Page 130 - January 2019

“Never give up. Work hard. Watch your horses, make sure each one is happy & enjoying life.”
by John Moorehouse
NAME: Seth Ferguson
HOME BASE: Anthony, New Mexico YEARS OF EXPERIENCE: 3
PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS AND ACHIEVEMENTS: The best I’ve ever done would be to qualify Machismo Moon to the 2017 All American Derby as a second-year trainer. That is my greatest achievement
so far.
FAVORITE HOBBY: Probably just working out. I like to go the gym. Mostly weights, that’s my main thing, and I do a lot of cardio, too.
Q: What led you to decide to become a trainer?
A: Growing up watching horse racing, I was always intrigued about the race horses. When my parents would take me to our trainer to go see the horses, I liked the barns and the backside. I didn’t have a big interest in college and didn’t know what I was going to do. I had some ideas, but they weren’t anything good. I just helped out my mom each summer prepping horses for the sales, and then I decided to go try to work on the racetrack. I first started at a training facil- ity in Frontera with Joel Marr. After working for him for a couple of months, I thought I had better go back to school because the job’s pretty hard. I went back to school and still couldn’t find anything I wanted to do, so I got back out and I called Mike Joiner. I worked for him for a year. When I went to work for Mike, that’s when I decided I wanted to train horses.
Q: Who was the biggest influence in your decision to be a trainer?
A: Mike Joiner. My family, too. But, Mike Joiner was the biggest influence to show me this game and how to do well in it. He taught me a lot—more things than I knew that I was learning at that time.
Q: Any particular lessons that stand out to you?
A: Off the top of my head, that in this sport, nothing’s in black and white. You just make the best decisions that you can for the horses.
Q: As a younger person and a relatively new trainer, what do you think needs to happen to keep the sport growing?
A: To me, and for what my mom is always working toward, is to clean up the sport. Running clean and doing everything natural and giving everyone a fight- ing chance. I think that would help. That’s what I see. If the sport’s cracking down on testing and making sure everything’s right in New Mexico, then other states will work strong to better the sport. In that sense, I believe that would help for the future. Clean racing, that’s what makes me want to keep running.
Q: What’s it like working for your family?
A: For me, it’s a blessing. My family has always been
there. We’ve always helped each other out with the farm, our cattle and our horses. Without them, I wouldn’t be able to do this at all. It’s just been a blessing for me.
Q: What are the steps you take to make sure a horse stays ready from race to race?
A: I individualize the horses. I’m trying to use quality over quantity at the moment. I don’t want a large barn and I don’t want to run claimers. I want stakes and allow- ance horses. My program is designed to individualize each horse, that way I can have them ready from race to race and make sure that they receive all the special treatment they need to stay at their best and learn at their best.
Q: As a relatively new trainer yourself, what advice would you give to anyone else looking to enter the field?
A: Never give up. Work hard. Watch your horses, make sure each one is happy and enjoying life. Treat wins and losses the same. As long as you can get them to perform at their best, that’s the greatest thing you can achieve for that individual.
A Trainer’s Perspective
Seth Ferguson
John Moorehouse
126
SPEEDHORSE, January 2019
THE BACKSIDE