Vivien Malloy Lifetime Achievement Award
Excellence in New York Bred Program
May 13, 2024
(Vivien Malloy’s acceptance speech)

I am honored to be receiving this Award in the Company of all you Successful Breeders. We are in the midst of the Triple Crown Season and I hope one day a NY Bred will wear that Crown as Funny Cide almost did. Another state bred won the Triple Crown some years ago and he was a Virginia Bred. Audience Participation … and his name was….?? (“Secretariat!!!”)

When I was renovating Barn 2, the Foaling Barn at Edition, I showed my husband where that great horse was born. It is still there, a humble shed. Harry said if Secretariat was born there why do our horses need a castle like you are building … as he saw the bills come in.

Let’s face it I was wired for horses from birth. As a child I would put away the doll I was given and cut out a horse from the cardboard box , color it, and pretend it was jumping over anything I could find in the room. When I was outside I would run in figures eights and make flying changes. If someone said beautiful my mind would conjure up a horse galloping in a big field. Yes I was a born horse nut.

I love this venue as I remember Gary Gullo when he was training at Belmont and Steve Rydowski, the manager here, because he worked for years for Rick Schosberg, a trainer of mine before he retired. My horse obviously liked it too as she won first time out after coming back to the track.

To ‘The Mig’, who rode my first stakes winner, Cliffie. She won the Broadway Handicap and you can’t get more NY than that. I see you on my office wall every day. He was walking past my farm one day and some horses were hanging their heads over the fence. He looked at the name tag of one and said, “I rode your grandma!”

I am proud to be on the NY Breeders Board with president, Dr. Scott Alswede and executive director, Najja Thompson. Also the director of the Fund Tracy Egan who holds the purse strings. We are as a board constantly reminding the powers that be in Albany that the farms where we breed the horses that race that bring in the gambling money to the state are also preserving clean air and water as a side effect.

Our Board is in the forefront of Aftercare for these horses who gave their all on the track and need either a retirement home or a retraining facility. I am lucky as I have so many friends in the horse show world who are always looking for one of my exes. They send me photos of a homebred with championship ribbons on their bridle and a happy young rider at the reins

As a breeder, my first stab at it was a breeze. I came down after dinner and, checked on the mare who was in our ex tractor shed, and there was a foal. I thought that was easy so I kept at it. I broke and trained her myself in our back yard and then I asked the Neilsens what trainer should I send her to. Jerry Neilson had a list but he said wait until I check with Joanne because some of them don’t like women owners. I found one, and we made our debut in Saratoga, my favorite place to be.

My family and some friends came and we packed the paddock. When she came down the stretch we were screaming and she got 4th! I thought I won the Derby. I found out then and there that I had work to do as a breeder. I had bred a fast horse with no stamina. However she was sound as she raced til she was 9! So I had 2 of the 4 ingredients down pat.

My family is here tonight, my biggest fans …Vivi, Kenneth and Mark, missing are my son Andrew who lives in Colorado and Harry my husband of 53 years when he died and also gone my daughter Debby, an International Show Jumping Rider who always told me to do it and that I knew more than all my advisors… I didn’t need enthusiasm as I had that in spades, but I am a good student and wanted to keep learning. “Sometimes, you have to put the stats away and just go with your gut”, as Debby would say. … Well, if it takes a village to raise a child, it takes a metropolis to raise a horse!

Thank-you’s also go to my longtime farm manager, Annette Orlando and to Teri and Buster Brown who manage Edition now. To the veterinarians, first Dr. John Jagar and now Miranda Gosselin and Alana King and for emergencies, Rhinebeck Equine Laura Javsicas. And to the farrier, who keeps my young foals balanced as they stride out, Ray Galluscio.

My first advisor was Bob Fierro and now Mike McMahon. The Bandaroffs who sell some of my stock in their sales consignments and where I board my horses when they are in Kentucky at their lovely farm in Paris, Denali Stud.

My trainers, Linda Rice, David Donk, Robin Smullen and Barclay Tagg Bernie and Kate Dalton who train the steeplechasers after Janet Eliot, the Hall of Fame retired.And to the Wootens in Camden who trained my first steeplechaser Cute Scot and started Ouchy Night amongst others. Daphne Wooten always told me that Ouchy Night had a high opinion of herself. Well she might since unbeknownst to us then… she would go on to be a stakes performer under the tutelage of Tom Bush.

To my friends and partners in some horses, Linda Conroy, Linda Heaning, Hilarie Niles and Kerry Millikin, the winner of the Bronze in the Olympics on a ex race horse by the way… Each of you bring something precious to the mix. We have a big future to look forward to.

After I wrote my memoir, I thought ‘I am not finished’, and have to write a sequel. After all, I only bred one Grade I winner, and as they say, no one dies with a good 2-year old in the barn.

Each and every one of you have helped me along the way. I learned alot and always kept the horse first with integrity and kindness.They are mine forever as actually I brought them into being and owe them alot because they gave me alot back in spades. You are all part of why I am receiving this Award. I could not have achieved this without your help, your guidance, and your friendship.

Thank you All, and Goodnight.

Photos from the NYTBA Awards Dinner courtesy of Kathy Landman