Do backstrech workers live on premises @ the track and do they travel like gypsies to various meets?
My friend wants to get a job in Kentucky working with the horses , as unskilled labor. They have tracks in Cincinnatti, Lexington, and Louisville.But none are open all year round. Do workers go from track to track and live on the premisis? Are you working directly for the trainers or is it the racing industry who employs you? Is it a gypsy or circus like existence? Any input would be appreciated.
Horse Racing - 5 Answers
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1 :
you work for a trainer, and they still live on the backside, some tracks have put in apartments, but some still live in 5th wheels next to the barns. but they have come a long way.
2 :
Many still live in housing provided on the various backstretches and on those circuits that do not race year round you do get up and move. It is a seven day a week job although some trainers who are the individuals that employ you do give 1 day off a week. Since your friend is unskilled the most probable job he will be able to obtain is that of a hotwalker. Various tasks can and will include cooling down by walking 4-6 horses a morning, walking on average anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour depending on the workout, hosing legs, sitting with horses in an ice or foot tub, holding for the blacksmith, raking up the stable area, helping grooms with mucksacks and then coming back in the afternoon to walk one running in a race. Pay varies from trainer to trainer and often afternoon work pays money in addition to the base salary. While hotwalking your friend can learn the tasks that will enable him to start grooming at some point which has a whole nother set of tasks and is a better paying job. Put bluntly the race track is not for the faint of heart, for some who like to bet it is a way to be close to the action, for some it is the only thing they know how to do, for some be they uneducated or educated it is a labor of love because the pay isn't great. He can't be afraid of the horses though or it will never work out. It is a bit of a gypsy life and as hard as you work there is a sort of freedom to it that makes it unique.
3 :
you can sometimes live in the barns . work for the tranier. depens to me they are not treated as well as they should they worktheir assess off .and follow the race track s
4 :
I have been a back stretch worker for the past 5 years. You work directly for the trainers. Since no track really runs year around you pretty much have to travel from track to track for the various race meets. Most tracks provide dorms or tack rooms for back stretch workers to live in. But they do not come furnished and aren't that big and not always do they have heaters or air conditioning. I now live in Chicago and can pretty much work here year around so I live off track now because Hawthorne Race Course runs Sept. thru Dec. and train during Jan. then start running again in Feb. thru April and Arlington Park opens in May and runs into Sept. so it makes it easier to live off track cause I never have to leave Chicago and I have a nice place that is 30 mins. from Hawthorne and 15 mins. from Arlington so the commute to work isn't that bad. Now before I moved to Chicago I did a lot of traveling from track to track and spent my share living a month or more in dorm rooms or tack rooms whatever the track offered cause it was cheap as it is free housing for the back stretch worker ( the trainer might have to put up a deposit fee). If you or your friend would like to talk or get more info about working on the backside you can e-mail me at bigandrichgal@yahoo.com.
5 :
I grew up on the track and have been a trainer myself for 20 years. The backside is a completely different world! I'm not saying it is neccessarily bad, just different. As the other girl said, it is not for the faint of heart. Nor the naive. The backside is like a small town, there are different cliques and everyone knows everyone elses' business. On the other hand, the are like a family, they tend to to care of their own. The beginning of every meet is like a family reunion. All backside workers work for an individual trainer. And the trainer usually has a circuit they stick to. I ran the Ohio, Kentucky tracks and then would go to Florida for the winter. Then it was Texas, Oklahoma and Louisianna. Now I run from the farm and ship in. Trainers go where their horses can run and the money is right. I think all tracks now have accomodations for backside workers, but they vary from track to track. Trainers get rooms like they do stalls, based on the number of horses turned in to the Racing Secretary at the track and it is first come first serve. Every trainer I've known takes care of their employees one way or another. If your friend does not already have a job lead, he/she can go to the stable gate and ask them to call over PA for anyone needing a hotwalker or a groom. Once your friend has found a trainer that needs help, he/she will need a license. The trainer will take care of that and most times will pay for it. It is a 7 day a week job and you have to love what you do in order to do it. No matter what position your friend gets, it will be 100% physical labor. Most of the work is done in the morning unless you are running one and then you're there for the duration. If the Boss doesn't mind, you can pick up extra money walking a horse over in the afternoon/evening for other trainers. Another option for your friend is finding a farm job. I'm from Cincinnati and I know there are multitudes of farms on both sides of the river. That would allow he/she to get a little experience working with racehorses and a little taste of the environment he/she is wanting to work in. It is a colorful and different world and is not for everyone. But those of us who do it, day in and day out, year after year, wouldn't do anything else!
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