Blue Moon 2025 Happenings
2025 was another productive year for Blue Moon Eclipse Aftercare, helping several Eclipse horses with rehab, retirement and rehoming as well as assisting 3rd party thoroughbreds in need and participating alongside our top retirement and industry charities.
For those partners who are new to Eclipse, Blue Moon Aftercare, which was launched in July of 2018, acts as a 401k of sorts to ensure the safety of our past and present horses that need to be retired from racing for any number of reasons. We proudly became an official 501c3 in 2023.
Thanks to our partners, who make a contribution to Blue Moon every time an Eclipse partnership is formed, which is matched by Eclipse, Blue Moon has devoted significant funds towards meaningful causes, including donating to relevant charitable organizations, claiming horses in “danger zones” and also responsibly retiring numerous horses to Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance accredited facilities.
Here’s a look at what Blue Moon was able to accomplish in 2025:
Retiring Our Horses
Aviano was a $775,000 Fasig Tipton Saratoga Select yearling purchase by Medaglia d’Oro. He broke his maiden at Gulfstream as a 3 year old. We had hoped with his good looks he would be a star but he never reached the top. After Aviano was claimed from Eclipse in August of 2022, we continued to keep a close eye on him but after bouncing around from Hawthorne to Fairmount, we thought it was best to claim him back and provide him with a safe home. We ended up buying him privately for the claim price with the help of a local trainer that races at Fairmount and Turfway Park. We sent him to New Vocations in Lexington. Aviano was only up for adoption for 2 weeks before he was adopted as an Eventing/Pleasure horse in Indiana.
Here is an update from his new owner:
“Avi has been settling in wonderfully! He is the sweetest boy and is a quick learner. We’ve had several riding lessons so far and he does well each time. I’m excited to see what the future holds for us! Overall, Avi is doing fantastic. He is very affectionate and well behaved. Under saddle, Avi is spectacular! He is respectful and so brave, he has yet to let anything bother him. I have led him over tarps and walks over them without a care in the world. He is learning SO quickly and tries his best every time. We have had several lessons and our trainer loves him and sees him improving so much already on straightness and steering. I think he will make a wonderful little event horse and am so excited to see where we go (I have also attached a clip of us riding)! His health is overall very good, I had our vet do some x-rays on his hocks, fetlocks, and knees. The vet said his fetlocks are some of the best he’s seen from an OTTB! He does have some arthritic changes in one of his knees, but it is not bad at all. I just adore Avi, as well as everyone else at our barn. He is the sweetest boy and I love him so much. I think we are a perfect match and can’t wait to see where we are at our next update!!”
We are looking forward to many great updates about Aviano and his future.
Speaking Scout was retired in June 2024 with a lesion in his right front suspensory ligament. He ran 21 times with 4 wins, including the Grade 1, $400,000 Hollywood Derby at Del Mar, 4 seconds and 3 thirds while earning almost $700,000. He traveled coast to coast and provided many thrills for our partners. After more than a year of rehab, he was adopted by a family in upstate New York. He was a surprise for a young girl so she could train him and bring him along as her own horse. They have a lovely farm where her mom trains and gives riding lessons. He has 3 buddies, Ikon and Niro and is fitting in awesome.
Here is a video of Speaking Scout with his new companion:
https://youtube.com/shorts/ZHVF_TdLFAs?feature=share
Mic Check was an Eclipse homebred by Maclean’s Music out of Vocal. He was retired in July after an awful race experience first time out. We decided it was in the best interested of Mic Check and the partnership to retire him after the outing combined with the fact he wasn’t showing much talent/interest. After being sent to New Vocations, he was adopted by Caitlynn in Georgia as foxhunting/pleasure/trail horse.
Here is his first update:
”Mic Check (Barn Name: “Gin”) is doing a fantastic job both in hand and under saddle. Gin is such a sweet boy who has a soft eye and is keen to work with anyone who shows him kindness. He loves to go for walks in the woods, and has really taken a liking to lateral work in the dressage ring and is extra keen on crossing over in the front (the back is still in progress). Gin has also been out with Salt Marsh Hounds (foxhunting) 5 times this year and LOVES it. He is cool, calm, and collected, and loves watching the hounds.”
Check out a pic of the new duo below:
We are grateful to the wonderful organizations who help our Thoroughbreds transition from the racetrack to new careers while providing safe, forever homes. Retirement from racing for many of these Thoroughbreds is just the beginning and it is our duty, our responsibility and our passion to ensure that we look after them as best we can even when they can no longer race. We are always watching our former horses and have our eye on a couple to hopefully help retire in 2026.
Update on Past Horses
Thread Count was a 2024 Blue Moon grad after being claimed back after ending up at Mountaineer for $4,000. She was claimed on the same day from the same trainer as Gray Magician. We sent her to New Vocations where she was adopted as a trail/pleasure horse in Texas. Below is the latest update from her new owners where she is now known as “Gilly”:
”We love Thread Count (renamed Gilly after the kids’ favorite books, Harry Potter!). She has the kindest soul and greets us in the field without fail. You can always count on her to come say hi and to be sweet with the kids. When she first arrived, she took about a month to start feeling more settled in. We’ve taken it very slow with under saddle work, focusing mostly on things like responding to seat changes while walking, patiently waiting after I mount, and being comfortable standing still quietly. She’s honest and easygoing most days and is pretty intrepid (no spooking at an umbrella, etc.) She’s started to ask for me to rub/scratch her favorite spots and reciprocates with gentle nuzzling. Gilly has been enjoying walking on a loose rein around the field or being handwalked around our neighborhood. She was dressed up as a unicorn for my daughter’s birthday party, and she gently took treats from lots of little kids who had never interacted with horses before. Gilly has won over all the neighbors and everyone who meets her! Even my husband (not a horse person) often mentions how much he loves Gilly. I’m excited for her to continue to feel more at home and to start advancing more of her training!”
My Princess was an Eclipse import from Europe that did not show much interest in American racing. We retired her to New Vocations in December 2024 and she was adopted after 2 months. She is now an eventing horse in Virginia. My Princess also competed in the Thoroughbred Makeover in competitive trail (photo below). Here is the first update from her new family:
”I wanted to share with you the best thing I have seen happen in a very long time. My daughter hasn’t wanted to ride in more than a year, but I told her that I got Princess for her when I first introduced them in January. The other afternoon, completely out of the blue (except we had been watching Kentucky 5* earlier that day), she said she wanted to ride Princess. So we dug her helmet out of the trailer and through her up there. Naturally I was a worried mom and hesitant at first not knowing how my 7 yr old kiddo was going to get along with my 4 yr old OTTB. Well Princess just picked her kiddo and is now a life time member of our family.”
We wish Thread Count and My Princess as well as their owners the best of luck in the future!
Retired Spotlight
you know Gray Magician was featured in our Blue Moon Memo last year as a retirement/claiming story, where we announced he would train for the Retired Racehorse Project Thoroughbred Makeover in 2025 at the Kentucky Horse Park. Gray Magician not only participated but showed very well in 2 different divisions, Jumpers and Hunters. Gray Magician was very relaxed and took it all in like an old pro. He closed out the Makeover 18th in Jumpers and 19th in Hunters out of 60 horses. Thank you to his trainer, Lindsay Gilbert, and our partners who supported this venture and cheered him on every step of the way.
It was my first time attending the Makeover and I was so impressed with the hundreds of Thoroughbreds that competed in over 10 different disciplines. As I stood there and looked around the horse park, I could see horses jumping, doing the competitive trail and hunt field work. It was heaven!
Seeing Gray Magician in the makeover was absolutely amazing. For Eclipse, Blue Moon and our partners to be able to showcase his talents and prove there is so much life after the racetrack was priceless!
Here are a couple videos and a photo of Gray jumping:
Charity
Since 2018 Blue Moon has donated over $150,000 to several industry-related charitable organizations, including the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance, Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation, New Vocations, CARMA, New York Racetrack Chaplaincy, Ride On, The Jockey Club Safety Net Foundation and The Real Rider Cup. We are proud to be able to do our part to keep the industry’s horses and human participants who make it all possible safe and healthy on and off the track.
Thank you to all our partners who believe in our program and support the aftercare of our horses. We couldn’t do this without all your generosity and for always having your priorities and hearts in the right place!
We are always thankful for people who donate to Blue Moon Eclipse Aftercare or if you would like any suggestions on the different aftercare organizations to donate to this holiday season, please don’t hesitate to ask!
Happy Holidays!