2024 Belmont Stakes: At age 74, Danny Ramsey still galloping McPeek's best horses

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – As impressive as it was for trainer D. Wayne Lukas to win the Preakness Stakes at age 88, exercise rider Danny Ramsey may have him beat.

At age 74, Ramsey still gets on five to seven horses every morning, something he has done since coming to the United States in 1970 following a five-year riding career in his native Nassau, Bahamas. For the last few weeks, Ramsey has been the regular exercise rider for Kentucky Derby winner Mystik Dan and Kentucky Oaks winner Thorpedo Anna.

Saturday, at Saratoga, Mystik Dan runs in the $2 million Belmont Stakes, one day after Thorpedo Anna starts in the $500,000 Acorn Stakes.

Ramsey has worked for trainer Kenny McPeek for about 12 years, joining forces after John Ward retired from training in 2012. Ramsey had worked for Ward for several decades, coming to him after working on the farm for Albert Winick.

Ramsey has gotten on many of McPeek’s top horses over the years, including Grade 1 winners Golden Ticket, Swiss Skydiver, Daddy’s Lil Darling, Eskimo Kisses, and the multiple graded winner Crazy Beautiful.

“Danny is one of the most positive people you’ve ever met in your life,” McPeek said. “He brings energy and is a naturally happy guy. He’s one of my good friends too. We don’t only work together but it’s not unusual for us to hang out. His motto is ‘I’m better than good.’ Ask him how he’s doing, ‘Better than good.’ ”

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Ramsey has been getting on good horses all his life. While working on Winick’s farm in the 1970s and 1980s, he got on horses such as Hold Your Peace, Dontstop Themusic, and Mitterand. Those horses were prepared by Albert Winick but were trained by his brother Arnold, and Arnold’s son Randy.

When Albert Winick passed away, Winick went to work for trainer John Ward. In 1999, Ward was training a 2-year-old named Fusaichi Pegasus. The horse was difficult to work with, so Ward sought Ramsey’s assistance. Ramsey said he rode Fusaichi Pegasus holding whips in each hand, which helped the horse travel straight.

That horse wound up going to trainer Neil Drysdale and in 2000 won the Kentucky Derby. Later that year, Ramsey started galloping a 2-year-old named Monarchos. That horse won the 2001 Kentucky Derby.

So, in essence, Mystik Dan is the third Kentucky Derby winner Ramsey has exercised.

“What I love about him is he’s so kind,” Ramsey said of Mystik Dan. “Fusaichi Pegasus was mean.”

Ramsey was at Keeneland when Mystik Dan won the Kentucky Derby. The morning before the Derby, Ramsey was thrown from a horse and suffered bruised ribs. While he said he got back on horses the next day, he didn’t make the one-hour drive from Lexington to Louisville for either the Derby or the Oaks.

Ramsey works for McPeek during the summer at Saratoga and helps him out in Kentucky in the fall and spring. If McPeek has a string in South Florida, Ramsey works for him there as well. Otherwise, he’ll take the winter off.

Ramsey’s wife of 54 years, Eleanor, has asked him to retire on multiple occasions. That included in 2020 when Ramsey suffered a broken shoulder, fractured spine, and broken jaw when a horse he was exercising stumbled and unseated him.

“My wife said ‘Are you going to quit riding these horses now?’ ” Ramsey said. “With a fractured jaw I said ‘No.’ ”

In the winter of 2021, Ramsey came back and started getting on horses again.

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McPeek said he’s prepared to have Ramsey simply ride the pony when – or perhaps more appropriately if – he decides to stop exercising horses.

“I’ve told him repeatedly the day he decides he doesn’t want to gallop let me know, I’ll buy him a nice pony and he can ride out and tell the young riders what they’re doing wrong,” McPeek said.

Ramsey, who is an ordained minister, says he has no plans to stop riding. He doesn’t smoke or drink or eat red meat. He works out regularly and is a black belt in karate and judo.

“My wife is begging me to stop, but this is great, this is super, I love doing it,” Ramsey said.

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