Page 82 - May 2022

Kalie Enlow with her off-the-track Paint horse Ive Got Dark Memories.
80 SPEEDHORSE May 2022
Track To Tack Incentive Program
by John Moorehouse
For most racehorses, a competitive career only lasts a few years. Now, consider that the average horse lives for 25 to 30 years. What
is a retired racehorse supposed to do when their time on the track ends?
Kalie Enlow wanted to give retired racehorses an opportunity for something more. With her Track to Tack program, she is doing just that.
In February, Enlow founded Track to Tack, a non-profit incentive program geared to the performance horse industry. The goal is to
give the owners of former racehorses financial incentives to enter horses in performance events by creating a separate financial side pot ear- marked exclusively for those participants.
In short, Track to Tack seeks to give race- horses a second career—a potential post-racing future that involves more than just being turned out for the rest of their days.
“I want to create opportunities for race- horses that will get people excited to buy one or.... to pull a retired one out of the pasture and make it something,” Enlow explained.
As of now, Track to Tack is targeting barrel racing solely, though Enlow aspires to break into other western equine sports in the future.
Enlow’s husband is Gunnar Enlow, a trainer who works primarily with Paints. They breed many of their starters. You also might know Gunnar’s grandfather—Ray Enlow, whose Quarter Horse and Paint charges have combined to bring in nearly $3.2 million in earnings. One of the elder Enlow’s trainees, Dashin JJ APHA, inadvertently inspired Track to Tack. A four-time APHA Champion who still holds a Track Record at Will Rogers Downs, Dashin JJ was considered too old for any remaining lucrative stakes and also ineli- gible for any progeny incentives.
“Since we raise a lot of our own racehorses, I wanted something that people like me and other people in this industry could compete in for extra money and additional recognition,” Kalie Enlow said.
Here’s how it works. When horses are brought to a barrel racing event, any entries
in the Open division can pay $25 and be added to the Track to Tack side pot, which is eligible only for horses with at least one official start on the racetrack. All breeds are eligible: Quarter Horses, Paints, Appaloosas, and
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