Page 39 - New Mexico Horse Breeder, Fall

from the rosters of big-money races, including the 2017 All American Futurity when
a hair sample from a qualifier screamed “CLENBUTEROL.” Substances such as clenbuterol remain in the hair for an extended period, usually six months. This means horses that have been given clenbuterol in another racing state, prior to arriving in New Mexico with the intention of bagging some of the huge purse money, will almost certainly fail out- of-competition hair testing. It should, however, be remembered that each horse, just like each human, is an individual. The length of time needed to metabolize a substance will vary from one to the other.
As far as New Mexico is concerned, it’s
fine if you want to go into their state and win some of that money but attempting to sneak
in and steal it won’t be tolerated. The expected levels of integrity and honesty applies to all horsemen, in-state as well as out-of-state. That, after all, is the definition of a level playing field. Every time a cheater is kicked out of a competition, the chances for an honest trainer/owner to win with their horse are increased. It’s a simple equation.
The New Mexico Racing Commission
Remember it was noted that the positive changes in New Mexico racing began two years ago.
It was also two years ago, in March, 2016, that Ismael “Izzy” Trejo became the new Executive Director for the NMRC.
News of Trejo’s hiring hit the Internet at 6:45 p.m. on March 15. Readers left comments. One said Trejo’s leaving his West Virginia post m a r k e d a s a d d a y f or r a c i n g i n t h a t s t a t e , t h a t
h e ( Tr e j o) w a s t h e “ b r a i n .” A n o t h e r s a i d , “ I wouldn’t exactly call working in New Mexico a good thing on your resume.” Yikes!
Another said, “Worst racing commission (NMRC) in the industry....I am sure he (Trejo) will become a puppet of the NMRC and will have no decision making powers with the current racing commission.” Ouch!
One of Trejo’s colleagues asked why he wanted to move from a hornet’s nest (West
V i r g i n i a ) i n t o a s n a k e p i t . G o o d n e s s ! Tr e j o j u s t s qu a r e d h i s s hou ld e r s a nd a c t e d l i k e a du c k , letting the comments and dire predictions roll d o w n h i s b a c k .
“I’ve been a regulator in the racing business for a lot of years,” he said. “I’m definitely battle-tested and I knew I was stepping into a
racing jurisdiction that had been ridiculed on a national level.
“I’d watched New Mexico for three years and I knew the job would be a monumental challenge. But I also believed I’d been preparing for this since I graduated in 1995 from the University of Arizona’s Race Track Industry Program.”
Trejo follows a very simple game plan. It goes something like this:
There are rules in place designed to protect horses, jockeys, trainers, owners and, perhaps most importantly, the integrity of the entire racing industry.
There is no frivolous rule; all are important and all serve a purpose.
Follow the rules and everything is fine.
Break the rules and there will be very unpleasant repercussions.
In other words, just do what you’re supposed to do and everybody will enjoy honest competition. But, according to Trejo, there is still a handful of people out there who haven’t received the memo.
Most of Trejo’s days include at least one confrontation of some kind, but most people wouldn’t know it. Trejo speaks softly. He lives in a constant chill. No drama. He doesn’t rattle. And he doesn’t yell. Again, the game plan is simple.
“Everybody at the commission has a deep, deep love of racing,” Trejo commented. “I know that’s what keeps me going and I’m sure that same love applies to everyone else. The best part of our current situation is that it looks as if our efforts are making a difference and we’re taking New Mexico racing in the right direction.”
Trejo and the entire racing commission had a focused goal – to regain the betting public’s trust in the New Mexico racing product. The public needed to actually see positive things happening.
One of the earliest steps was to identify trainers who seemed to stand with at least one foot in hot water 24/7. They and their horses were destined for suspension. Horses testing positive for certain substances automatically find themselves on a 60-day hiatus from racing. Those horses bring in no money for two months. They stand in a stall and wait to be fed and exercised. They’re non-productive, expensive overhead.
Because of the distrust on the part of the betting public, the handle in New Mexico had been flat for a few years. Things, regardless
of what they are, seldom remain flat forever. The law of physics (or something like that) says, eventually, there must be up or down movement. Very seldom does a flat, straight line perform a sudden uptick. (Physics again.) It just always seems easier, and therefore more likely, to slip just a tiny bit and then go into a full-blown, downward spiral.
New Mexico couldn’t allow that to happen since the result would be a slow and arduous recovery if, indeed, any recovery.
A trio of emergency regulatory measures were put into place – 1) out-of-competition testing, 2) a strong post-race testing program, and 3) hair testing, which began in July, 2017.
The result is a strong, interlocking program. In the case of a positive picked up from hair testing, only the horse is prosecuted at this time. Public confidence mounts each time they see a “convicted” horse eliminated
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NMRC Executive Director
Ismael “Izzy” Trejo
FALL 2018 37