TDN Weekend December 2016 Issue 9
Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/1099087
loves his job. He will see a loose horse before I see it. You can't train one to do that. They either naturally do it or they won't." Because outrider ponies are there for when something goes wrong, in an ideal world, there is downtime. La- vergne has used the quieter moments to teach Mouse tricks. His show stopper is nodding yes or no when he is asked questions, which has made him quite popular with visitors, and Mouse adores his public in return. "When you are sitting out there for five hours in the morning, and especially in the winter it's real quiet, I like to do stuff with him to keep his mind busy," said La- vergne. "Now, I can make him say yes or no, and the crowd loves it. He loves a crowd. If I ride him out in the morning, and he sees people at the rail, he will start leaning that way. He wants to go straight for them. He loves to rub his head on everybody." Of course, all tricks aside, when called to duty Mouse is an enthusiastic partner for Lavergne. "Anything that needs to be done, Mouse will do it," he said. "He will do his best to catch a loose horse. We will stand in front of the gate and make sure no one busts through and gets loose. If a racehorse is misbehaving in the paddock, he will go in there and help calm him down. He will pony a horse if he has to. He can do ev- erything that needs to get done." Having mounts as reliable as those on the Keeneland outrider team is something no one takes for granted. While they are ambassadors, they are also a key part of making a day at the races safe as well as enjoyable. "The outrider ponies keep everybody safe," said La- vergne. "You have to have a good horse though. If you don't have a good horse doing this job, you have noth- ing because 90% of it is your horse. Not every horse can handle it. You have to have a special one that will run as fast as he can after a loose horse and then come back and immediately be calm, cool, and collected."