Trainer Family Tree Please Add to it

[BIG49010]

I was thinking about this the other day, when I was trying to think if a certain trainer was at one time an assistant of another trainer. He had claimed a horse who had run bad after a being claimed from trainer "A" by someone else, an now he was training horse in the same method as trainer "A" my guess after claiming horse. The horse ran a good race, so it pays to pay attention to this.

Jack VanBerg - Bill Mott - Tom Albertroni


- Frank Brothers
- Wayne Catalano

D. Wayne Lukas - Todd Pletcher
- Dallas Stewart
- Mark Hennig

Carl Nafzger - Ian Wilkes

[PaceAdvantage]

Add Kiaran McLaughlin to the Lukas tree...

[andicap]

Allen Jerkens --

Either Mitchell Friedman or Michael Hushion or both (I can't quite recall).

Then there are the family spinoffs.
e.g., Clyde Rice to Linda Rice

[BIG49010]

Today at Gulfstream Ralph Nicks is former assistant of Bill Mott

[Valuist]

Whittingham and Woody Stephens have had a number of assistants become trainers. Can't remember exactly who, however.

[stu]

Nicholas Zito
--> Reynaldo Abreu

Lefty Nickerson
--> Richard Mandella
------> Gary Mandella

Farrell Jones
--> Gary Jones
------> Ben Cecil
------> Jesus Mendoza
------> Marty Jones

[stu]

Horatio Luro
--> Charlie Whittingham
------> Laura de Seroux

[NY BRED]

john campo > bruce levine

[Figman]

Trainer links-
Frank Martin - Gary Contessa
- Jose Martin
- Greg Martin

[point given]

Whittingham and Woody Stephens have had a number of assistants become trainers. Can't remember exactly who, however.

I think Dave Donk for The Woodman.

[the Bid]

Add Mike Maker in under Lukas.

DWL
>>>Todd Pletcher
>>>>>>George Weaver

[Valuist]

I might be wrong on this but wasn't Mandella an assistant for Whittingham?

[andicap]

Bill Mott--
Tom Albertrini

[stu]

I might be wrong on this but wasn't Mandella an assistant for Whittingham?

info from NTRA bios doesn't mention whittingham

http://www.ntra.com/stats_bios.aspx?id=10065

[BIG RED]

Hey stu, where is stuball?

[stu]

Stu is in Sunland Park, NM

[PriceAnProbability]

Stu is in Sunland Park, NM

>William Turner (Seattle Slew)
--John Servis (Smarty Jones)

[kenwoodallpromos]

"“He’s a terrific guy and certainly a good trainer,” said fellow trainer Leonard Dorfman, 84, who worked for (96 year old Noble) Threewitt from 1947 to 1953"

[stu]

John Oxx, Sr.
--> John Oxx, Jr.
------> Mohammed Moubarak

Burley Cocks
--> Jonathan Sheppard
------> Graham Motion

I will give a free (used) copy of Steve Crist's "Exotic Betting" to the first person who posts a five 'generation' branch on this trainer family tree.

Stu

[BIG49010]

I think Tom VanBerg is 4th generation of VanBerg's, so with Mott - Nicks or Albertroni you have 5 . I know they have a Marion VanBerg stake at Hawthorne, but I don't know if he was father of JVB or Grand Father.

[stu]

I think Tom VanBerg is 4th generation of VanBerg's, so with Mott - Nicks or Albertroni you have 5 . I know they have a Marion VanBerg stake at Hawthorne, but I don't know if he was father of JVB or Grand Father.


I might have the fact wrong but this is what I have for the Van Bergs. If you had given me C.A. Tanner, then you would have won the book.

C. A. Tanner
--> Marion Van Berg
------> Jack Van Berg
----------> William Mott
--------------> Tom Albertrani
----------> Frank Brothers
--------------> Tom Amoss
----------> Tim Van Berg
----------> Tom Van Berg

[BIG49010]

C. A. Tanner
--> Marion Van Berg
------> Jack Van Berg
----------> William Mott
--------------> Tom Albertrani
----------> Frank Brothers
--------------> Tom Amoss
----------> Tim Van Berg
----------> Tom Van Berg
----------> Wayne Catalano
-------------->Rick Slomkowski

[Loosehorse]

add Phil Gleaves to Woody

[stu]

Kieth Asmussen
--> Steve Asmussen
------> Scott Blasi
--> Cash Asmussen
--> Cheryl Asmussen

Dennis Ward
--> Wesley Ward

Willard Proctor
--> Tom Proctor

David Whiteley
--> Shug McGaughey
------> Ken McPeek
----------> Helen Pitts

Charles Whittingham
--> Neil Drysdale

[stu]

Robert Durso
--> Luis Carvajal

http://www.drf.com/news/article/82259.html

[arkansasman]

David Whiteley
--> Shug McGaughey
------> Ken McPeek
----------> Helen Pitts


Shug worked for Frank Whitely as did Mike Bell, David Whitely and Joe Cantey.

[stu]

Scott Lake
-- > Timothy Hooper

http://www.drf.com/drfNewsArticle.do?NID=82528

[reckless]

John Servis did not work for Billy Turner....

Servis is the son of very a very successful jockey and later Steward from West Virginia, and nephew of late legendary jockey's agent Jack Servis.

John Servis learned the training business from Mark Reid.

Mark Reid, in turn, learned the game from the late Dick Dutrow, father of Tony and Ric Dutrow, both wildly successful horsemen.

Dick Dutrow, one of the 'Big Four' training cabal that dominated Maryland racing in the 1960s-70s, was truly a great underated horseman.

Reid is the brother of Butch Reid, a top, under-the-radar winning horseman now based at Phila Park after many, many years at Monmouth.

[reckless]

I forgot to mention this in my previous post...

Billy Turner got started as a jumping jock and learned the training business from Burley Cocks; he may have also worked for Frank Whiteley earlier before going out on his own. Shug also worked for Frank W. but not David. Jim Baker, was David Whiteley's assistant in early 1980s before going out on own.

Thanks to Stu for mentioning Burley Cocks.... but I believe Graham Motion -- no, make that I am pretty sure -- that Graham learned under the sharp horseman Bernie Bond, brother of another excellant horseman Bowes Bond, in Maryland. Bowes trained Cure the Blues to his first 4-5 undefeated starts before the owners gave the colt to Leroy Jolley.

Mitchell Friedman... mentioned earlier, learned the game from Gaspar Moschera, not the trainer he ( Friedman ) was paired with in an earlier post.

Bruce Levine was just one of many top trainers that learned the game under the great Johnny Campo. Some others:

Sal Campo, John's brother now a jockey's agent but numerous times leading trainer at Phila Park; Nick Zito, hall of famer, who was John's assistant for many years but today seems to have forgotten what Campo did for him; John Parisella, a great horseman who won numerous training titles in 80s and 90s; Ron Reed, now based in Kentucky; Vince Nocella, no longer active; Peter Ferriola, retired, was Big A's top winter trainer for many, many years; Al Switzer, and even Bobby Frankel worked a while for John in mid-late 1960s.

The list is quite long and since I am quite dead in the brain I know I missed some.

Gary Contessa did work for Frank Martin as mentioned but before that actually cut his teeth with two previous trainers before working for Pancho Martin.

Contessa got started with Jimmy Picou, then went to work for Stanley Hough when he got the job at Harbor View Farm; Gary stayed on when Hough was fired and Frank Martin was named trainer.

[reckless]

Could I get the book Stu ? <s>

Add Loren Rettele to the Jack Van Berg wing... and also add Albert Stall Jr to the Tom Amoss wing... an added plus since both Tom and Al got started under Frankie Brothers.

For baseball trivia fans: Rusty Staub and Frankie Brothers went to the same high school in New Orleans; actually were good friends then as well as now.

Le Grand Orange **always** seemed to mention horse racing analogies while talking to newspaper reporters when I was a kid in The Bronx when he played for the Mets

[reckless]

hi Andicap, all:

Mike Hushion worked for Allen Jerkens and was the groom of the horse responsible for one of the 2-3 greatest races I ever personally witnessed.

Hushion rubbed Sensitive Prince, who entered the 1977(?) Kentucky Derby unbeaten and lightly-raced but couldn't handle Afffirmed and Alydar and was unplaced...

BUT... in the ensuring Jim Dandy at Saratoga... a sharper, more mature Sensitive Prince lead Triple Crown great Affirmed from the start and set all the pace, even opening up 2-3 lengths at the eighth pole.... he looked like a sure winner, but then Affirmed simply got another gear and ran his eyeballs out catching Sensitive Prince at the wire to win by a short head.

That 150 mile car ride home was the shortest and fastest trip I ever took... I was in heaven, that's how I felt about the race.

[stu]

Could I get the book Stu ? <s>




Private Message me your postal address and it will be on its way soon.

[reckless]

adding a few more to keep this thread going

-----------------------------------------------------

Keith Asmussen
--> Steve Asmussen
------> Scott Blasi
--> Cash Asmussen
--> Cheryl Asmussen

By a very narrow of extensions could I add the following to the above?:

Steve Asmussen, while a very, very young aspiring rider, did work for a very prominent trainer, a future trainer of a Breeder's Cup classic winner, and one of the great men in the racing game: Phil (P.G.) Johnson. It could have been the wise PeeGee who suggested to Steve that he'll never be another Cash, and just maybe find his future in racing would be that of a trainer.

As usual, Johnson was right.

Others who come to mind that also worked under P.G. Johnson:

--Tom Skiffington
--John Hertler
--Alfredo Velasquez, a perennial winning trainer at Phila Park

Tom Skiffington is a true 'ladie's man', winning many races/stakes in New York over the years with fillies.

John Hertler is simply one of the best trainers and horsemen in the entire business. Lack of opportunity has kept Hertler off the radar screen but Hertler has won consistently with the type of stock he's had.

Plus, Steve Asmussen, if you allow me this small liberty. That's four for PeeGee.

Another, longer term 4-ply training connection is:

1-Jack Gaver Sr., hall of famer who trained one of racing's all-time greats in Tom Fool, plus a Belmont Stakes winner, Stage Door Johnny, and a few filllies that were top of their class in 1950s-1960s.
2-Jack Gaver Jr., who was somewhat successful after taking over for his dad at Greentree Stables, but wasn't a good horseman like Senior. He ran a horse that ran second to Pleasant Colony in the 1981 Derby...Woodchopper.
3-Robert Reinacher, and
4-Tom Bush... these latter two trainers have been somewhat successful horsemen over the years, with Tom Bush doing very well these past 2-3 years. Both worked long and hard at their careers, unlike Gaver Junior.

Thanks Stu... I'll look forward to the book.

[reckless]

This could be the topper:

Mark Reid at the top... the rest have all been on their own for a few years with 3 now out of the game. All were somewhat successful.

Mark Reid...
--Butch Reid
--John Servis
--Allen Iwinski
--Mark Fusco
--Robert Mosco
--Mary Jo Coutts
--Lynne Segal

[falconridge]

A few more--who have, for the most part, plied their trade west of the Rockies:

Jerry Fanning
--> Jerry Hollendorfer
--> Brett Fanning

[Another way to put it: The elder Fanning is to Hollendorfer as Ole Bob Bowers is to John Henry.]

Walter Greenman
--> Dean Greenman

R. L. Martin
--> Bobby Martin

Jack Arterburn
--> Lonnie Arterburn (both A'burns being jockeys-turned-trainers; ditto the OBB/JH analogy; Lonnie's been a much better trainer than he was a jockey, and better at both professions than papa Jack)

William J. Morey, Jr.
--> William E. Morey

Howard Belvoir
--> Vann Belvoir

Ted West
--> Ted H. West

Bruce Headley
--> Gus Headley
--> Bruce's younger brother, whose name escapes me just now (you can find it in Bill Barich's Laughing in the Hills; I don't have my copy handy) also trained thoroughbreds for a while.

[Does anyone here know if these Headleys are any kin to Duval Headley, owner, trainer, and breeder of yore? Duval H. bred champion Tom Fool]

Dick Mulhall
--> Kristin Mulhall

Brian Mayberry
--> Summer Mayberry

Wallace Dollase
--> Craig Dollase
--> Aimee Dollase

Mel Stute
--> Gary Stute

Warren Stute
--> Glen Stute

Vance Longden
--> Johnny Longden (son Vance trained when papa Johnny was still a reinsman)
--> Eric Longden (brother of Vance and son of Johnny[?])

Arnold Winick
--> Randy Winick

Has anyone mentioned Preston and Elliott Burch? Or the Jolleys--Bob Newhart lookalike Leroy and his exemplarily gracious and diplomatic sire Moody? Is Cecil Jolley of this line?

[Stevie Belmont]

Nick Zito-Jaime Sanders

Ben Perkins Sr-Kelly Breen, Ben Perkins Jr.

Frank Martin-Gary Contessa

Gerald Sleeter-Kevin Sleeter

Roger Attfield-Peter Walder

[falconridge]

... and the R. B. "Bob" Hesses, père et fils

[BIG49010]

Roger Attfield - Layne Giliforte

[offtrack]

From Chester Ross-

Melvin Winney

[stu]

Tom Amoss
--> Chris Richard

[stu]

Patrick Biancone
--> Francois Parisel
--> Chris Crow

http://www.thoroughbredtimes.com/national-news/2007/October/18/Biancone-transfers-horses-to-assistants.aspx

[stu]

Robert Frankel
--> Chad Brown

http://www.drf.com/news/article/89905.html

[mudnturf]

This could be the topper:

Mark Reid at the top... the rest have all been on their own for a few years with 3 now out of the game. All were somewhat successful.

Mark Reid...
--Butch Reid
--John Servis
--Allen Iwinski
--Mark Fusco
--Robert Mosco
--Mary Jo Coutts
--Lynne Segal

Allen Iwinski will be back in the game in the very near future.
He has been battling an illness over which he seems to have prevailed.
IMHO this guy is one heckeva horseman.