspring which are offered through the agency in both Canada and the United States.
David O’Farrell, Chairman
David O’Farrell serves as manager of Ocala Stud, the farm that his grandfather, Joe O’Farrell, started in 1956 and is currently the oldest active Thoroughbred farm in the state of Florida. The farm is among the leading stallion, breeding and training operations in the nation and sells its entire crop each year at the two-year-old in training sales. The farm currently stands 12 stallions, owns approximately 50 broodmares and breaks approximately 100 yearlings each year for clients in addition to the farm’s crop.
Ocala Stud sold its first entire crop of juveniles in 1958, a tradition that the farm continues to this day. Ocala Stud has bred and sold more than 155 stakes winners to date and was named TOBA’s 2012 National Breeder of the Year.
A graduate of Erskine College, Mr. O’Farrell is involved in all aspects of Ocala Stud’s operations including: breeding, training, two-year-old sales consignment, stallion management, stallion season sales, stallion recruitment, broodmare acquisition, advertising, etc. He is a member of Breeders’ Cup Limited and also serves on the TAA board of directors and is a trustee of
TOBA. Mr. O’Farrell and his wife Allison have three children, Maggie (10), Annie (8) and John (6).
Charlie O’Connor
Mr. O’Connor also owned and managed a successful seafood bar and restaurant called “The Moorings” for three years in Co. Waterford before moving to Kentucky. Earlier in his career, he worked for David Mullins at Donninga Farm before moving to work for Audley Farm in Virginia. Mr. O’Connor is an avid golfer and racing fan and is a member of the Thoroughbred Club of America. Married to his wife Debbie of 12 years, they have two sons, Jack and Max, and live in Versailles, Ky.
Garrett O’Rourke
Garrett O’Rourke was born in Ireland in 1963. He graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce Degree from University College Dublin. He came to Kentucky in 1986 and initially worked at Ashford Stud. He managed Creek View Farm from 1988-1992. He is currently manager of Juddmonte Farms and was Farm Manager of the Year in 2001.
Mr. O’Rourke helped form the Kentucky Equine Management Internship to attract and coach future management for farms.
He is past president of Kentucky Thoroughbred Association (KTA/KTOB) and currently serves on the boards of TOBA, KTA and Breeders’ Cup Ltd. and was a past board member of Gluck Equine Research Center. Mr. O’Rourke also owns Breffni Farm. Mr. O’Rourke’s wife Rhonda is an equine veterinarian and partner at Hagyard Equine. His father Willie was a veterinarian and was later managing director of Tattersalls Ireland.
Kenneth Ramsey
Mr. Ramsey is a graduate of the University of Kentucky and is currently on the board of trustees of Union College in Barboursville, Kentucky. Prior to horse racing Mr. Ramsey was involved in the trucking business, real estate and the cellular phone business, but his greatest passion has been horses since he was a little boy and saw the Twins Spires in Louisville.
www.ramseyfarm.com
Mike Rogers
Mr. Rogers started his career in the horse racing industry more than 27 years ago. In the early days, he held various positions including hot walker, groom and jockey’s valet. He later became a licensed owner and breeder of Thoroughbreds and in 1996, became a sports agent representing jockeys in Canada and United States.
In 1998, Mr. Rogers joined Adena Springs as business manager and for the past 16 years has been actively involved in the Thoroughbred operations of owner and breeder Frank Stronach. He also commits his time to serving on numerous industry boards including the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, Thoroughbred Racing Associations, Thoroughbred Racing Protective Bureau, Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund and the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium.
Stephen Screnci
Stephen Screnci is currently the president of 1/ST Racing. Prior to accepting this position in June of 2022, he was a practicing attorney in the states of Florida and Massachusetts. He was born and raised just outside of Boston, Massachusetts. He attended Suffolk University where he earned his B.S. in Business Management and graduated cum laude from the New England School of Law.
While still in Boston, Mr. Screnci purchased his first racehorse in 1992 and has since then been active in all aspects of the business, including breeding, pinhooking and racing under his own name and with various partnerships. Just this past year, he experienced winning his first graded stakes race when his filly, Kate’s Kingdom, won the Grade 3 Ontario Matron Stakes.
After serving his first three years as a director for the Florida Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association (FTHA), he was elected and served as president for his remaining four years on the FTHA Board. As president of FTHA, Mr. Screnci, together with the board of directors, implemented policies and protocols which have resulted in substantial improvements to the horse racing industry in South Florida. During the short time he has been with 1/ST Racing, he played a large role in securing $55 million in racing subsidies and structuring pari-mutuel tax credits against the ongoing financial obligations recently incurred by Florida tracks under HISA.
Presently, he lives in Boca Raton, Florida with his wife, Cindy, who is an avid dressage equestrian rider currently training to earn a spot on the 2024 U.S. Paralympic Equestrian Team. He has two children, a daughter, Lia, who currently works and lives in Nashville, Tennessee. Lia rode for the USGA Equestrian Team prior to graduating from the University of Georgia. His son, Bradley, who is entering his senior year at Drexel Law School, graduated with a B.S in Economics from American University.
Jack Wolf
Mr. Wolf and his wife, Laurie, entered the Thoroughbred business in 2000 by founding Starlight Stables. In their first year of racing they campaigned multiple Grade I winner Harlan’s Holiday. Starlight also owned and campaigned 2012 undefeated two-year-old champion Shanghai Bobby, two-time Eclipse Award winner and 2014 Hall of Fame electee Ashado, 2007 Kentucky Oaks runner-up Octave and undefeated Graded Stakes winner Algorithms.
Mr. Wolf orchestrated the launch of the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance (TAA), the industry’s first broad-based initiative dedicated to helping retired Thoroughbreds. Mr. Wolf serves as board president of TAA and also serves on the board of trustees of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association. The Wolfs split their time between Louisville, Ky. and Saratoga Springs, N.Y.
Bryan Sullivan
Before pursuing Let’s Go full-time in the fall of 2007, Mr. Sullivan spent seven years working for The Clinton Group, a New York based hedge fund. He has spent the last 15 years working closely with the father-son due of J.J. and Todd Pletcher and credits them for his understanding and knowledge of the game. He is a Fairfield University graduate with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science.
Mr. Sullivan is actively involved in the Thoroughbred community, as he currently serves on the executive board of the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance. He currently resides in Rumson, New Jersey with his wife and four daughters.
Greg Bensel
Mr. Bensel oversees and manages GMB Racing – the horse racing operation for Gayle Benson, a multi-million dollar horse business which she started in 2014. Three of GMB Racing’s horses – Tom’s Ready, Mo Tom and Lone Sailor, have competed in the Kentucky Derby. GMB Racing currently has nearly 25 horses in the racing stable that include veteran five-year olds as well as up and coming yearlings. In addition, Mr. Bensel works with the staff at Benson Farm at Greenwood Lodge in Paris, Ky. managing and planning breedings for the current Benson Farm broodmare band.
Mr. Bensel is senior vice president of communications for the New Orleans Saints and New Orleans Pelicans. Mr. Bensel has also worked on the NFL public relations staffs for three Super Bowls. Prior to joining the Saints, Mr. Bensel was director of media relations for the Super Bowl XXXI Host Committee and the Greater New Orleans Sports Foundation. He has also served on the media committee for the NCAA Men’s Final Four, the SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament and the Sugar Bowl. He is a New Orleans native who graduated from Jesuit High School and Tulane University.
Robert J. Edwards Jr.
Robert Edwards is a Florida businessman who over the last two decades has successfully founded and sold pharmaceutical companies and pharmaceutical assets. Engaged in the development, manufacturing, and distribution of generic pharmaceuticals Mr. Edwards has expanded his generic offerings to the animal market. Currently, he is the founder and CEO of e5 Pharma, LLC and Old Everglades Distillery which looks to break ground in Broward County mid-2018.
In 2015 Mr. Edwards attended his wife Kristine’s family reunion in her hometown of Saratoga, N.Y. and was introduced to horse racing by a business partner and friend. What started as one New York-bred purchase quickly turned into a quality stable of weanlings, yearlings, horses in training and a solid broodmare band. Mr. Edwards and his e5 Racing Thoroughbreds, LLC stable has had an unbelievable streak of luck winning four stakes races before earning their first Maiden Special Weight. The stable’s most remarkable stat is winning three Breeders’ Cup Races in two years. Mr. Edwards holds a BS in Business from Lynn University and is a U.S. Army Reserve Veteran.
Tanya Gunther
Born in Vancouver, Canada, Tanya Gunther was raised on a small farm in the horse-oriented town of Langley, British Columbia. Miss Gunther grew up around horses, learning to ride at a young age and competing in the hunter/jumper/equitation world in addition to being a frequent attendee at the races from an early age with her father, John Gunther, mother Karen and siblings Nicky and Spud. After attaining a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of British Columbia and a Masters in Finance from London Business School, Miss Gunther pursued an investment-banking career in London, focusing on equity capital markets and mergers and acquisitions. Miss Gunther then made the decision to give it all up to follow her heart and pursue her passion for Thoroughbred horse racing.
Miss Gunther left London for Kentucky in 2007 with the sole goal of helping her father breed a champion racehorse one day at Glennwood, his 350-acre farm based in Versailles, Ky. Miss Gunther has combined her analytical background with her love for horses, avid interest in pedigrees, and hands-on approach to help breed and raise top-level equine athletes at the farm and also expand their focus to include a select group of horses being bred in Europe. A number of remarkable horses have been bred during this father-daughter joined forces period, with the ultimate achievement embodied in the 2018 Triple Crown winner, Justify.
Walker Hancock
Walker Hancock, the son of Seth and Debbie Hancock, is the fifth generation of Hancock’s to run his family’s Claiborne Farm. The farm was established in the early 1900’s when A.B. Hancock Sr. transferred his operation from Virginia to Paris, Ky. Claiborne has won Eclipse Awards as leading breeder in 1979 and 1984, Eclipse Award of Merit in 2001 and has been the premier North American breeder by money won 10 times.
Claiborne has been a part of Walker’s entire life as he learned to work and handle horses at the early age of eight. After attending Sayre School in Lexington, he went on to attend the University of Florida where he majored in Animal Sciences with a minor in Agricultural Sales and Marketing. During summer vacations from school, Walker would work at Claiborne with the yearling sales prep team. As a requirement from his major, he needed to fulfill an internship within his
respective industry. Walker had the opportunity to fill that obligation in the summer of 2010 working alongside the Keeneland Sales Inspection team.
Upon graduation from Florida in May of 2012, Walker went to work for trainer Al Stall, first at Saratoga, then at Keeneland. For the 2013 breeding season, Walker was the resident vet technician at Claiborne. Once the breeding season ended, he spent time shadowing his father, Seth, as well as Claiborne’s farm manager Bradley Purcell, taking a larger role in the Keeneland September Sale consignment as well as day-to-day farm operations. In early 2014, Walker became the president of Claiborne Farm and Seth Hancock became chairman of the board.
R. Glenn Sikura
The owner/operator of Hill ‘n’ Dale Canada, located in King, Ontario, R. Glenn Sikura, has contributed to Canadian Thoroughbred racing as a breeder, owner, and sales agent while also holding key positions with organizations representing various aspects of the Canadian Thoroughbred industry. Mr. Sikura has served as chief steward of The Jockey Club of Canada since 2018 and is the past-president of the National and Ontario Divisions of the CTHS, past-president of the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame, a founding member and past-president of OHRIA, and former director of Breeders’ Cup Ltd. and trustee of TOBA.
As owner of Hill ‘n’ Dale Farms Sales Agency in Toronto, to date he has sold 149 stakes horses that have won over $80,000,000 and 2,500 races. In Kentucky, horses he has sold include G1 Arlington Million S. winner Jambalaya, and G1 Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint winner Maryfield. Other successful sales graduates include Canadian Horse of the Year A Bit o’ Gold, and Sovereign Award winners Dynamic Sky, Inglorious, and One for Rose.
As an owner/breeder, Mr. Sikura campaigned champion Sovereign Award winner Serenading, and stakes winners Handpainted and Painting. As a horse breeder who foals mares for clients across North America, it is estimated that he personally has delivered most of the approximately 1,500 horses foaled at the farm. Mr. Sikura is also the recipient of a BloodHorse Mint Julep Cup for lifetime contribution to the Thoroughbred industry in 2016, and an Award of Merit from the CTHS Ontario Division. He will be inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame in August 2023.
Mandy Pope
Mandy Pope grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina where her love for horses began by riding ponies and showing hunters by the age of seven. She graduated from Purdue University with a Bachelor of Science degree in business management. After graduation her involvement and love of show horses brought her to Ocala, Florida where she continued showing.
The show horse connection introduced her to the Thoroughbred industry, which she found to be a fascinating business that could be profitable. She bought a 55-acre farm in 1982 and named it Whisper Hill Farm after one of her favorite show horses “Blue Whisper.” She bought one mare and two weanlings, and the business began.
Ms. Pope is on the board of directors of Variety Wholesalers Inc., which is a family-owned business of discount stores. Ms. Pope is also on the board of directors of the John Williams Pope Foundation, which is based in North Carolina and provides grants supporting public policy, education, human services, and the arts, including organizations like the Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation.
Ms. Pope’s Whisper Hill Farm has grown in size and number with an emphasis on quality as a commercial breeder and racing stable. She has acquired some of the top broodmare prospects in the industry such as Havre De Grace and Songbird and is realizing returns on that investment through their progeny at the racetrack and sales. Whisper Hill Farm has become one of the premier organizations in the industry with successes at breeding, buying, selling, and racing.
Michael Banahan
Michael Banahan was born and raised in Co. Meath Ireland. He graduated from Multyfarnham Ag College in 1983. He spent his formative years gaining international experience working for Coolmore in Ireland and America, Colin Hayes at Lindsay Park in Australia, Guy Harwood in the UK, and Bill Mott in the U.S.
Since 1993 he has worked for Darley/Godolphin in both Newmarket and Lexington and currently serves as director of bloodstock for Godolphin USA. He serves on the following industry boards, Gluck Equine Research Foundation as vice chairman, Kentucky Equine Management Internship and Kentucky Thoroughbred Association (KTA/KTOB).
He lives in Lexington with his wife Kathryn and they have three children; Grace a graduate of the University of Louisville and dental hygienist, Brian, graduated from the University of South Carolina playing four years as a division 1 soccer player for the Gamecocks and is currently a student at the Irish National Stud, and Laura an upcoming sophomore at Furman University.
Ben Bernhard
Ben Bernhard serves as vice president of Pin Oak Stud, a breeding and racing farm purchased by his family in 2022.
He earned his undergraduate degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Notre Dame before getting his Masters in Space Engineering from Caltech.
He worked at SpaceX for two years as a Guidance, Navigation, and Control (GNC) Engineer. In this role, Ben led the full GNC mission design for numerous Falcon rocket launches, from initial trajectory design and algorithm development to final launch operations in mission control.
As vice president of Pin Oak Stud, his primary focus is bringing new technology into the farm’s operations and using modern data science to inform financial analysis and business strategy. Ben recently launched Stable Analytics, a tech startup specializing in horse racing technology development and data analysis.
Jake Ballis
Jake Ballis was born and raised in Houston, Texas and was introduced to horse racing at a young age by his father, who campaigned champion sprinter Groovy as well as multiple grade I winner Goodbye Halo.
Jake played basketball at the University of Houston, where he graduated with a degree in business management. After working in the sports management business for 10 years, he moved to Lexington, Kentucky to pursue a career in the Thoroughbred racing industry.
In 2019 he formed a racing syndicate, Black Type Thoroughbreds, and had their first starter in 2020. Since then, Black Type Thoroughbreds has bought and campaigned several stakes horses including Up In Smoke, Sacred Wish, Pass The Champagne, Hidden Connection, Actuator, Youalmosthadme, Amidst Waves, and won the Queen Mary at Royal Ascot with Crimson Advocate. Jake lives in Lexington with his wife Maddie and two children, Caroline and Bo.
Tina Marie Bond
Tina Marie Bond grew up in the Finger Lakes region of New York state. She is a graduate of Bryant & Stratton Business Institute and has worked for Xerox Corporation documenting computer systems, Eastman Kodak in the Foreign Exchange Department and ESL Federal Credit Union as an investment specialist.
In 1996 Tina left the corporate world and began working full time in the Thoroughbred industry. She has been breeding, raising, and racing Thoroughbred racehorses for 40 years. Tina and her husband Jim own, manage, and reside at Song Hill Thoroughbreds LLC. Song Hill, a 100+ acre farm in the town of Stillwater, New York is home to broodmares, weanlings, yearlings, and horses on layup. The Bonds break their yearlings as well as retrain their retired racehorses at Song Hill for their second careers. The Bonds also have a 40-stall private barn in Saratoga that is home to their racehorses from April until November.
Tina is the managing partner of Bond Racing Stable, president of the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association and National Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association and serves on the board of directors of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association.
Brook Smith
Brook Smith lives in Louisville, Kentucky. After graduating from Clemson University with a degree in finance, he returned to Kentucky and launched a career in the insurance industry, specifically surety, as a broker with his agency Smith Manus (now Acrisure) and as a risk taker when a partner in Lexon Insurance Group (sold to Sompo).
He is a serial entrepreneur and supporter of numerous philanthropic endeavors. Brook owned his first horses 20 years ago but has been most active in recent years primarily through his Rocket Ship Racing, winning a handful of stake races while having several runners graded stakes placed. Most recently, he joined Coolmore and their connections and is a co-owner of Sierra Leone.
Brook and his wife Pam have three sons in their twenties.
Braxton Lynch
Braxton Lynch is an active participant in racing and breeding. She and her husband, Damian, own and operate Royal Oak Farm in Paris, Kentucky where they foal, raise and sell Thoroughbreds. In 2018, she and two partners started BBN Racing, a racing syndicate that she manages and has already been successful with Concrete Rose (G1) and Hidden Stash (2021 Kentucky Derby starter). She was introduced to the game by her grandparents, Harry and Jane Lunger, who owned the successful Christiana Stables, which she and her mother continue to operate today. After graduating from Trinity College in Connecticut, Ms. Lynch was director of sales at Three Chimneys for 10 years. In 2002, she and her husband purchased Royal Oak Farm. They are hands-on horsepeople who constantly put the health and well-being of the horse first. Ms. Lynch is the former president of the Kentucky Thoroughbred Association (KTA/KTOB) and also serves on the Grayson Jockey Club Research Foundation board, as well as a former board member of the Thoroughbred Charities of America. Her passion for the horse, the game of racing, and the future of our sport is palpable. Ms. Lynch resides at Royal Oak Farm with her husband and three children, Dylan, Henry, and Robin.
Francis Vanlangendonck
Francis Vanlangendonck was born and raised in Louisiana where he started working with horses after school at the age of fourteen. While attending LSU he realized that horses were his true passion and thus began a self-education program that took him coast to coast from New York to California to Kentucky learning sales prep, sales representation, reproduction, training, and stallion management. He learned to ride as an apprentice to the Master of the Hounds in Richmond, Virginia with Deep Run Hunt Club. Eventually he took a farm manager’s position in Ocala, Florida and knew he had found a home.
Mr. Vanlangendonck has owned and managed the same piece of land in northwest Marion County since 1983. He is the president of Summerfield Sales Agency, Inc. which is the largest Thoroughbred yearling sales agency based in Florida and has been one of the largest nationally for over two decades. He and his wife, Barbara, have sold well over $150 million in bloodstock including champions Gamine, Xtra Heat and Champagne Room. Summerfield offers consignments at all major sales venues including Keeneland, Saratoga, Fasig-Tipton Kentucky and Ocala Breeders’ Sales Company. Both of their sons, Arthur and Andrew, have followed their parents into the horse industry. Mr. Vanlangendonck has been a member of the Ocala Breeders’ Sales Company’s board of directors since 1990, and currently serves as the chairman of the board. He also serves on the board of the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders’ and Owners’ Association as well as managing the bloodstock interests of several farms in the Ocala area.