Bill Simon

Rider Emily Ellingwood straightened Night Beacon (Spun to Run) for her stretch run, then banked the young filly for the gallop out. All the while she allowed her mount--who moved like a western pleasure horse--to feel the ground beneath her during what was becoming a regular workout late in 2023. But it wasn't a nicely-groomed all-weather surface the pair were traveling over. No, the terrain was undulating and severe. Among the flora was fauna which included snakes and coyotes. There's no renovation break amid the rock and earth here. True,...

Barber Road (Race Day) may be one of the longer shots on the board come the first Saturday in May, but there is one thing former Walmart CEO Bill Simon is sure of when it comes to his GI Kentucky Derby hopeful. "I don't know what's going to happen, but I can promise that at the end of the race he's going to be running as hard as he can and he'll be moving forward," Simon said. Trained by John Ortiz, Barber Road has placed in each of the three...