Page 119 - July 2019

Q: Do you have a nickname and,
if so, what is it and how did it
come about?
A: My nickname is Izzy. When I first went back East, I’d answer the phone at work with, ‘Thank you for calling Delaware Park racing office, Ismael speaking.’ Trainers would say ‘WHO?’ or ‘WHAT?’ I had to annunciate my name 80 times a day. I got tired of it and one day, just told people my name was Izzy. I replaced ‘Ismael speaking’ with ‘Izzy speaking.’ An old-school trainer from South Carolina named Ham Smith liked it so much, he said, ‘I’m going to
name a horse Izzy Speaking.’ One day I was checking the entries in Maryland and I see a horse named Izzy Speaking who, by the way, developed into a multiple stakes winner. Not that his name had anything to do with it.
Q: What is the strangest personality quirk you have ever seen in a horse? A: My dad had a horse named Squeeze The Breeze that was a gentle giant at the barn. On race days, he turned into a completely different horse in the paddock. One day I asked my dad if I could paddock him for a race, my dad said, ‘You think you could hold him?’ I said, ‘Yes.’ Making a long story short, he dragged me around the paddock, through the flowers and grass at Turf Paradise. No matter how hard I tried to hold him, he obvi- ously was the one in control out there. Once he got back to the barn, he returned to his normal peaceful self.
Q: If you were not in the horse racing business, what job would you like to have?
A: I’d like to own food trucks. I’m sure I’d be my number one customer.
Q: What is your favorite thing about living where you live?
A: I love the view I have of the Sandia Mountains from my back porch. Also, living a few hundred yards from the Rio Grande River makes for peaceful and scenic hikes.
Q: If you could vacation anywhere on the planet, where would it be & what would you do there?
A: What’s a vacation?? Seriously, I think I would like to travel to Spain, but would settle on going fishing at my favorite spot high in the mountains of Arizona.
Q: Do you have a favorite quote and, if so, what is it?
A: “The more you talk, the less people listen to you.”
Q: If you could sit down and visit with anyone, past or present, who would it be?
A: I’d probably just like to spend more time with my mom and dad because they’re good people and I enjoy spending time with them.
Q: Who’s your favorite athlete of all time, and why?
A: Walter Payton, because he was a classy, soft-spoken guy who let his performance on the field speak for itself.
Q: If you were making a movie about yourself, who would you cast to play you, and why?
A: I’d have to say a guy named Larry David, the creator of “Seinfeld.” He also stars in his own show called “Curb Your Enthusiasm.” His character gets himself into awkward but hilarious situations in his everyday life. My sister always says he reminds her of me, as some pretty funny stuff has happened to me over the years.
Q: What’s one thing you don’t like about Quarter Horse racing?
A: I don’t like that the Quarter Horse export simulcast signal is not taken by tracks on the East Coast, which is where the mecca of horse players is.
Q: What’s one thing you like about Quarter Horse racing?
A: I love standing at the finish line and watching all that horse power running towards you and by you. It’s one of the most impressive things I’ve seen in my time watching races.
Izzy’s first steward job was in 2003 at Charles Town Race Track, shown here with fellow stewards Pat Day, Danny Wright and Robert Lotts.
SPEEDHORSE, July 2019 117
THE LIGHTER SIDE