Tribute to Hall of Fame trainer, Woody Stephens

Woody Stephens, Hall of Fame horse trainer, who passed in 1998, precipitated my interest in horse racing. Many an August morning I would go to the track in Saratoga to photograph the horses working out and to simply soak in the majestic beauty of the horses.  Several of those mornings I’d see a small crowd gathering with one of the trainers chatting with group. It was Woody Stephens. He wasn’t shy about bragging about the horses he trained or his prospects for winning. He made you feel like you were one of the members of his private group and I enjoyed listening to his stories, as well as his assessment of the horses he had trained. Woody was truly an ambassador for the sport of Thoroughbred Horse Racing. 

It just so happens that clips of what may be my favorite race of all time are in this video. Forty Niner was a hard knocking colt who was one of the favorites for the Kentucky Derby, and though he didn’t win that particular race, he had a string of Grade I wins and one happened to be the Travers Stakes in 1988. That race was as about as exciting a race that you’ll ever see and I’m so thankful that we were there. 

My wife and I would visit the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame many times on off-season visits to Saratoga Springs, NY.  For a long period of time there was a special film they showed every hour about horse racing. The photography, video and interviews really showed the beauty of the horse and the racing world. One day when we walked out of the museum I just couldn’t stop thinking that the song about Woody, that I had been working on, would provide a great backdrop to a film about Woody.  I was in the midst of recording the Sunup album, titled, Saratoga Sunrise. I’m not sure if I ever put as much into writing a tune. There were many rewrites, as well as scratched out verses and many subtle musical nuances within the song.

Of course, this dream did not unfold before Woody died, although I had suggested it. I was a struggling musician at the time, who couldn’t fund it on my own and was never comfortable asking people for money. This was before there was crowd funding. But, the thought never left my head or heart. This project would have been much easier if tackled while Woody was still alive. As is often said, better late than never…

My hope is that this 5 minute plus tribute to Woody Stephens will not only give you a glimpse into the life of a great horseman, but also, into a behind the scenes care and training of the thoroughbred. If you’ve never been to the track or visited the workouts in the morning, I encourage you to do so. Just think, one summer day a person asked if I’d ever been to the track? And when I said, “No.” She said, “You ought to just try going once.” The rest is history…

I want to give a shout out to those who were in on the Sunup recording of Woody:

James Wilson (affectionately known to most Rochesterians as Goon), on vocals, Brian Soule on piano, Phil Lake on drum programming, Frank Rauck on bass, Paul Hofmann on synth strings and our good friend, Jim Tomkinson, who unfortunately passed several years ago, on vocals. The recording engineer was Bob Potter and the song was re-mastered by my son, Marshall Manuel. I wrote, produced, played acoustic guitar and shared the vocal duties.

In addition thanks go to John Wager at Galileo Media Arts, who was Producer & Editor and had to put up with my constant reference to the horse racing world and my consistent additions to the photographs and videos included for the project.  https://galileomediaarts.com

I also want to say how much I appreciated the contributions of photographs and video to make this project a reality to the following:

• Bob  & Adam Coglianese (link)

• Gene Devine (link)

• www.dreammakerracing.com from Blue Stone Farm (video of young foal)

• Dell Hancock from Claiborne Farms – I thank her for digging out the old photos and sending them to me for use in this tribute to Woody.

• Barbara D. Livingston – award winning photographer and horse lover. Please check out her books (Northshire Books in Saratoga) and her photos are offered in the National Racing Museum and Hall of Fame and other spots.

• Elizabeth Lundberg – who dug out an old photo of Woody out on the track.

• Janet Malloy-Garaguso – a wonderful morning shot with horse and rider.

• New York Racing Association (NYRA) – Eric Donovan for the footage of the 1988 Travers Stakes Race, which as mentioned, is perhaps my favorite race of all time.

• Amanda Olds – who is works with trainer, Brad Cox, and allowed us to use the video of her working the horse on the backstretch.

• Harold Roth at Horsephotos – who provided some great older, historical photos that I couldn’t find elsewhere!

• Alex (Wei) Zhang – is an awesome photographer who contributed several of his incredible photos into the mix, which enhance the production even more.

• The majority of the cinematography and still photos were shot by yours truly.

Again, my sincere thanks to all who helped make this endeavor possible and to you for watching and listening to this tribute to Woody Stephens.

Garry