really? :no:
(I got 2 ideas…or 40 suckers are in for heartbreak)
Gill could have been hugely successful as an owner doing what he does, but he chose to go about doing it all the wrong way. First of all, you don’t go hiring clueless unethical idiots for trainers if you want to succeed. There guys only know one way to win races, which eventually leads to unhappy, lame horses and breakdowns. Obviously he hires guys who’s ethics are the same as his own, because they have to be willing to resort to this type of abuse.
You do good by the horse and they’ll do good right back.
Gill actually got a few votes from Eclipse voters as “owner of the year” for 2009. Guess they don’t know much about how he operates.
Any eclipse voter that voted for Gill should be stripped of their right to vote forever.
Reportedly, Melodeeman had screws in his legs. You can rest assured that he went into the race sore and was almost certainly injected a number of times just to keep getting him back to the races. Gill’s trainers are known for injecting and medicating their own horses. Adamo definitely injects a lot of the Gill horses himself on the farm.
Gill is a cancer to this industry. The fact alone that he has put 6 jockeys in the hospital over the past 6-12 months and has killed a huge number of horses in the process and is still able to run at ANY track is mind boggling. In an industry that already struggles to maintain any level of respect or integrity, a person with his history should have been barred long ago to try to help save the reputation of horse racing. Without Gill racing the past 2 years, a tremendous amount of negative publicity would have certainly been eliminated.
Hopefully last night was the beginning of the end when the riders refused to ride at Penn until Gill’s horse was scratched after the horse “Laughing Moon” collapsed galloping out and hurt another rider.
More people need to jump on board and support the horsepeople, jockeys and the integrity of the sport and boycott until Gill and all his connections are forced out of racing. If Florida, Delaware and Philadelphia along with probably a number of other tracks don’t want him stabling at their locations AND his trainer Delahoussaye is apparently barred in a number of states than why would any track want him racing at theirs.
Gill hires idiots to train for him because he gets them dirt cheap and they will do whatever he tells them to do. They all need to go!! Riders need to stop riding for him and/or in any race he is in. Tracks need to stop giving him stalls and/or accepting his entries.
True that supposedly his farm is down to about 80 horses from 140. Very curious where all the horses have gone??? Someone really needs to come clean and report on this. Over the last year alone, aside from this decrease of about 60 horses, a great number of horses have simply disappeared. In a time where it is very difficult to give horses away and find homes for them, it is near impossible that this outfit found good homes for probably about 100 horses over this time period.
Delaw
I am far from believing in innocence.
I would bet on ignorance or connection.
???
What happened? The jocks really took a stand???
This may have already been said since I didn’t pore through all 8 pages, but who the hell is the vet that Gill uses? To get all of his drugs from and inject his horses (but not do pre-race checks of course…)?
On Saturday night, January 23, the jockey colony at Penn National finally took a stand and has now refused to ride in ANY races where a Gill horse is entered to run. This resulted in the scratch of Justin M last night. However, it is “Business as Usual” as it took jockeys to take a stand for Penn Gaming to do anything about Michael Gill. Very sad that a sport like this can be tarnished by a couple of bad apples and poor management.
Laughing Moon broke a leg after the running of the 5th race and had to be euthanized. Unfortunately, the list has been updated on page 1. Justin M was scratched in race 6 because of the strike by the jocks.
Note: The chart caller for equibase once again failed to report a horse was BROKE DOWN and euthanized after the race. It was fixed a few days later.
I composed a post last night but decided not to post it because it sounded a bit strident. Reading about last night’s events had me reconsider, albeit toned down.
Penn management has not taken a proactive role, so let them be forced to take a REACTIVE role when the horsemen…jockeys, trainers, owners, grooms, exercise riders, hotwalkers, etc…take a stance that is, shall we say, non-welcoming to Gill and the mindless buffoons who do his dirty work for him. I see no reason for Gill and his cronies to be anything but persona non grata at any and all racetracks in the country. Anyone who does business with him must know that his currency is bloodmoney and the racing community needs to stand up for what is right and crush what is wrong.
If the honest horsemen can’t stay in business because they don’t and won’t resort to the shenanigans of cheaters, horseracing will truly be an enterprise for all the crooks that nobody had the guts to shut down when there was ample and mounting evidence against them.
As angry as I am that cheaters are too-often allowed to continue business as usual with measly fines and wrist slaps, I’m angrier and sadder that the horses are treated so inhumanely. Maybe I’m too “soft” to be involved in this business, but I feel horrible when horses break down. It is unconscionable that any trainer sends a horse to the paddock knowing full well that the horse is compromised. Maybe the horse will come out of the race okay, but, eventually, asked to run on wrecked legs, they will go and become just one more used-up TB that took one for the team. It’s nothing less than disgraceful. And heartbreaking.
Daryl Delahoussaye fired today!!!
Proactive actions are starting to take place but hopefully Mike Gill doesn’t think that firing his trainer will clear his name. Everyone knows that he is the true source of the actions his trainers take. They are doing what he makes them do. Hopefully Daryl does not get stalls at Penn to try to build a stable of his own as that would only expand the source of cheating, breakdowns and horrid horsemanship beyond just Mike Gill’s barn. We don’t need yet another barn of this nature starting up. Daryl apparently is controlling the stable of owner Edward Longo, currently listing trainer Jay Budrewicz in the program. This outfit won a couple races this past week and Daryl was also in the winner’s circle. I will reiterate Daryl is a problem… barred in other states so why does Penn allow him to operate?
Hopefully Penn is starting to clean up… it would move along so much quicker if Adamo, Gill and Delahoussaye are eliminated from racing!!!
I don’t understand why the riders at Philly are not taking the same stand to support their fellow riders at Penn. Riders like Abel Mariano and Justin Shepherd riding today for Adamo/Gill need to think about what these connections have done to their fellow riders and follow the lead of the Penn jocks.
Yeah, that’s what I thought. “It’s all Darrel’s fault.” Trouble has followed Mike Gill for years. Delahoussaye is no saint though, I will say that. The two are a good match.
I saw that Longo was winning races. If I were him, I’d distance myself as far away from Darrel D as I could get if he wants to keep winning races. The man will be blacklisted.
I see that DD entered a couple Michael Gill horses on Saturday for the 28th, Tin Soldier, at Penn - as well as Nor’easterner - thought he was fired?
Entries taken on 23rd fired on 24th
[QUOTE=Jessi P;4638942]
I see that DD entered a couple Michael Gill horses on Saturday for the 28th, Tin Soldier, at Penn - as well as Nor’easterner - thought he was fired?[/QUOTE]
Doesn’t matter, those horses will be scratched on Tuesday AM. Jocks simply will not ride when a Mike Gill owned horse is in the race and they AIN’T budging !
I would expect the same treatment for Darrel D if he ends up running his own at Penn. The jocks are as upset with Darrel and Tony Adamo as Gill.
[QUOTE=Jessi P;4638942]
I see that DD entered a couple Michael Gill horses on Saturday for the 28th, Tin Soldier, at Penn - as well as Nor’easterner - thought he was fired?[/QUOTE]
He may have entered early this morning and fired this afternoon.
The truth is, regardless if whether Delahoussaye was fired or not, there are those(assistants) working under him, Adamo and Norman all willing to step right into their shoes. These guys don’t hire assistants that aren’t willing to do what they want done. These guys/gals do the dirty work as well.
The only way it ends is if Gill gets out or decides to go in another direction using knowledgeable and ethical horseman for trainers.
[QUOTE=lily04;4638983]
Entries taken on 23rd fired on 24th[/QUOTE]
Ok what Lily said. 
[QUOTE=DickHertz;4638995]
Doesn’t matter, those horses will be scratched on Tuesday AM. Jocks simply will not ride when a Mike Gill owned horse is in the race and they AIN’T budging ![/QUOTE]
Good for them!
Ditto: good for them! Anybody know how to lend support to the jock colony? Anybody know any agents we can converse with? Their livelihood is jeopardized as well. An injured/dead jock isn’t making any for them. Breaking it down to brass tacks, of course…
I don’t know if any jock agents are going to join in the banter, but the jock agents have been reaching out to trainers to have their back and not put pressure on the riders. I believe most trainers support the jockeys. I would suggest if anyone wants to weigh in either in support of Gill or the jockeys to write a letter to Director of Racing, Rob Marella.
Rob Marella
Director of Racing
Hollywood Casino at Penn National Racecourse
777 Hollywood Boulevard
Grantville, PA 17028
(717) 469-2211
Any news from Cora’s facebook page? I’m not on facebook so I can’t read anyone’s pages.
I wrote an e-mail to management. I’ll try to cut/paste it here. I would hope others will do the same. Of course Penn management won’t give a crap about the welfare of horses, but perhaps nasty publicity?
Dear Mr. Lipkin,
I am hoping that you are paying heed to the nasty canker on your backside: that would be the so-called racing stable associated with Michael Gill and his lot of butchers who support his “win at any cost” mentality. That Penn National has not taken a proactive stance against Mr. Gill and his cronies is distressing to many of us who champion Thoroughbred horse racing. If you are not already aware of the seedy practices he and his ilk employ to eke every last dime out of doomed horses, you should make it your business to know what is going on with his horses. There are multiple reasons why his horses, and horses coming out of the barns of his “trainers”, break down on a regular basis. That Penn management has chosen to look the other way and allow his sham of a racing operation continue to taint the Penn National racing community is disgraceful. Other than the cheaters and butchers who hope to get stalls on your backside and win your favor, your lack of response to the pathetic deaths of so many horses exposes management for the greedy and heartless bunch you appear to be.
I support the jockeys who refuse to ride races with a Gill entry. As a horseman, I would not to run my horses in a race with a Gill entry for fear that his nerved/blocked wreck of a TB would break down and take me out as well. In case you think that the racing community at large is immune to the abomination that is Michael Gill, rest assured that the majority of us are fed up and demanding that track management sprout some brass ones and exile Mr. Gill from your racetrack.
You have an opportunity to appear that you actually care about horses (okay, that’s far-fetched, I know, it’s all about the bottom line after all, as you have amply demonstrated) and avoid the unpleasant scrutiny that is about to come your way.
Lest you think that I’m a PITA fanatic or someone who would choose to outlaw racing altogether, I’m not. I am a TB owner and breeder and I love TB racing in its purest form. It is the people like me who will champion TB racing and endeavor to sustain it’s noble history. Michael Gill and his ilk have no part in that. They are not noble and they certainly don’t have the well-being of horses at heart. It’s way past time for you to make him and his partners in CRIME persona non grata.
Very truly yours,
Margie Linn
