Richard “Red” Curtin Passes Away

Ocala horseman Richard “Red” Curtin, owner of Shanbally Acres, died Friday. Curtin and his wife Cheryl established Shanbally Acres in 1984 and went on to breed multiple graded stakes winner Limehouse (Grand Slam). The couple boarded mares for Frank Calabrese and Curtin served as Calabrese’s sales advisor. Among the yearlings Curtin broke for Calabrese was champion Dreaming of Anna (Rahy). 

“He was a very, very good horseman,” said OBS President Tom Ventura. “He was a no-nonsense kind of guy, but anybody who was in need, he was always there to help out. If you needed a helping hand, he’d be the first one there for that.” 

A native of Co. Cork, Curtin was known as a pioneer of the juvenile pinhooking movement. Among his graduates was graded stakes winner Lil’s Lad (Pine Bluff). 

“He was one of the original Irish guys in Ocala,” said 2-year-old consignor Eddie Woods. “He was part of the original force in pinhooking horses–one of the first ones to pay any money to pinhook horses, trying to buy a better kind of horse.” 

Woods added, “He did things his own way. He didn’t necessarily go by regular rules and regulations. Red was Red. If you didn’t want to start work at 4:30 in the morning, you didn’t apply for a job there. He could be the best in the world and do things for people under cover that you wouldn’t expect. That’s just the way Red was. If he liked you, he’d do anything for you. If he didn’t like you, you were a dead man walking.” 

Wavertree Stables’ Ciaran Dunne paid tribute to Curtin. 

“The passing of Richard ‘Red’ Curtin leaves a void in the Ocala Thoroughbred community that will not soon be filled. One of the original 2-year-old pinhookers, Red was the stereotypical Hollywood horse trainer. Though he loved to appear gruff and abrasive, he had a heart as big as the County Cork from whence he came and his charity was as silent as it was great. My condolences to, not only his family, but our racehorse community. We just lost a good one.”