Consider This from NPR - Larry Demeritte will be the first Black trainer in the Kentucky Derby in decades

Episode Date: May 3, 2024

Larry Demeritte is the first Black trainer participating in the Kentucky Derby in 35 years. And while the betting-books have his colt West Saratoga running at long odds, Demeritte, who is battling chronic illness and cancer, is feeling confident. For the 70-something veteran trainer, this is his first time at the Derby, but he is part of a rich history of Black horsemen who helped shape the Kentucky Derby into the iconic race it is today. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.Email us at [e-mail] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Saturday will mark the 150th Kentucky Derby at the Churchill Downs Racetrack. Feathered and flowered, extravagant derby hats will be on display. Thousands and thousands of mint juleps will be sipped. Crowds will cheer as the thoroughbreds thunder around the mile-and-a-quarter track. It's chilly and gray at Churchill Downs after a rainy night, but as they say, nothing can dampen the enthusiasm of the great Kentucky Derby. The race itself only lasts around two minutes, but the tradition runs deep in America. We've had two world wars, a depression, pandemics. We've always run a Kentucky Derby.

That's Derby Museum curator Chris Goodlett in an interview with CBS News. A few days ago, excitement ramped up as post positions were assigned to the horses in this year's race. The last horse to be called? Number 13. 13, West Saratoga. Harry Verrucci credits veteran horseman Larry DeMeritt for finding West Saratoga. Trainer Larry DeMeritt is in his 70s, and this will be his first ever Kentucky Derby. Here he added, Larry can look to a horse and can see more than what normal people can see. Number 13, West Saratoga.

Born in the Bahamas, DeMeritt will be the first trainer from the Caribbean to participate in the Derby, and just the first black trainer to do so since 1989. Black trainers, jockeys, and grooms are a rarity at the derby these days. That wasn't always the case. The first Kentucky Derby was in 1875, and Oliver Lewis, an African-American, won the first Kentucky Derby. and that particular horse was trained by Ansel Williamson, who was African-American himself. That's Ronald Mack, founder of the Legacy Equine Academy, in a Kentucky educational television documentary about the history of black horsemen. In that particular race, 13 of the 15 jockeys were black jockeys. 15 of the first 28 Derby winners were black jockeys. And so there was dominance and prominence in the industry. Consider this. Black people played a key role

in the history of the Kentucky Derby, but there hasn't been a black trainer in the Derby for decades. Larry DeMeritt is about to change that. From NPR, I'm Scott Detrow. It's Consider This from NPR. This weekend marks 150 years of the Kentucky Derby. Larry DeMeritt has been alive for more than half of those, but this year is the first time he actually has a horse in the race. The trainer worked with West Saratoga, a longshot gray thoroughbred. DeMeritt is the first black trainer to participate in the Derby in 35 years, and the first person ever from the Bahamas to do so. Well, Larry DeMeritt,

thanks so much for being here. Thank you for having me on. There's been so much of a focus on the milestones here, especially the fact that it's the first time in decades that a black trainer has a horse in the race. But I want to start with the milestone for you. This is your first ever derby after such a long career. How are you feeling? Yeah, I'm feeling great. I'm excited. You know, we all have different horse, different style running, different ways of getting them ready to this race, but the ultimate goal is who gets there first. And I'm confident in the horse I'm taking there. I won't trade him for any other race.

When did you first start working with horses? Before I know myself. My dad was a horse trainer, and he put me on the horses back when I was pretty young. So like I said, I know them before I know myself. And I know I wanted to be in the horse industry. So I look at it this way. I said, well, I don't want to be a job because their career don't last long. I know I'm not going to be just a worker, so I have to be a horse trainer because I could do that until I die.

And are you at Churchill Downs right now? Where are you as we talk? As we speak, I'm heading home from Churchill Downs. I was there from about 6 o'clock this morning. Got home late last night. I imagine there's a lot of, you know, you've got the feelings of being here. You have a horse in the derby, but also you've got a lot of work to do to get ready for race day. Yes. You know, it's all paying attention to detail. And you don't want to miss something or leave any stone unturned.

So it's just staying there and stay focused. And that's the key. It's the smallest thing that can make a difference in a horse, get it or not, you know? Can you tell us more about the horse's personality? What's Wes Sartoga like? Oh, man, he's a jewel. He's a jewel. He's such a cool horse.

He loves the camera. He likes to stand up and pose when you're taking a picture. He doesn't get rattled at all. I haven't seen this horse rattled since the time I had it. Just a laid-back horse, carry good flesh, eat well. That's what makes him so special. I want to ask you about some of the broader trends that people have been focusing on when it comes to your participation in the race. And the first is your personal story. You've been battling cancer for a long time, three separate diagnoses over the years. How are you feeling physically, and how much are you thinking about the odds that you've

personally beaten to get to this point this week? Yeah, I don't look at it like that, that I beat the odds, you know. I am a person of faith, and, you know, I had a friend, a good close friend, I lost to cancer. And I told him, I said, you know, Kojo, everybody prays for you to get well. I said, I don't pray that prayer. I pray for you that God is not true with you yet, because when your work is finished on this earth, you're going to go home. So that's the way I look at my life, you know. So I feel like I'm here for a purpose, and I think this is my purpose, the opportunity to make a difference in someone's life,

but either battling cancer or someone with a young kid would need to be encouraged and believe that anything is possible, but you have to work at it, you know? That's the way I look at life. You know, the funniest thing right now, although I have the cancer, that is not the main issue that bothers me. It's the other disease I have, amyloidus.

That's the one that really deepens me up right now. But I still never let that stop me from being focused on the task at hand. I mean, I imagine that makes it tougher, but I'm glad you're still able to do the job, and it seems like a physically demanding job. My job ain't tough. When you do things you love, nothing is tough about it. Get that smile put on your face when you see a horse train good that morning for you.

You know, and that's the good thing with Saratoga. You don't have too many bad days. Yeah. And I want to ask about something that's also gotten a lot of attention. You're the first black trainer since 1989 to participate in the Kentucky Derby. And before

1989, there hadn't been one since 1951. So this is a once every few decades occurrence. Why do you think so few Black people are in positions of prominence in this sport, especially given its historic heritage? That's a good question and could be a hard question too, because there's more reason than one. Number one, we don't have enough blacks in it to begin with, because a lot of blacks that have the finances could afford it. Either they don't know the game or they don't want to get into it. And I don't look at it like that. I don't like anyone talk about the racist, the race stuff,

because the way I look at it, all of my clients are white. So I can't make this a black and white issue. You know, I just thank for the opportunity to do this. But I don't think we should make it that, hey, this guy got a black bond. I need to be in his bond. I want people in my bond because they believe in my ability to train a horse. So you were talking about, on the question of black trainers, you said that a lot of people might just not have the financial resources.

Do you think there's anything big picture that the racing world can do to kind of open the doors to this sport to more people, given the hurdles that there are? Yes, I think so. I think one thing is we need to sell our sport better than we do. The game has come down to now that we need to form more syndicates because it gets pretty costly now to own a racehorse. It's like any other sports, car racing and all of them,

they all have syndicates where so much sponsors, you know, a car. I feel like that's what we have to do. To let the middle class know in America that it's not a sport of kings. Anyone can play it, and the reward is so great when you have success in it. Larry DeMeritt, he trained West Saratoga, who's running in the 150th Kentucky Derby. Larry, thank you so much. Okay, thank you for having me.

And anytime, if you all want to. After I've been to Derby, you can call me. This episode was produced by Janaki Mehta and edited by Jeanette Woods. Our executive producer is Sammy Yettigan. Before we go, a word of thanks to our Consider This Plus listeners who support the show. You make it possible for NPR journalists to report the stories you hear on the show.

Supporters also hear every episode without messages from sponsors. To learn more, you can visit plus.npr.org. It's Consider This from NPR. I'm Scott Detrow.