Like many superstars in any field his fame appeared to come over night beginning withSilver Charm in 1997. Truth is that he began his trajectory to stardom at age 10 when he first began ridding quarter horses in his home town of Nogales, Arizona on his family farm. He won his first recognized race as a jockey in 1970 ----45 years ago.
After graduating from the University of Arizona's Race Track IndustryProgram he applied the knowledge learned and his farm experience to training quarter horses in Arizona and then in California. His reputation grew as he applied his craft at Los Alamitos Race Course in California. When he shifted his focus away from quarter horses to thoroughbreds his career took off.
His accomplishments with racehorses on the track have been chronicled many times in the media. Yet, his efforts to help take care of horses after their racing careers have ended have been a calculated secret. As a private person Bob wanted it that way. However, it became somewhat public when he turned over Game on Dude to Old Friends, assuringthrough a number of sources that his retirement would be deserving of a champion that gave so much to racing and its fans.
It is with this quality of compassion for our equine athletes coupled with his public enthusiasm for our sport that ThoroFan at the behest ofRed Brand Fence's Mark Otto will give Bob Baffert a Special Recognition Award at the ThoroFan Annual Awards Brunch sponsored by red Brand on January 15, 2016 at Gulfstream Park.
At the same event, Tom Durkin, legendary racetrack announcer will receive the ThoroFan Award for his contributions to building and energizing the fan base throughout his entire career.
Do not miss this opportunity to rub elbows with some of the heroes of our sport and maybe even get a photograph or an autograph.
