We're back from vacation and kicking off with our Making the Makeover rider, Sam Fawcett, to get the inside scoop on how she likes to structure her training program for her off the tracks. We catch up with New Vocation's, Bridget Heasley, with a training tip on keeping horses hydrated and our adoptable horse of the week. Stay tuned! Hosts: Joy Hills and Kristen Kovatch Bentley of The Horseback Writer Image Credit: Retired Racehorse Radio Title Sponsor: Kentucky Performance Products Media Partner...
Aug 10, 2025•54 min•Ep. 157
We're chatting with Mary Ormsby, Equine Operations Manager at Claiborne Farm, about a day in her life working on a bloodstock farm and why they support the RRP Broodmare Division. We chat with New Vocations for a training tip and introduce you to our adoptable horse of the week. Stay tuned! Hosts: Joy Hills and Kristen Kovatch Bentley of The Horseback Writer Image Credit: Retired Racehorse Radio Title Sponsor: Kentucky Performance Products Media Partners: The Thoroughbred Makeover and New Vocati...
Jul 25, 2025•50 min•Ep. 156
It's a Making the Makeover episode and today we chat with our Makeover Rider, Sam Fawcett, on she likes to introduce her horses to their first outings. We catch up with New Vocations for a training tip and introduce our adoptable horse of the week. Stay tuned! On today's episode, we chat with Jennifer Sweet, the President of the US Pony Club, on the benefits of getting involved with Pony Club, and how they provide opportunities to better connect with your retired racer in their second career. We...
Jul 10, 2025•44 min•Ep. 155
On today's episode, we chat with Jennifer Sweet, the President of the US Pony Club, on the benefits of getting involved with Pony Club, and how they provide opportunities to better connect with your retired racer in their second career. We get a training tip from New Vocation's own, Bridget Heasley, and introduce our adoptable horse of the week. Stay tuned! Hosts: Joy Hills and Kristen Kovatch Bentley of The Horseback Writer Image Credit: Retired Racehorse Radio Title Sponsor: Kentucky Performan...
Jun 25, 2025•46 min•Ep. 154
On today's show, we catch up with our Making the Makeover rider, Sam Fawcett, on how she likes to keep her horses fueled. Kristen and I play, "Blind Horse Dates" to see how well we know each other's ideal horse type, and introduce our adoptable horse of the week. Stay tuned... Hosts: Joy Hills and Kristen Kovatch Bentley of The Horseback Writer Image Credit: Retired Racehorse Radio Title Sponsor: Kentucky Performance Products Media Partners: The Thoroughbred Makeover and New Vocations Racehorse ...
Jun 10, 2025•53 min•Ep. 153
Today we chat with Kristin Werner from the Jockey Club about the new OTTB Profile report. We catch up with Bridget Heasley from New Vocations and introduce you to our adoptable horse of the week. Stay tuned. Hosts: Joy Hills and Kristen Kovatch Bentley of The Horseback Writer Image Credit: Retired Racehorse Radio Title Sponsor: Kentucky Performance Products Media Partners: The Thoroughbred Makeover and New Vocations Racehorse Adoption Guest: Kristin Werner Guest: Bridget Heasley New Vocations Se...
May 25, 2025•51 min•Ep. 152
On today's show, we touch base with our Making the Makeover rider, Sam Fawcett, on assessing potential in a Makeover horse. We chat with New Vocations for a training tip and introduce our adoptable horse of the week. Stay tuned... Hosts: Joy Hills and Kristen Kovatch Bentley of The Horseback Writer Image Credit: Retired Racehorse Radio Title Sponsor: Kentucky Performance Products Media Partners: The Thoroughbred Makeover and New Vocations Racehorse Adoption Guest: Sam Fawcett New Vocations Segme...
May 10, 2025•55 min•Ep. 151
It’s our 150th episode and we’re celebrating at Equine Affaire Ohio! We have the rare treat of recording in-person and we have some great guests. We introduce you to the all standardbred drill team from Cherokee Stables which one of their horses is a $2M winner. We debrief the secrets of half halts with two of our listeners after attending the Wendy Murdoch clinic. And of course, it wouldn’t be an episode of Retired Racehorse Radio without featuring an adoptable horse of the week! Stay tuned…. H...
Apr 25, 2025•35 min•Ep. 150
On today's show, we introduce our 2025 Making the Makeover rider, Samantha Fawcett! We then catch up with Bridget Heasley from New Vocations on what bits she recommends for a standie's first outing, and introduce our adoptable horse of the week. Stay tuned... Hosts: Joy Hills and Kristen Kovatch Bentley of The Horseback Writer Image Credit: Retired Racehorse Radio Title Sponsor: Kentucky Performance Products Media Partners: The Thoroughbred Makeover and New Vocations Racehorse Adoption Guest: Sa...
Apr 10, 2025•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 149
On today's show, we connect with Patrick Cummings to learn more about the young organization National Thoroughbred Alliance and the role it has to play in the future of the racing industry. We ask New Vocations, Amanda Tucker, about best tips to safely introduce your new horse to his new pasture pals. Last, but never least, we wrap with our Adoptable Horse of the Week. Stay tuned! Hosts: Joy Hills and Kristen Kovatch Bentley of The Horseback Writer Image Credit: Retired Racehorse Radio Title Spo...
Mar 25, 2025•53 min•Ep. 148
On today's show, we're chatting with Dr. Maureen Kelleher of Ohio State University about keratomas, since she recently got to operate on our very own Shorty! We chat with New Vocations' Bridget Heasley about stereotypic behaviors in the Standardbred, and meet a new adoptable horse of the week. Stay tuned... Hosts: Joy Hills and Kristen Kovatch Bentley of The Horseback Writer Image Credit: Retired Racehorse Radio Title Sponsor: Kentucky Performance Products Media Partners: The Thoroughbred Makeov...
Mar 11, 2025•56 min•Ep. 147
On today's show, we're celebrating the Retired Racehorse Project's 15th anniversary with founder, Steuart Pittman, and Executive Director, Kirsten Green. We then bring you some training tips for the horse who likes to take the reins (literally!) with Amanda Tucker from New Vocations, and we introduce you to our adoptable horse of the week. Stay tuned... Hosts: Joy Hills and Kristen Kovatch Bentley of The Horseback Writer Image Credit: Retired Racehorse Radio Title Sponsor: Kentucky Performance P...
Feb 25, 2025•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 146
It's our 6th birthday! We're celebrating with talking to a pretty epic horse gal, Jacklyn Wyatt, who not only had a role in Jobber's story, but also has a pretty impressive story of her own. We celebrate Track to Triumph story from one of our amazing listeners. Last, but never least, we get a training tip and adoptable horse from New Vocation's, Bridget Heasley. So grab something sweet to celebrate with us and listen in... Hosts: Joy Hills and Kristen Kovatch Bentley of The Horseback Writer Imag...
Feb 10, 2025•48 min•Ep. 145
It's a new year meaning there are new foals! Dr. Cory Kieschnick joins us again to hype us up for the foal cams at Del Val. We catch up with Amanda Tucker at New Vocations learning tips and tricks for slowing down your horse over fences and ground poles, and introduce you to our adoptable horse of the week. Stay tuned! Hosts: Joy Hills and Kristen Kovatch Bentley of The Horseback Writer Image Credit: Retired Racehorse Radio Title Sponsor: Kentucky Performance Products Media Partners: The Thoroug...
Jan 25, 2025•46 min•Ep. 144
We chat with professional trainer and bloodstock agent, Kenny McPeek, on how he produces winning racehorses like Mystik Dan and Thorpedo Anna. We start off the new year chatting with Bridget Heasley from New Vocations to share a training tip and introduce you to our adorable adoptable horse of the week. Hosts: Joy Hills and Kristen Kovatch Bentley of The Horseback Writer Image Credit: Retired Racehorse Radio Title Sponsor: Kentucky Performance Products Media Partners: The Thoroughbred Makeover a...
Jan 10, 2025•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 143
Today we learn about the Secretariat Center and their mission from Equine Program Director & Trainer, Caroline Tatum. With all the new adoptions happening this month, we chat with Amanda Tucker from New Vocations on some top tips to help your horse settle in to new spaces. We wrap by tempting you to bring a new horse under your tree this holiday season by introducing our adoptable horse of the week. Stay tuned! Hosts: Joy Hills and Kristen Kovatch Bentley of The Horseback Writer Image Credit...
Dec 25, 2024•43 min•Ep. 142
On today's show, we speak with the winner of the Retired Racehorse Project's 2024 Thoroughbred Makeover about her experience, how she chose her horse, and what's next for the pair. We catch up with Bridget Heasley from New Vocations Racehorse Adoption Program to bring you a training tip on encouraging the pace out of your standie, and introduce you to our Adoptable Horse of the Week. Stay tuned! Hosts: Joy Hills and Kristen Kovatch Bentley of The Horseback Writer Image Credit: Retired Racehorse ...
Dec 10, 2024•52 min•Ep. 141
Happy Radiothon Day from HRN! In the Retired Racehorse Radio Hour 3 of the 2024 Holiday Radiothon Kristen and Joy speak with Jen Roytz, TB trainer and Co-Owner/Manager at Brownstead Farm, about the holidays and her work with the thoroughbreds. Plus, some holiday recipes and over $750.00 in prizes. HOLIDAY RADIOTHON 2024, HOUR 3 (Retired) – Show Notes and Links: The Radiothon Emcees: Glenn the Geek of Horse Radio Network and Ashley Winch of Sleep Stories for Equestrians Guest HRN Co-Host: Joy Orr...
Dec 01, 2024•1 hr 1 min
Today we're taking a look from the judges booth with Daniel Moltion who will be sharing his perspective on the ex-racer in the ranch pen. Amanda Tucker from New Vocations answers a listener training question on the sticky horse, and introduces our adoptable horse of the week. Stay tuned! Hosts: Joy Hills and Kristen Kovatch Bentley of The Horseback Writer Image Credit: Retired Racehorse Radio Title Sponsor: Kentucky Performance Products Media Partners: The Thoroughbred Makeover and New Vocations...
Nov 25, 2024•1 hr•Ep. 140
On today's show, we're joined by Jochen Schleese to learn about the importance of saddle fit for the retired racer, and what you, as a rider, should keep in mind as your horse transitions from the track or broodmare life to their sporthorse career. We then are joined by New Vocations' own Bridget Heasley (Hollern) to get a training tip and introduce you to our adoptable horse of the week. Stay tuned! Hosts: Joy Hills and Kristen Kovatch Bentley of The Horseback Writer Image Credit: Retired Raceh...
Nov 10, 2024•1 hr 13 min•Ep. 139
Get ready for the seventh Holiday Radiothon, a special six-hour event filled with holiday cheer and horse-themed fun! Hosts Glenn the Geek and Ashley Winch invite you to join them on December 1st from 3 to 9 PM Eastern Time for an exciting lineup of guests, contests, and thousands of dollars in prizes. This year’s charity focus is A Home for Every Horse, which helps rescue organizations find forever homes for adoptable horses. Listeners can participate by submitting creative holiday songs, poems...
Oct 29, 2024•6 min
We made it to the 2024 Thoroughbred Makeover & Symposium! This is one of the fun times where we get to chat in person, and this year was extra special as we got the opportunity to host the whole finale -- dare we say, we made it?! We share our experiences and interviews, including a few catch-ups with our Making the Makeover riders, and more. We also entice you and your own Makeover dreams by introducing an adoptable horse with New Vocations', Amanda Tucker. Stay tuned! Hosts: Joy Hills and ...
Oct 25, 2024•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 138
You're listening to the one before the 2024 Thoroughbred Makeover! We're about to celebrate all things thoroughbred for the next week and to kick-start we have our final panel with our Making the Makeover riders as they gear up for the competition at the Kentucky Horse Park. And while we might be chatting OTTBS, we also shed some love and light on our standardbred friends with New Vocation's, Bridget Hollern, as she brings us a training tip and our adoptable horse of the week. Stay tuned! Hosts:...
Oct 10, 2024•51 min•Ep. 137
Today we are joined by listener, Anne-Louise Knox, who shares how the Winston Churchill Fellowship is allowing her to travel the world to learn more about off-track welfare. We catch up with Makeover hopeful, Dana Johnson, and how her horse and her are coming along. We wrap the show with Amanda Tucker from New Vocations where she shares her favorite bits for green horses and introduces our adoptable horse of the week. Stay tuned! Hosts: Joy Hills and Kristen Kovatch Bentley of The Horseback Writ...
Sep 30, 2024•1 hr•Ep. 136
Today we learn about Wasabi Racing Ventures and the Wasabi Aftercare Fund with Executive Director, Michele Pesula Kuegler. We catch up with our Making the Makeover pros, Chris Bennings and Jody Busch. We learn about the unique quirks of the standardbred trot with New Vocation's, Bridget Hollern, and introduce you to our adoptable horse of the week. Stay tuned! Hosts: Joy Hills and Kristen Kovatch Bentley of The Horseback Writer Image Credit: Retired Racehorse Radio Title Sponsor: Kentucky Perfor...
Sep 09, 2024•49 min•Ep. 135
Today we're chatting with Danielle Montgomery from Turning for Home, and how to assess what talents or interests a horse might have in a second career. We catch up with Dana Johnson, one of Making the Makeover competitors. We introduce you to Amanda Tucker from New Vocations and introduce our adoptable horse of the week. Stay tuned! Hosts: Joy Hills and Kristen Kovatch Bentley of The Horseback Writer Image Credit: Retired Racehorse Radio Title Sponsor: Kentucky Performance Products Media Partner...
Aug 25, 2024•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 134
We're chatting with Meg Smits about how her racetrack connections provides safe landing spaces for retired racers in her therapy program. We catch up with Mya Larson and Chris Bennings as they prepare for the TB Makeover. We wrap up with Winnie Morgan Nemeth from New Vocations bringing you TWO adoptable horses this week. Stay tuned! Hosts: Joy Hills and Kristen Kovatch Bentley of The Horseback Writer Image Credit: Retired Racehorse Radio Title Sponsor: Kentucky Performance Products Media Partner...
Aug 10, 2024•1 hr 12 min•Ep. 133
Today we're chatting with listener and HRN auditor, Lisa Dowell, on the adoption of her new thoroughbred and why an OTTB was right for her. We catch up with our Making the Makeover Riders, Jody Busch and Dana Johnson. We wrap up with Amanda Vance from New Vocations with a training tip and adoptable horse of the week. Stay tuned! Hosts: Joy Hills and Kristen Kovatch Bentley of The Horseback Writer Image Credit: Retired Racehorse Radio Title Sponsor: Kentucky Performance Products Media Partners: T...
Jul 24, 2024•52 min•Ep. 132
On today's show, we're joined by RRP Executive Director, Kirsten Green, and Mareworthy Charities founder, Kyle Rothfus, to learn about their upcoming TB Broodmare Transition Symposium. We get a Making the Makeover update from competitors Chris Bennings and Dana Johnson. We then chat with New Vocation's own, Winnie Morgan Nemeth, and introduce you to our adoptable horse of the week. Stay tuned! Hosts: Joy Hills and Kristen Kovatch Bentley of The Horseback Writer Image Credit: Retired Racehorse Ra...
Jul 10, 2024•54 min•Ep. 131
On today's show, we get a lesson in standardbred breeding from Dr. Cory Kieschnick, Professor and Chair of Equine Science & Management at Delaware Valley University. We get a training tip from New Vocation's own, Amanda Vance, and introduce you to our adoptable horse of the week. Stay tuned! Hosts: Joy Hills and Kristen Kovatch Bentley of The Horseback Writer Image Credit: Retired Racehorse Radio Title Sponsor: Kentucky Performance Products Media Partners: The Thoroughbred Makeover and New V...
Jun 25, 2024•52 min•Ep. 130
