lawrence gardipy

​Horse racing has been a part of my life since I was born. In my early childhood, my parents separated and I went to live with my grandparents. My grandpa gave me a yearling, and when it was a 2-year old I used him for a saddle horse, just rode him around. One day, my uncle Tom asked me what kind of horse that was. I said it’s a Thoroughbred, papered and everything, it just needs a tattoo and to learn how to race. So we tried him as a late 3-year-old and got 2 wins, a second and a third. He ended up being MD’s all-time-winningest horse.

I could have been a bad kid, and gotten into lots of trouble, but I knew I had a responsibility at home, the horses. On my lonely days, that horse was there for me and I was there for him. I started working on the gates at 15 years old. I loved being in the jocks’ room around all of the riders and in the gates. Today, I look after the jocks room and get to meet and greet a lot of people.

Racing has helped shape my life. I plan on training here at Marquis Downs if it ever opens again.

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