The 2022 “Hats Off to the Horses: The Road to the Derby” for Old Friends sponsored exclusively by MAGGIE MAE DESIGNS® kicks off with the first auction hat of the season, the “This Hard Land”!
This one-of-a-kind Derby hat up for bid honors This Hard Land, aka Frankie. A tall, handsome New York bred gelding owned by Lake Star Stable, Frankie got both his racing name and nickname from a Bruce Springsteen song. With a modest career on the track that included three ungraded stakes races, Frankie was retired to Old Friends at Cabin Creek in March of 2016.
Special thanks to Acacia Courtney, Gulfstream Park and New York Racing Association paddock reporter and the host of the “America’s Day at the Races” shows on FOX Sports, for helping us this month with our “Hats Off to the Horses” fundraiser.
Thanks also to Connie Bush of Tiger Eye Photography for her stunning images of Acacia and “Frankie”.
But thank you most of all to Frankie the horse, who inspired this very special hat that will raise funds to support all of the retired racehorses of Old Friends.
To place a bid on the “This Hard Land” hat please go to this eBay link.
Bidding is now underway and ends January 11th at 8 PM EST. All of the proceeds go to Old Friends.
To learn more about Frankie, the horse, please visit the This Hard Land webpage. For more information about the “This Hard Land” Chapeau please visit the This Hard Land hat webpage.
Thank you for supporting Old Friends!
Hats and Horses 