HOT SPRINGS, Ark. - Horses are creatures of habit and the millionaire Quietside and her trainer, John Ortiz, have developed a “harmonious” training routine as she prepares for the Grade 2, $400,000 Azeri on March 7 at Oaklawn.
Ortiz, a former exercise rider, has started regularly galloping Quietside.
“We stand at the quarter pole every morning and we put on a few tunes on my I-phone,” Ortiz said.
“We do some modern hipster jazz music. She seems to like that. There’s a song called ‘Can I Call You Rose?’ That’s her jam. We listen to the whole song while all the horses gallop by and once we finish, me and her, we just lope to this tune. She’s doing fantastic.”
Quietside emerged as the top 3-year-old filly of the Oaklawn meet last season for breeder and owner Shortleaf Stable when the daughter of Malibu Moon won both the Honeybee and the Fantasy. She launched her 4-year-old season last month and ran third to champion Nitrogen in the Grade 3 Bayakoa at Oaklawn.
The field for the Azeri was to have been drawn Sunday.
“We’re going to be going in the Azeri, and obviously, we’re going to be looking to run against Nitrogen,” Ortiz said. “Hopefully, we can turn the tables. I really feel how good she feels, and that’s got me feeling real confident.”
Sounds like a horse and rider in perfect rhythm.
Lukas, Turcotte memorabilia
Racing memorabilia from Hall of Fame horsemen D. Wayne Lukas and Ron Turcotte, both of whom died last year, will be auctioned to raise funds for the Arkansas Racetrack Chaplaincy. The items will be available at the organization’s annual banquet on March 12 at the event center at Oaklawn.
Chaplain Robi Heffington said a Turcotte-signed saddle towel with two photos displayed in a shadow box will be auctioned, as will a number of items from Lukas. He kept a stable at Oaklawn, and a wall box and foot box from his barn will be available. There also are stall plaques bearing his initials, ‘DWL.’ Heffington said the Lukas items also include a set of his sunglasses and the rain slicker he wore on the cover of a book he wrote.
“Our live auction is really coming together good,” said Heffington.
It also features a hotel stay and dinner from Oaklawn, a framed oil painting of Sandman winning last year’s Arkansas Derby by award-winning artist Renee Torbit, and a custom-made saddle towel quilt. Tickets to the program, which includes a buffet, are $100.
National HBPA meets
The National Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association will have its 2026 conference from Tuesday, March 3, through Saturday, March 7, at Oaklawn. The track has a hotel and event center.
Everett Dobson, chairman of The Jockey Club, will be the keynote speaker on Wednesday, March 4. He will be introduced by Oaklawn analyst Nancy Holthus, who on Thursday will conduct a Q & A with trainer Jinks Fires as he receives the Living Legend Award. There also will be an awards ceremony for Thoroughbred Industry Employees and for Surprisinglyperfect, who will be honored as the 2025 Claiming Horse of the Year.
A slew of subjects will be discussed during various panels, including one on medications and another on second careers for racehorses. There also will be time for attending the races at Oaklawn.
*** Trainer John Ortiz said Doc Sullivan, a four-time stakes winner who has earned more than $750,000, and Moe Eighty Eight, who popped a 109 Beyer Speed Figure winning an allowance in his 3-year-old finale in December at Aqueduct, are both settled in at Oaklawn. The New York-bred horses worked Saturday and are both owned by Tristar Farm.
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