Equestrian Enthusiasts Prepare for the 2023 Event as Entry List Neigh-Rly Finalized

Interesting numbers have been revealed in the 2023 Thoroughbred Makeover report when compared to previous years. The Retired Racehorse Project (RRP) published the said report. It positions itself as the only organization in the aftercare industry and works across all the parts of industry. Equestrian enthusiasts can check out the full list of individual entries here.

The Thoroughbred Makeover offers a comprehensive look at Equines moving into their second careers. With a total of 551 registrations this year, 404 horses were able to make it to the final entry. The 2023 Thoroughbred Makeover and National Symposium is scheduled from October 11-14 and equestrian enthusiasts are excited about it.

Thoroughbred Makeover 2023 reveals an increase in the acquisition price.

The Thoroughbred Makeover analyses the horseracing industry, horses in particular. It offers comprehensive data on how horses transition from racing to their next careers. Although the data is collected only from the 551 horses who were registered, it still provides valuable insights into aftercare as an industry in Equestrian sports.

According to the Paulicker Report, one of the key metrics of horses’ success is their value at the time of retiring from racing. Since RRP started tracking data in 2015, this value has been increasing continuously. Makeover trainers spent $3,050 on average on the acquisition of one horse. However, 26% of horse acquisitions occurred through non-monetary transfers as a memo of the transaction.

Read More: 21 Years After Winning Triple Crown Race, Popular Equestrian Racing Horse Worth $773,832 Suffers Saddening Fate

In addition to the average acquisition price, the time elapsed from the date of the last race to the acquisition date has also increased slightly. While elapsed time stood at 74 days in 2022, RRP reports 2023 elapsed time as 84 days when the horses are purchased directly from connections. If horses move through resellers, they spend 175 days between their last race and purchase time. One of the key findings of the report includes a shift in the elapsed time of horses in non-profit aftercare facilities. Their time has gone down slightly from 168 days in 2022 to 152 days in 2023.

How does Horse Acquisition take place?

Similar to previous years, the majority (53.9%) of the horses were directly sourced from their racing connections. Interestingly, five percent of this year’s registered horses were still owned by their track connections. The other types of horse acquisitions include buying through a reseller (21.2%) or non-profit facilities (16.7%).

In addition to the horse acquisition data, RRP has also published a list of top aftercare facilities, top listing agents, top resellers, etc. In 2023, the New Vocations Racing Adoption Program led the aftercare facilities with 28 horses. On the other hand, Jade Favre emerged as the top listing agent with 11 horses.

The horses who made it to the final entry list will be racing in Kentucky Horse Park from October 11-14 in the 2023 Thoroughbred Makeover and National Symposium. These horses are sired by the best in the industry like Into Mischief. On a scale of 1-10, tell us how excited you are for the Kentucky Derby.

Watch The Story: Countdown of the Top 5 Moments That Can Set the Equestrian Crowd Ablaze