Episodes

  • On the Lead, episode 5: The Sport of Queens -- A Discussion of Women in Racing
    Sep 26 2024

    Presented by The Jockey Club

    On the latest episode of the On the Lead Podcast, presented by The Jockey Club and In the Money Media, host Shannon Kelly brings us in before welcoming co-host PTF. Laura Barillaro, CFO of The Jockey Club, joins them for the intro to talk about her journey as a woman in racing who rose to a position of prominence.

    The first official guest is Stella Thayer, president of Tampa Bay Downs who tells the story of how she got involved in racing and describes her reaction to winning the Pillar of the Turf award from the National Racing Museum and Hall of Fame.

    Next up, Jessica Paquette joins to tell us about how she became a racing fan and what made her want to go on to make history as the first female announcer to call a Grade 1 race. She also shares her experience and advice about dealing with trolls on social media.

    Last but not least, Shona Rotondo shares her story of starting an all-female company, Ground Slam Social (now GSS The Agency) and how they became a powerful player in horse racing marketing. She also shares her vision for the Horse Racing Women's Summit and offers some advice to those looking to become allies.

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    43 mins
  • On the Lead, episode 4: The Past, Present, and Future of Horse Racing Data
    Aug 28 2024

    Presented by The Jockey Club

    On the latest episode of the On the Lead Podcast, presented by The Jockey Club and In the Money Media, hosts Shannon Kelly and Peter Thomas Fornatale delve into one of the hot button topics in horse racing today: the past, present, and future of data.

    They kick off with Professor Marshall Gramm, a handicapping champion and owner, as he talks about the evolution of data in the sport and expresses what elements of data are most important to the modern horseplayer.

    Then Kyle McDoniel of Equibase is here to address some of Marshall's concerns and to lay out his vision for the sport to improve and innovate when it comes to its data.

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    35 mins
  • On the Lead, episode 3: Aftercare Is Not An Afterthought
    Jul 15 2024

    Presented by The Jockey Club

    PTF and Shannon Kelly are back with the third edition of On the Lead in which they discuss the importance of thoroughbred aftercare and its evolution in the sport.

    The show kicks off with Erin Birkenhauer of West Point Thoroughbred speaking about her role in the company's internal aftercare organization, The Congie Fund, and her views about what more the industry can do to help its equine athletes.

    Next up, Kendra Potasiewicz, a thoroughbred owner, talks about how important aftercare was to her decision to get involved in the business and to relate her experience taking care of Causeforcelebration, an ex-West Point runner.

    Last but certainly not least, Kristin Werner of the Jockey Club gives us a little bit of the history of TJC's involvement in aftercare and relates some amazing personal stories about the powerful connections between humans and horses she's seen.

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    42 mins
  • On the Lead e2: All About Influencer Marketing
    Jun 22 2024

    Presented by The Jockey Club

    PTF and Shannon Kelly are back with the second edition of On the Lead in which they discuss the effects of influencer marketing on the sport of horse racing.

    The show kicks off with Dan Tordjman of America's Best Racing as he talks about ABR's continuing efforts in the influencer marketing space and tells us about taking the concept to the next level in the form of their Stake in Stardom program.

    Next up, Lindsay Czarniak drops by to discuss her roles as both a journalist and influencer, connecting racing marketing efforts to those in other sports and revelaing what she thinks are the top marketable stories in racing today that might help the sport reach a mainstream sports audience.

    Last but certainly not least, Peter Rotondo Jr. of 1/st is here to give some history on the concept of using celebrities to help market horse racing including an early experiment at the ESPYs from a few years back. He also delves into the "Alix Earle effect" and how it led to an impressive spike in ratings at this year's Pegasus Stakes at Gulfstream Park.

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    43 mins
  • On the Lead, episode 1: What’s in a Name?
    May 29 2024

    Hello and welcome to a new podcast from The Jockey Club and In the Money Media.

    In this first episode, hosts Shannon Kelly and Peter Thomas Formatale are joined by The Jockey Club’s Associate Registrar Lori Johnson, to discuss the process of registering a thoroughbred. Then Jaime Roth, of LNJ Foxwoods, drops by to discuss the “method behind the madness” of her naming process with details about her love of familial lines, pop culture, art and sport all become evident in the names she chooses. She has 150 names on reserve and runs us through some of her favorites. Finally, Tom Durkin takes the story full circle, and tells us how the name on paper comes alive in his legendary race calls.

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    43 mins
  • Episode 0
    May 22 2024

    On the Lead is a new podcast presented by The Jockey Club in association with In the Money Media. The goal of the series is to have entertaining and interesting conversations with varying industry voices targeting owners, breeders, fans, and anyone interested in Thoroughbred breeding and racing. The podcasts will also a feature a mailbag component that will incorporate questions from the audience. The show will be hosted by Shannon Kelly, executive director of The Jockey Club Safety Net Foundation, and Peter Thomas Fornatale of In the Money Media.

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    13 mins