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Women In Racing
Susan Wood
Outrider at Woodbine Raceway in Ontario, Canada
WOODBINE OUTRIDER AMONG HONOREES FOR WHITE HORSE AWARD
Susan Wood never expected to find herself at an awards ceremony in Texas for the work she has done as a parade marshal for the Woodbine Entertainment Group. After her first week in the position some 16 years ago, it was questionable whether she would even continue with the job. But Wood did continue, and in October 2004 she was among four racetrack workers honored by the Race Track Chaplaincy of America at its White Horse Heroes Luncheon prior to the Breeders Cup at Lone Star Park near Dallas.
The highlight of the luncheon was the presentation of the second annual White Horse Award, which is given to the backstretch or racing farm worker determined to have performed the most heroic act on behalf of human or horse. The RTCA, founded in 1971, sanctions and oversees 48 chaplains, who serve at 76 tracks and training centers across nation. Its mission is to provide for the spiritual, emotional, physical and social needs of horse racing's workforce.
Wood was nominated for her actions several years ago at Woodbine Racetrack when she pulled a horse out of a race after driver Chris Christoforou’s reins broke from the bit just as the race started. Although she failed to win the award, which was given to jockey John Woodley for helping rescue two young boys from a burning mobile home near Fairmount Park in Illinois, Wood enjoyed her trip. She was in Texas for five days, received $1,000 and got to see the Breeders Cup in addition to touring the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
"I was almost grateful I didn't have to make a speech," Wood said. "It was just thrilling enough to be there. When we heard (Woodley's) story, we all looked at each other and said that he deserved to win; he risked his life. It was a very memorable experience."
A friend nominated Wood for the award, and had a tape of the incident, which was provided to the Rev. Ed Donnally, the chaplaincy's development director. "It was sort of rare because they haven't gotten many Standardbred nominations," Wood said.
Wood and her horse, Cricket, came to Christoforou's aid after the driver started calling for help immediately after the race began, despite getting away from the gate in first place from his spot on the rail. "Just as the gate was taking off, the line buckles failed and the reins came unthreaded to the driver's hands," Wood said. "His horse went to the lead and he had no lines. The starter radioed me and said something was wrong. Chris was yelling for help.
"He was surrounded by racehorses, so I went out behind the field and came up the escape lane and passed the field. I cut in front of him and grabbed him at about the half-mile pole and took him to the outside. You don't want to interfere with the field and cause a major accident. The horse was on autopilot, but at that point Chris wasn't sure what he was going to do. He was getting ready to bail. They didn't have a fence around the infield at that point, so the horse could have gone into the pond, or any number of things."
The incident received widespread attention because it occurred at the front of the field and was seen by race fans both at Woodbine and on the simulcast signal. Wood said she has been involved in far more harrowing situations, but noted, "This is the one that happened to be caught on camera."
Wood's most nerve-wracking moment came during her first week on the job in 1988 when an accident left drivers Tony Kerwood, Steve Condren and Paul Larrabee badly injured on the track. "There were three loose horses coming around at them," Wood recalled. "I caught two horses at once, don't ask me how. I was horrified. I was ready to quit. I thought, 'If this is what it's going to be like, I don't want to do this.' It was very scary. It was pretty dramatic."
For his heroic actions, Woodley received $5,000 and a bronze horse statue. He had climbed through a window of the burning mobile home and pulled out a three-year-old boy and helped locate a 15-month-old boy in the smoke and flames. Unfortunately, the younger boy later died. Other White Horse nominees included Clint Willliams of Sam Houston Race Park, who caught a panicked horse running the wrong direction on the track, and Will Lockridge and Mike Stout of Keeneland Race Course, who protected fallen jockey Patsy Cooksey (who had two broken legs) by waving away a riderless horse charging along the rail.
"A lot of the people there had been in the business for a number of years and they all had stories to tell," Wood said. "Not just stories about their nomination, but all kinds of other experiences with horses. I'd never been to Texas before, and it was marvelous and it was hot. I met some great people. It was just a wonderful experience." |
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