by Frank Angst

In its first meeting, the members of the Jockey Club’s Thoroughbred Safety Committee emphasized putting ideas into action.

Safety committee Chairman Stuart Janney III said the group, formed after the fatal breakdown of Eight Belles following her second-place finish in this year’s Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (G1), would focus on putting ideas into practice.

“There is good work to build on,” said Janney, a prominent owner and current Jockey Club steward. “Where we’d like to see the industry make real progress is the implementation of some key things.

“Good work has been done in many areas over the past 18 months, but a number of sound recommendations and proposed rule changes have not been adopted quickly enough. That is one area that we as an industry need to improve upon going forward.”

As an example, Janney cited the October 2006 recommendation of the first Welfare and Safety of the Racehorse Summit on toe grabs, which quickly became an Association of Racing Commissioners International Model Rule that allows for, at most, a four-millimeter toe grab in front horseshoes.

“I think that rule has only been adopted in four jurisdictions,” Janney said.

The seven committee members will use information gathered at the two Welfare and Safety of the Racehorse Summits as a base. It also plans to meet with experts on various safety issues and plans to address concerns that specifically followed the Eight Belles breakdown.

“I think the committee is in real agreement of taking an expansive view on the topics we will address,” Janney said. “We all know that many issues have been raised and we intend to address them.”

The committee conducted a two-hour teleconference on May 13 and plans to meet in person on May 27 in Lexington and on June 4 in New York. The committee hopes to announce recommendations on August 17 in Saratoga Springs at the Jockey Club’s Round Table Conference on Matters Pertaining to Racing.

Janney said the committee realizes recommendations will not be enough.

“There are probably some things that are enforceable through the Jockey Club but I’d be the first to tell you that they’re relatively few,” Janney said. “We’re not going to limit our scope of what we’re looking at and having opinions on to the things that the Jockey Club can wave a wand and say, ‘That’s what we’re going to do.’ “

Other committee members include California owner-breeder John Barr, Darley USA President Jimmy Bell, Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital Partner Larry Bramlage, D.V.M., Florida-based owner-breeder Donald Dizney, Claiborne Farm co-owner Dell Hancock, and owner-breeder Hiram Polk Jr., who served on the steering committee of the second Summit. Each is a member of The Jockey Club.

“All of us come from participating in various parts of the industry. We intend to work with the other parts of the industry and we’re going to use this committee as a bully pulpit to be persuasive on certain matters,” Janney said. “We’re going to go to other people in the industry and say, ‘This is how we feel and how are you going to help us?’ Many reports have been written over the years and many things have not been implemented.

“We don’t think it’s an adequate response to simply point out where we would like to go. We’re going to have to do a fair amount of work on how we get there.”

Frank Angst is a Thoroughbred Times senior writer