--- In cnyharnessracingenthusiasts@y..., magicalmike2001
<no_reply@y...> wrote:
> Tough attitude, hard work keep Ray Schnittker in racing's fast lane
> Though standing only 5-foot-7, Ray Schnittker, 44, is a noteworthy
> presence whether in the paddock at Yonkers or The Meadowlands, or
> coordinating the 40 or so horses he handles between his racing and
> breeding operations.
>
> The bay colt paced hotly toward the gate, as his driver leaned back
> in the bike to maintain some assemblance of control.
> It was the morning of June 2, 1999, and the 2-year-olds were lining
> up for what was for many their first trip to the post. Nine
freshmen
> were in the seventh qualifier on the balmy spring day, but it was
the
> one far on the outside who drew the most notice.
> Mattna Carter shot forward as the gate wings folded. He had five
> lengths on the field by the time he passed the first quarter. By
the
> half his lead was 10 lengths, and he opened up to 15 around the
final
> turn. He had nearly 20 lengths on his rivals by the time he tripped
> the timer for the very first time in his life. His mile time:
1:53.4.
> Many drivers might have been strung up for rocketing a 2-year-old
> around the track and breaking 1:54 before the colt had the chance
to
> even earn a penny. This colt, however, was steered by Ray
Schnittker,
> and that meant most people in attendance were more inclined to
shrug
> their shoulders, all figuring, "That's just Ray."
> Schnittker is not unlike many of his horses. Considered a bit high-
> strung and hard to handle, he nonetheless has the talent,
commitment
> and horsemanship skills to turn challenging performers into
> champions.
> From Armbro Plato to Armbro Trick to 2002 sensation Game Of Skill--
> who trotted in 1:53.2 in April, before most other sophomore
trotters
> had even made a start--Schnittker has sent a plethora of horses to
> the sport's peak as both their driver and trainer. He has found his
> success with some unconventional methods, and an "If-they-can't-
take-
> a-joke-the-hell-with-them" attitude that makes him one of the
sport's
> feistiest performers.
> "I always get some wise[guy] who asks me what the hell I think I'm
> doing," said Schnittker, his face brightening up with an infectious
> smile. "I say, 'If I'm so stupid, why do I have so much money?'
That
> usually shuts 'em up."
> "I know people say I'm nuts--they won't say it to my face, but I
know
> what they say. But I think a lot of breeders like when I get their
> horses, because they know I'm going to get them to the races. I'm
> going to give them a shot."
> Though standing only 5-foot-7, Schnittker, 44, is a noteworthy
> presence whether in the paddock at Yonkers or The Meadowlands, or
> coordinating the 40 or so horses he handles between his racing and
> breeding operations.
> He will be the first one to tell you that the two horses he lined
up
> for the Hambletonian--Armbro Plato in 1997 and Armbro Trick in 2000-
-
> both qualified "like crap." He proudly suggests an
interviewer "look
> up my record" through the USTA Fines and Suspensions system to get
an
> idea of the ruckus he may rouse.
> Schnittker's fellow drivers know when they race against Ray that
most
> often he will be heading for the front end--come hell or high
water.
> His dark eyes sparkle as much with mischief as they do with a keen
> interest in the horses he observes. His wit and tongue sting like a
> snapped whip, and he is not afraid to tell anyone what he thinks on
> any given topic--even if that topic is the person standing before
> him.
> He admits to enjoying a drink and a party as much as the next guy,
> but never lets his good times interfere with the hard work he know
it
> takes to get to--and stay at--the top of the business.
> "I do the business the way I want to do it," said Schnittker. "I
> never really worked for anybody. I just watched guys that were
> successful and tried to do what they did--but also do it my own
way."
> "Ray loves to have fun--he's just a good-feeling guy that is good-
> natured, but he takes his racing very seriously," said fellow
> reinsman Ron Pierce, who has known Schnittker more than 15
> years. "I'll tell you, he's an excellent horsemen and a good friend-
-
> and if I'm ever in a bar fight, I want him on my side."
> Schnittker joined the business through his father, Warren, who had
a
> dairy farm in their hometown of Buffalo, N.Y. An avid rider from
his
> earliest days, young Ray tried factory work making radiators when
he
> first graduated from high school. At the same time, he saved for
two
> years to buy his first horse, whom he trained at night.
> The longer he worked at the radiator factory, the more he hated it,
> prompting him to try the horse business full-time.
> "I figured that if I could make enough money to buy a couple decent
> ones, then I'd keep doing it full-time," he said. "If I couldn't,
I'd
> go back to school. I didn't want to work in a factory the rest of
my
> life. That really stunk."
> Schnittker ended up parlaying his one horse into a few claimers who
> did well on the New York circuit. In 1980 he bought the yearling
Bye
> Bye Byrd colt Keystone Tort, who made more than $70,000 in their
> first two years together.
> "I did unbelievably claiming horses for two or three years," he
> recalled. "I came down to New York [City] with five horses and like
> $8,000 in the bank--me and my father. By that fall I claimed one
for
> $62,000, and he ended up winning an open the day after Christmas,
and
> set a track record for geldings. He made like $80,000 in six weeks,
> and then it just mushroomed. I had a bunch of good claims that made
> $200,000 in one year."
> Through his mastry of the claiming game, Schnittker continued to
> improve his racing fortunes, as is evidenced by his career driving
> earnings, which jumped from $40,003 in 1980 to $555,675 in 1987. By
> 1988 he was over $1 million.
> He also quickly found owners who formed partnerships that he
> maintains to this day, with such investors and friends as Howard
> Taylor, Ronald Kelkenberg and Norman Wenk Jr.
> Taylor found Schnittker when the horseman bought the Nihilator
> gelding Smiley Face in 1992, and Taylor wanted to retain part
> ownership. Kelkenberg and Schnittker go back to 1985, when the
> trainer handled the pacer Hot Hit in partnership with Kelkenberg's
> wife, Judy, whom he had met at the radiator factory.
> Though Judy Kelkenberg passed away, her husband decided to keep her
> part of Hot Hit with Schnittker, and soon bought in with Ray and
> Warren on the pacer Avon Thunder p,1:59.2h ($127,749).
> "I like Ray because he always tells me like it is," said
Kelkenberg,
> who owns nearly 20 horses with Schnittker and partners. "If our
> horses are not making any money, Ray doesn't keep them around too
> long. But a lot of the ones we have do make money."
> Many of those horses make a lot of money.
> His earliest example was the tough-minded racehorse named Covert
> Action, who Schnittker purchased in 1988 with Kelkenberg's Kelk's
> Inc., Ellen Marie Andrews and Robert Papaccio
> "I bought him from Gordon Norris for $100,000 after he'd just
turned
> 3," Schnittker recalled. "He turned out to be a hell of a
racehorse."
> The son of General Star had made just under $4,000 in six starts as
a
> 2-year-old. After joining the Schnittker stable, he went on a tear,
> winning 47 races over eight seasons and bringing home more than
$1.1
> million--and putting the young horseman on racing's map.
> The pacer, retired since 1995, now stands at stud in Montgomery,
N.Y.
> Schnittker's next brush with success came in 1991 when he picked up
a
> son of Nihilator named Six Day War, another hard-headed dynamo, who
> couldn't decide which gait he liked best. He became the world's
> fastest double-gaited performer by virtue of his p,1:55h and
1:56.4h
> records.
> Schnittker sold the big stallion in May of 1994, but the trainer
> continued to find his way to the winner's circle with other
charges.
> In February of 1994 Schnittker, Wenk's Seal Stable and Kelkenberg
> bought Calypso Beat, and watched as that pacer made them $500,000
in
> three years, racing at the top-level events at Freehold and
Yonkers.
> In April of 1995 they bought Rayson Hanover, also an invitational
> performer on the small East Coast tracks, who earned them nearly
> $600,000 in six seasons.
> Clearly exhibiting a Midas touch with raceway horses, Schnittker
and
> company soon sought to parlay their money and luck into the
yearling
> market.
> "When I was a kid--22, 23--we used to have five or six babies every
> year, and we always did OK with them, but we were buying horses for
> $3,000, $4,000," he said. "When I came down to New York, we had a
lot
> of money behind us and did very well at the claimers. I guess you
get
> looking at the bigger pots of gold with the young horses."
> Being partial to trotters, Schnittker set his sights on the
available
> opportunities.
> "Back then basically it was Super Bowl--who I didn't really care
for;
> Speedy Crown--who I couldn't afford; Valley Victory--who I
definitely
> couldn't afford; and Balanced Image," he recalled.
> In 1995 Schnittker welcomed to his barn two Balanced Image colts,
> spending $55,000 on Armbro Plato with partners Earl Scheelar, Wenk
> and Kelkenberg, and $37,000 on Captain Claude, with Kelkenberg,
> Edward Rosenthal and 3 Brothers Stable.
> It was Armbro Plato who made his life a living hell, and got racing
> thinking that Schnittker and psycho horses went hand in hand.
> "He was tough," said Schnittker. "He made me a lot of money, but I
> hated him.
> "A good story about him is how we got him home, and Steve Jones of
> Cameo Hills was there," said Schnittker with a wicked smile. "He's
> about 6-foot-4, a big guy, right? He was holding the horse, and my
> wife [veterinarian Janet Durso] stuck a thermometer in the horse's
> [rear end] to take his temperature. That colt shot right forward
and
> went right through two sets of fences--boom, boom!
> "He took off, and all I could think of was, 'I gotta break this one
> now?' He was actually pretty easy to break, but you could always
tell
> he was on fire."
> Despite his challenges, Armbro Plato clearly had speed to burn. The
> colt won his first two races--setting his 1:58.1 freshman mark June
> 25 at The Meadowlands--and finished second to Yankee Glide in his
> elimination for the $500,000 Peter Haughton Memorial.
> It was in that final that racing started to take notice of
Schnittker-
> a nose-to-the-grindstone raceway trainer who suddenly found himself
> in the Haughton final with not one, but two colts.
> "Captain Claude finished third in his elim, and then he drew the
rail
> in the final," Schnittker said. "Of course the one I drove draws
the
> 10-hole."
> Captain Claude, with Jack Moiseyev in the bike, ended up second to
> Yankee Glide, earning $125,000 toward his more than $200,000 in
> freshman earnings, while Armbro Plato was seventh and would bring
> home just $65,000 on the year.
> The tables, however, would soon turn on the two colts--catapulting
> Schnittker to the forefront of racing.
> Armbro Plato's continuing mental challenges prompted the trainer to
> castrate his charge between his 2- and 3-year-old
> campaigns: "Actually, racing he wasn't bad, but in the post parade,
> watch out. One time I hit the outside fence 'cause he just freaked
> out. I thought I was on a roller coaster. He was really
aggravating."
> Aggravating or not, Armbro Plato pulled Schnittker through a
stellar
> sophomore campaign, winning 12 of 22 races--including the Dexter
Cup
> and a variety of Ontario Sire Stakes--and earning more than
$660,000.
> The colt missed just one check on the year, and picked up his
biggest
> payday finishing third to Malabar Man in the 1997 Hambletonian.
> "He had plenty of speed, and if he had any guts, he might've won
the
> race," Schnittker recalled. "I pulled out and took like two steps
> forward, and then he hung. He was gutless."
> Though he may downplay his colt's performance, even Schnittker said
> he realized the magnitude of a relatively small-time guy from
upstate
> New York driving, training and owning a Hambletonian horse--and an
on-
> the-board finisher to boot.
> "I could be third the rest of my life, and I would enjoy it," he
> said. "It's a great week [between the eliminations and the final].
> You have the hope, and that takes you a long way."
> Schnittker didn't have long to wait before securing the mount who
> would help him relive the hope of a Hambletonian victory. A year
> after his drive behind Armbro Plato, Schnittker and partners went
> back to the Armstrong yearling consignment, this time to purchase a
> son of Garland Lobell named Armbro Trick for $37,000.
> "He was out of a mare called Wendys Joker, who made over $300,000,"
> he said. "She wasn't the greatest broodmare, but she'd had a couple
> who made over $100,000 [the Speedy Crown gelding Armbro Laughter
and
> the King Conch filly Armbro Roseanne]. I thought that might be the
> best mare to be bred to Garland."
> Schnittker, enjoying the fact that Armbro Trick was a bit easier to
> handle that Armbro Plato, steered the colt to three wins in his
> freshman season and nearly $90,000 in earnings. The following year
he
> stepped up to be among the best in his classes, winning with races
> and more than $460,000, while capturing such events as the Dexter
Cup
> and an elimination for the Yonkers Trot.
> Like Armbro Plato, however, his biggest payday came not from a win,
> but rather a third-place finish--this time behind Yankee Paco in
the
> 2000 Hambletonian.
> "Plato was kind of in contention, and hung on to finish third,"
said
> Schnittker. "Trick had a terrible trip--he was ninth at the half--
and
> he came home real strong to finish third. I was real happy with
that
> effort.
> "I think I appreciated [the Hambletonian] more the second time
> around. It's funny, because I thought both my horses qualified like
> crap--they only made the final 'cause of high earnings. Even so,
you
> have a whole week between the elims and the final to dream a little
> bit."
> Though he may dream of the big time, Schnittker keeps his feet on
the
> ground by stabling away from the hustle and bustle of the racing
> action. He and his partner, trainer Paul Doherty--who was also the
> best man in his wedding--handle their horses just strides from the
> heart of racing history. They are based in the historic Coxe barn
> located at the first turn of Historic Track at Goshen.
> The pair have been friends since the early 1980s, and now have a
> partnership that allows them to maximize their mutual talents.
> "I know exactly what he's going to do, and he knows what I'm going
to
> do," said Schnittker of Doherty. "I can trust him with any horse,
any
> task, any time. That's a big load off my shoulders."
> Schnittker's other partner in life and racing is his wife, Dr.
Janet
> Durso, a veterinarian who specializes in track work. It is her
> inspiration which he credits with calming him down a bit from his
> wilder youth.
> "She's a good influence on me," he said. "I don't know why we hit
it
> off--we're kind of opposites, actually--but I think that helps me
> look at stuff different ways."
> Schnittker and Durso first met at a Blue Chip Farms New Year's Eve
> party welcoming 1992. It was not love at first sight.
> "I didn't think much about him," admitted Durso with a laugh. "I
was
> surprised to get a call from him afterward. I thought going out
with
> him would be interesting, to say the least."
> Durso, a graduate of Cornell University's veterinary program, soon
> found much to like in the quick-witted, pull-no-punches Schnittker.
> In six months they had grown close enough to survive a two-year
> break, during which time Durso was serving a residency program at
the
> University of California-Davis.
> In fact, Durso never did finish the four-year program: "I had to
make
> a choice between sticking it out or going to Ray. He was pretty
> persistent."
> The couple were married in Goshen in 1994. A member of their
wedding
> party was Covert Action, who pulled the couple in a buggy to their
> reception.
> Durso is the first to admit theirs is a relationship built on love,
> frivolity and horses. Sometimes the mix works, and sometimes it
> proves difficult.
> "We have a lot of things in common, and we have fun together,"
Durso
> said. "We were pretty wild early on. I'm not sure if I calmed him
> down or he just doesn't want to admit he's getting older.
> "If you ever worked with your spouse, you know how hard it can be.
At
> times we work together great--like at horse sales, he relies on my
> opinion quite a bit. When they go lame or there are problems--
that's
> when it's very difficult. We get through it."
> One challenge they face is living apart as much as they live
> together. Durso, whose practice is run out of the couple's New York
> State home, is often out and about treating clients and patients.
> Schnittker, who races here, there and everywhere along the Eastern
> seaboard, is often gone before she gets up, and returning from the
> races long after his wife has gone to bed.
> "I do get updates on what I need to do with the horses," Durso
said,
> laughing.
> Despite his veterinary connections, Schnittker prides himself on
> doing as little vet work as possible on his horses, citing the
> example of Armbro Plato, who had just $2,000 of medical bills for
his
> entire 3-year-old season.
> Schnittker claims that any quality trainer who has been in the
> business as long as he has--going on three decades--had better be
> able to tell what is going on with his horses and how to correct
many
> problems themselves, or they have no business holding onto the
lines.
> "I get a kick when someone injects every joint," he said. "I have
no
> idea what they think they are doing. Do they think that will be the
> answer to keeping the horse sound in the long run? Half the time
you
> get a joint infection, and then the problem is worse."
> Schnittker's current stable features 35 performers, including
> Historic Cup winner Game Of Skill 3,1:53.2, and New York Sire
Stakes
> winners Hang Time 3,1:58.3h and Too Good For Us 3,2:02.1h. The
> horseman's recent success with trotters has enabled him to attract
> such high-profile owners as Frank Antonacci and Blue Chip Farm--"We
> may not be the best outfit, but we get them to the races," he said
> with a laugh--but he is also committed to owning at least part of
> most of his charges.
> "[The late] Jimmy Cruise said the greatest thing: 'If you are going
> to make money for somebody else, you might as well make it for
> yourself,'" Schnittker said, recalling words of wisdom from the
Hall
> of Fame horseman. "The thing I take pride in the most is my good
> horses. If I'm going to win the Hambletonian, I'm going to win it
> with something I own a part of. I think that just adds to the
> pleasure for me."
> In addition to his ownership commitment, Schnittker also tries to
> steer all members of his stable--which puts him in the distinct
> minority in this age of specialization.
> "I swear to God I'd be broke if I didn't drive my own horses," he
> said with a laugh. "When I use other drivers, I get a lot of good
> drives, but I also get some drives where I say, 'What the hell is
> that guy doing?' If I started doing bad with my horses and other
guys
> did better, I would stop driving. But if you asked any of these
> drivers if they were driving Armbro Trick or Armbro Plato, if they
> would've made a dollar more, I think they'd say no. I know my
horses.
> "I like sitting behind them all the time, especially if I've got a
> problem. I know I can unzip those. I think just being with them all
> through everything is an important part of being successful-
> especially with your own 2-year-olds. This way I know exactly what
> they're going to do--and I'm not going to barbecue them."
> Schnittker, however, is not afraid to put his horses on the front-
end-
> -and if you are looking for him in a race, the engine is usually
the
> safest bet.
> Schnittker said that tendency comes from his years driving on the
> competitive half-milers of the New York circuit. Schnittker's
comfort
> on the front end, however, did not cloud his judgment when the big
> money was on the line. Though he left with Armbro Plato and Armbro
> Trick in their Hambletonian elims, he took back with both trotters
> when $1 million was at stake-likely resulting in their strong
> finishes.
> "I might be nuts, but I'm not stupid," Schnittker said. "Sure, they
> both qualified off the front-end, but Plato stopped like I had hit
> him with a brick. When I took them both off the gate, they raced
> good."
> As if driving and training don't keep him busy enough, Schnittker
> also ships all his own horses--to Pennsylvania, New York, New
Jersey,
> Canada and beyond.
> Though it may be exhausting to handle racing responsibilities
> morning, noon and night, Schnittker said there one simple tonic
that
> keeps him going: winning.
> "If you think you've got a nice colt, it kind of keeps you going,"
he
> said smiling. "Sure, if you race two horses and they both come in
> last and break, or something like that, and you have to drive home
> eight hours, that sucks. But if you win a couple, you can just
drive
> right back and go to work and never miss a beat."
> The same rationale that keeps him driving has also put him in the
> saddle aboard his horses--he was even a brief competitor in the
> USTA's now-defunct Boots and Saddles racing under saddle series--
> allowing him to get an even better feel for their ails and their
> attitudes.
> "A lot of the trotters, if they start getting off behind, I'll go
> ride them up and down the hills to work it out," he said. "And
Plato,
> I used to ride him quite a bit, because he was so goofy."
> Schnittker admitted he will "try anything" to keep one going--be it
> swimming, riding or leading. Covert Action was kept going through
> swimming, though Schnittker bypassed the pool and went straight for
> the pond in the middle of his property. It is a tool he uses in the
> heat of summer and the chill of winter.
> "I do whatever it takes," he said. "I know a lot of people feel I
> push my horses--maybe I'm hard on them--but I make pretty good
money
> doing it. These guys keep going for me, too--my guys go the whole
> year, from the Dexter Cup right to the Breeders Crown. I must be
> doing something right. I also like my horses. I don't blow them up
as
> 2-year-olds. I take good care of them, and they pay me back."
> While he has his share of well-bred youngsters, Schnittker also
> devotes his time to his staple--the raceway stock who "pay the
> bills." Though most of them are conditioned competitors, he
continues
> to play sometimes in the claiming game that got him started in the
> business--despite the fact the rules have changed dramatically.
> In his early days, claiming a horse for $50,000 and moving him up
in
> class meant you likely had that horse for the rest of his career.
> Nowadays a horseman who claims one for $50,000 and puts him in the
> next week for $60,000 could lose him in his first start.
> "The way the game is now, you almost have to be like a real gambler-
-
> every time you put one in the box, you are rolling the dice that he
> might be gone," he said. "It's hard, because I have owners who like
> to enjoy their horses for a while."
> Schnittker credited his claiming success to his willingness to
claim
> winners. Whereas some people shy away from a horse who has won
> several claiming starts--"The dumbest comment I ever heard was a
guy
> who said he wouldn't claim a horse who had won too many"--
Schnittker
> looks for one who has proven a success. He also wants to bring to
his
> stable fairly sound, younger horses, though that is getting harder
> and harder to do.
> "I used to stick to 5-year-olds and under, but there seems like
there
> is a lack of those horses now," he said. "The breeding farms have
not
> kept up with demand."
> Despite his affinity for hard-knocking racehorses, Schnittker cited
> the claiming roller coaster as contributing to racing's problems
with
> excessive medications, for a horsemen who will likely have a horse
> just a few weeks may be more inclined to give that horse anything
and
> everything to get him to the winner's circle.
> "All these claimers promote drug abuse," he said. "The guy doesn't
> mind injecting every joint, or using Epogen and all that crap,
> because he's planning to race the horse a few weeks, not a few
> years."
> Schnittker said his desire to move away from claimers is what keeps
> him more focused on New York racing, rather than delve into the big
> pond that is New Jersey. To be regularly competitive at The
> Meadowlands, he said, takes a commitment of capital that he is not
> willing to put out. In addition, he finds half-mile racing to be a
> bit kinder on his equine partners.
> "I think the horses just last longer," he said. "Even if I get a
bad
> spot--like the eight-hole--I'm not killing them just keeping up."
> Schnittker, who admits to being a high-energy kind of guy, rarely
> stops moving--or thinking. When he is not pondering plans for his
> horses, he may be found plotting ways to improve the sport of
racing
> and bring in more fans.
> Among his desires would be to bring in a restaurant chain like
> Hooters to attract a younger crowd, and setting up TVs to showcase
> the races for people who might not yet be fans.
> "We need to be like other areas are with movies and restaurants,"
he
> said. "People may want to go to the restaurant, but they want to do
> more so they'll catch a movie, too. The same thing can apply here,
> but they can catch the races."
> He would also open up the paddocks and barn areas to remove the
> mystery behind racing, a mystery that can often lead to the
> perception--real or imagined--of improprieties in racing.
> "They should let everybody come over here and open it up," he
> said. "Let people see what we do. We have nothing to hide."
> Schnittker himself remains fairly well hidden up in New York State,
> training at the Goshen track and coordinating his broodmares and
> babies at his nearby farm.
> It is there he will stay, waiting for the next horse to take him to
> possible Hambletonian glory, or even just one more trip to the
> winner's circle.
> "I still get a rush every time I go on the track," he said with a
> grin. "I don't care if you win a $3,000 claimer--you get that
little
> rush at the finish line. I think once you lose that you might as
well
> get out of the game."




Thanks Magical Mike. Ray Schnittker has always been one of my
sentimental favorites.