Daily Racing Form National Digital Edition
Moore playing at a high level
GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas – Carl Moore became so interested in racing in high school that he took a summer job as a groom in 1972 at Ruidoso Downs. The experience made a lifelong impression on the Texan, and in 2010 he became a Breeders’ Cup-winning owner when Chamberlain Bridge captured the Turf Sprint.
Moore could be back at the Breeders’ Cup this year with Filly and Mare Sprint candidate Finley’ s lucky charm. She will be in action Wednesday at Saratoga in the Grade 2, $200,000 Honorable Miss. On Saturday night, Moore will have Galactica, owner of the year’s highest Beyer Speed Figure for a 2-yearold, in a $100,000 division of the Texas Thoroughbred Futurity at Lone Star Park.
“I love the action,” said Moore, 62. “I love the horse and the sport. It’s a passion.”
Moore has 18 horses in training, some of them in partnership with Brad Grady, who races Louisiana Derby winner Girvin, and Bill Martin, who co-owned 2010 Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint winner Dubai Majesty. Bret Calhoun trained Dubai Majesty, as well as Chamberlain Bridge, and has both Finley’ s lucky charm and Galactica.
“Carl’s been a client and good friend of mine for quite some time, and he’s had some of the better horses in my stable over the years,” Calhoun said. “It’s meant everything to me because a lot of my owners are local Texas people that have hung in the game when the racing future wasn’t so bright there in Texas. They’ve invested in some nice horses.”
Moore purchased Finley’ s lucky charm for $77,000 as a yearling at Keeneland in September 2014 and named the filly for his granddaughter. She has won 8 of 10 starts, including back-to-back Grade 3 races this past meet at Churchill Downs. Moore said he has turned down several substantial offers for Finley’ s lucky charm.
“If I didn’t have a guy like him behind me, I’d be in a lot of trouble because I don’t have a lot of people that put high-profile horses in our barn,” Calhoun said. “A lot of people would not have been able to fend off the offers that have been made for this filly, and lucky for me Carl owns her. He’s able, financially, to not be forced to sell a filly of this caliber.”
Moore was introduced to racing by his parents, who founded a company that manufactures communication towers for such clients as AT&T. Moore’s parents bought a few horses when he was 10, and among their successes on the track was a Quarter Horse named Big Profit, who set a world record for 550 yards.
“We used to have a house out at Ruidoso, and in 1972, between my junior and senior year of high school, I worked at Ruidoso as a groom,” Moore said. “I had four horses that I took care of. That’s where I got a chance to really get that exposure to the backside.”
Moore would go on to graduate from the University of Texas at Arlington and become vice president of the company founded by his parents. At one point, the family had more than 400 employees. The company was sold and Moore now has investments and real estate holdings. He lives on a 200-acre farm in Ft. Worth, Texas, with his wife of 40 years, Valinda, and Chamberlain Bridge.
“Chamberlain Bridge going from a claiming horse to winning a Breeders’ Cup race was an unbelievable experience,” Moore said of the horse, whom he claimed for $35,000. “That is a dream, and one of those things you look up and say, ‘Lord, why me? Why are we so blessed and fortunate to have that happen?’ ”
The claim box was the route Moore used to get into horse ownership in the late 1990s, waiting to pursue a stable after he and Valinda raised their two sons. Valinda was supportive. She is an active horsewoman and a former rodeo queen in New Mexico.
Moore continues to claim to this day, but now also searches out young prospects, usually buying three or four yearlings at auction each season at Keeneland. Galactica is a Texas-bred gelding he co-owns with Grady. The horse was a $52,000 purchase at the Texas Thoroughbred Association sale of 2-year-olds in training in April. He earned a Beyer Speed Figure of 89 in his second start, when he won a maiden special weight for Texas-breds July 4 at Lone Star.
“I was looking for an athlete,” Moore said “He’s a beautiful individual. He’s a big, pretty, black horse. I like athletes with as much [catalog] page as I can get behind them. Athlete first, page second.”
Another promising 2-yearold Moore has with Calhoun is Classy Act, a $92,000 yearling purchase at Keeneland last September. She is a daughter of Into Mischief who has yet to debut. Moore said she has shipped to Saratoga. Classy Act is from the female family of Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies winner Tempera.
Moore’s other holdings in racing include the stallion Mr. Nightlinger, whom he co-owns and stands in Oklahoma, and This Crazy Life, his one broodmare. He also keeps layups on his farm, for a total of about 40 head of horses making up his operation.
Not too shabby for a one-time groom.