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OWNERS ON THE TRIPLE CROWN TRAIL A selection of profiles on owners whose horses are likely starters in one of the Triple Crown races this year.
ABOVE: left to riighht; Jamie Hill, Mark Hennig, Dr. Jim Hill and Mike McMahon.
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Bourbon War – Bourbon Lane Stable & Lake Star Stable
Both Mike McMahon and Jamie Hill, long-ttime friends and partners of Bourbon Lane Stable, co-o owner of Kenttuck ky Derb by conttend der Bourb bon War w wiit ith Lak ke Star Stab ble,, were born intto raciing g. Butt each h had d to creatte his own path intto thee Tho oro oughb breed ind dustryy. McMahon’s parents, Joe and A An nne n McMahon, operate high hly-successffull McMah hon at Saratoga Th horough hbred ds farm just outside Saratoga Springs. Mike atte tended Cornell University, y starting in pre-vvet but ultimately majoring in business management. About to graduate, he intervie iewed for a job wiitth a high-profil ile commodity broker, but the intervi viewer i asked him what he would purchase aft ftter he established himself. Mike said, “I’ll probably buy some mares.” The resp ponse? “What’s a mare?” Mike didn’t get the job. “I blew the intervi view,”” he said. vie Jusst a weeek later,, Mike accompanied his father on a trip p to the November Keeneland Sale in Lexinggton. t “Dad boughtt a ho orsse, and d hee got a call fro om thee creeditt offffi fic ice rigghtt
TRAINERMAGAZINE.COM ISSUE 52
Bill Heller Eclipse Sportswire, Michael Reaves
aft fterwards,” t Mike said. “A guy from Hong Kong was in the off ffi fice, i and he said he had come all the way to buy this horse. Would my dad take a profi fit and sell the horse to him? They fit worked out a deal. That was an epiphany for me. I realized there was a lott more to the busiiness than I’ve been exposed d to beffore in Sarattogga. I knew I coulld diffferenttiatte myy busineess fro om myy dad’ss, no ot to be und der hiss shaadow.” After graduating from Cornell in 1993, Mike went to d and d complleted d th he Iriish h Natiionall Stud d course. Irelland He worked for trainer Scotty Schulhofer for two summers in Saratoga. Then he moved to Kentucky and put in 4 ½ years wit ith EQUIX Biomechanics before starting his own company, McMahon Bloodstock, in 2001. McMahon, 48, has emerged as an industry leader in taking care of Thoroughbreds after their racing careers conclude. He is the president of Thoroug ghbred Charities of America, and Bourbon Lane Stables has sett up p Bourb bon Lane Stab ble Pad ddock k att Mike Blowen’’s Old Friends Farm in Georg getown,, Kentuckyy, where anyy Bo ourb bon Laanee equinee can reetiree.