Keeneland Team Profle SUMMER 2020
FRONT-LINE EMPLOYEES
T
he COVID-19 outbreak forced Keeneland to alter its business operations swifly to protect employees, horsemen, and others: Te 2020 spring meet and April sale were canceled, the track’s grounds were closed to the public, and CDC protocol guidelines were immediately implemented.
Outside Maintenance Keeneland’s 1,000-acre-plus campus continues to receive the same meticulous attention from the Outside Maintenance team, overseen by Director Wally Wallace, which is mowing, trimming, doing daily maintenance, and answering horsemen’s needs.
Security When Keeneland closed to the public, Security monitored all trafc, coming and going, through two main checkpoints. Additionally, Security Director Phil Gardner and his team worked longer shifs and expanded duties to ensure the Keeneland property is monitored 24/7.
While many of Keeneland’s full-time staf began working from home in mid-March, a core group has remained on campus to continue essential operations.
KEENELAND
Administrative Services Te Administrative Services team, led by Director Don Slaughter, keeps mail fowing, accepts deliveries, and scans invoices to enable others to work from home.
Following the closure, Director Justin Frakes and the Building Services team cleaned and sanitized 275,000 square feet of surface area in facilities throughout Keeneland. Te team also donated 14,000 pairs of rubber gloves to the Kentucky governor’s ofce and 4,000 to Nourish Lexington.
Keeneland Hospitality and Track Kitchen Keeneland Hospitality and the track kitchen shifed from feeding race-day crowds to providing for those in need. Keeneland Hospitality and Executive Chef Marc Terrien prepared thousands of meals to support Nourish Lexington and Nourish the Backstretch (see page 16 for more information), many of which feed kids from Fayette County Public Schools. Te track kitchen and its manager, Phyllis Keene, extended hours (6 a.m. to 6 p.m.) to support employees who might not be able to go of site for food. Meals are prepared to go (no inside dining allowed). On Easter,
106
SUMMER 2020
K KEENELAND.COM
ANNE M. EBERHARDT
Building Services
Top, Keeneland’s executive chef, Marc Therrien, helps deliver food to support Nourish Lexington. Above, Keeneland Security monitors all traffc entering and leaving the track.
the track kitchen and Keeneland Chaplaincy prepared more than 200 complimentary meals for backside workers.
Information Technology With COVID-19 looming in late winter, Vice President and Chief Information Offcer Brad Lovell and the IT team collaborated with ofce staf to ensure work-fromhome capabilities and quickly provided support and resources once closure became a reality. Tey then focused on IT security and daily problem solving for employees working remotely.
Stabling and Racetrack Maintenance Te care and training of horses at Keeneland and Te Toroughbred Center never stopped. At Keeneland, approximately 600 horses were stabled primarily on Rice Road, and more than 800 horses were at TTC. Keeneland Stable Manager Wayne Mogge and TTC Stall Manager David Dunning coordinate logistics with trainers to ensure social distancing and to provide for essential services such as feed deliveries, muck removal, and veterinarian visits. With horses training every morning, the Track Maintenance crew continues to condition the racing surfaces daily for maximum equine and human safety. Suspension of racing has allowed Director of Racing Surfaces Jim Pendergest and his team to prepare the turf course for fall racing by aerating the grass and seeding earlier to take advantage of the prime spring growing season. Te Keeneland family appreciates the eforts of these front-line teams that have worked tirelessly to create a safe environment on the grounds. We also thank their families, who have made the ultimate sacrifce by sharing their loved ones with Keeneland. KM