Howard notches first career win as trainer

Kathy Howard’s fourth starter became her first winner on when Make Daddy Proud ($9) held on to capture Thursday’s third race at Oaklawn Park by a neck under Jareth Loveberry.

Howard said the victory did not change her outlook on training. She said she plans to end her brief training career when the Oaklawn 2018 live racing meet ends on April 14.

“No,” Howard said Friday morning, when asked if she’s considering switching gears. “Of course, it’s a great feeling, but I’m not going down that road without Tom.”

Howard, 61, was referring to her late husband, trainer Tom Howard, who died of cancer March 10, hours after his most notable runner, multiple Oaklawn stakes winner and near-millionaire Ivan Fallunovalot, finished third in the $125,000 Hot Springs Stakes for older sprinters.

Tom Howard’s horses have been running in Kathy’s Howard’s name the last few weeks.

“It just got real quiet,” Howard said, describing her landmark moment. “I’m used to going crazy, rooting for Tom. I was like, ‘Come on, girl.’ Then, of course, I started crying.”

Make Daddy Proud, a 3-year-old daughter of Proud Citizen, broke her maiden for a $12,500 claiming price. She is owned by Superior Racing Stables LLC (Van Miller), a longtime client of Tom Howard and his then-wife/assistant.

Not only is Kathy Howard’s name on the win picture for Make Daddy Proud, so is her late husband’s.

“We were a team,” Howard said.

Make Daddy Proud is among eight horses under the care of Kathy Howard at Oaklawn. Howard said Thursday morning that she owed it to her husband and his owners to run the stable through the completion of the Oaklawn meet, adding the eight horses would then turned out or given to other trainers.

One of the horses, Ghost Rocket, a 3-year-old Ghostzapper colt, will go to trainer Al Stall Jr., Howard said. Ghost Rocket is owned by Frank Fletcher, who had a long relationship with Tom Howard, and already had horses at Oaklawn with Stall. Ghost Rocket is pointing for an April 14 maiden special weights race.

Kathy Howard is also Fletcher’s racing manager and said she will continue in that position.

Howard, then known as Kathy Moore, is among the most successful female jockeys in Oaklawn history and later worked at the track as a racing official. The Howards were married for more than 13 years.

Owner Lewis Mathews said Ivan Fallunovalot remains under consideration for the Grade 3 $400,000 Count Fleet Sprint Handicap for older sprinters on April 14. Ivan Fallunovalot finished third behind Whitmore in the $125,000 Hot Springs Stakes on March 10, bumping his career earnings to $998,903.

“Then after the meet, we’re going to give him a little vacation and let him tell us what to do,” Mathews said. “May send him back to Remington. He likes it there.”

The 8-year-old gelding will remain under Howard’s care until the end of the meet.

Trainer Ron Moquett, of Hot Springs, said Friday Whitmore remains on schedule to defend his title in the Count Fleet.

Oaklawn did not host live racing Sunday in observance of Easter. The track is scheduled to hold races five days this week from Wednesday through Sunday.