A Perfect Match: The Racetrack and Chris Aplin

Events / Travel

Chris Aplin at opening day of the 2014 Del Mar fall meet. (Photo courtesy of Chris Aplin)

The first time I met Chris Aplin, I thought she was an angel. In 2010, I had wandered onto the backside of Oaklawn Park in hopes of finding Zenyatta. I found her, but her very handsome bodyguard was keeping me half a barn away. He did, however, agree to take a few pictures of Zenyatta with my camera.

Just then, Chris walked up to Zenyatta with some friends. This tall, glamorous woman was on crutches with her entire leg encased in a long, black brace. She watched the security guard return my camera and she cheerfully said “Hi there! She’s OK! Let her come over!” I beamed my most radiant smile and made my way over to Zenyatta. Chris said, “Give me your camera and stand next to her!” The pictures are a treasure. I look like a child on Christmas morning, staring in awe at Zenyatta. I thanked Chris profusely and as we wandered off I wondered, “who was that woman?” 

I thought about her several times after that and was in awe that she would travel from California to Arkansas on crutches, with that huge brace on her leg. I was positive we had crossed paths several times at Santa Anita Park. Our next encounter was at Del Mar. I caught a glimpse of her as I walked through the tunnel at Del Mar and discovered that she is a barber with her own shop behind the (now remodeled) Paddock Tavern. She was standing there chatting with jockey Mike Smith when I spun around to thank her for taking my photo. Her barber shop at Del Mar is a wonderful place to hang out. You never know who will next walk through the door. The walls are adorned with some of her photography, and it’s spectacular. She keeps a bowl of treats for her clients and of course peppermints for the horses.

RIGHT AT HOME AT THE RACETRACK AT QUARTER POLE BARBER SHOP

Photo by Julie June Stewart

Chris was not born into horse racing, yet there is no doubt it was her path. When she was in college at California State University in Hayward, Calif., getting her degree in kinesiology, there was a racetrack across from her apartment. She used to watch the horses and thought, “Wow! What a great job!” She never thought that she would ever be involved with horses.

After graduating, Chris took a series of jobs. One of the places she worked involved professional athletes. This is where she met Bay Meadows racehorse trainer Jack Etherton. She told him that she loved horses and that she had always wanted to learn how to ride. He said, “come to the track and I will teach you.” Chris smiled as she thought back to that day and said, “I couldn’t pass that up!”

So, knowing nothing about horses, she went to Bay Meadows three times a week. Etherton would saddle his pony and let Chris ride in the paddock, where she learned basic riding rudiments such as posting. Eventually, management put up a “no jogging horses in the paddock” sign. She had learned enough to go to work for Monty Roberts, who was then a Thoroughbred trainer specializing in 2-year-olds. Chris worked with the babies and said she, “fell off every which way you could.” The horses were brought to the Hollywood Park. Trainer Ross Fenstermaker was looking for someone to stay at Hollywood, so she took that job and lived in the tack room. This started her adventure with riding horses at the track. 

Chris would accompany the horses when they flew to New York. “It was a great adventure,” she said. “They would load all the equipment, food and water into a propeller plane and fly across the country.” She saw some amazing horses and some great races. She eventually ended up working for Hall of Fame trainer Laz Barrera. Chris said that this was one of her favorite jobs because of the way Barrera trained. “He was wonderful. He let the horses gallop with no constraints. He ordered snake bits for the entire barn. He got rid of the martingales.” (Note: a “snake bit” is a leather covered chain with solid brass rings.)

APLIN AT HOLLYWOOD PARK CLOSING IN 2013

Photo by Julie June Stewart

In 1980, Chris went to work for trainer Bill Spawr as an exercise rider. She has been in his barn as he worked his way from claimers to graded stakes winners. She exercised elite sprinter Bordonaro, who participated in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint in 2006 and 2007. Bordonaro won the Grade 1 Ancient Title Breeders’ Cup Stakes in 2006. In 2009, Chris was exercising It’s in the Fridge when his intestines ruptured. He switched leads and started going on the outside. Chris told him “no, no, no” but she couldn’t stop him. Sadly, he was dying. As he hit the fence, Chris suffered a compound fracture of both her tibia and fibula, which required surgery. She knew she would be off for a long time, so she took up photography. It took more than 18 months for her bones to mend. 

She has continued working with Spawr’s barn, assisting with the horses and office work. She was with Spawr when they went to a local ranch to look at a couple of horses. Somehow instead of acquiring one horse, Spawr ended up with both of them. This was the happiest of circumstances as the second horse turned out to be future Eclipse Award champion Amazombie, winner of the 2011 Breeders’ Cup Sprint. 

APLIN AT BREEDERS' CUP WITH SPRINT WINNER AMAZOMBIE

Photo courtesy of Jeff Mallard

I remember Chris walking Amazombie over from the barns at Churchill Downs. She was impeccably dressed in an all-white suit. She also wore the most memorable yellow print barn boots. They were probably the most photographed footwear of the 2011 Breeders’ Cup! 

APLIN, AMAZOMBIE AND AMAZING BOOTS

Photo courtesy of Jeff Mallard

Chris is a survivor. She started cutting hair around 1980. Del Mar President Joe Harper was kind enough to give her a space at Del Mar for her barber shop. In 1990, Santa Anita gave her space for her shop, known as the Quarter Pole Barber Shop. 

Her shop at Santa Anita is a testament to racing history. It is chock full of racing memorabilia. You find yourself staring at the walls and suddenly realizing you are looking at someone very famous as a young man. You say, “Is that who I think it is?” And she says, “Yup!” Chris has a steady flow of clientele who know that her shop is a sanctuary from the hubbub of the track. You can watch cartoons or soap operas while she cuts your hair. I slipped in there for a trim during the Breeders’ Cup and ran into trainer Dale Romans and his wife, Tammy Fox. Other clients have included Billy Shoemaker, Mike Smith, Joe Steiner, Eoin Harty, and California Chrome’s trainer, Art Sherman. 

Art says that Chris has been cutting his hair for 20 years. “She is a good friend. I enjoy having a shop where it is very convenient. You can just sit back and relax. It’s a nice atmosphere. It’s hard to get a haircut on the run and Chris does a great job.”  

Whether it’s horses, hair or photography, Chris puts passion into whatever she is doing. If you are lucky enough to see her photography, it is incredible. In 2012, she received an honorable mention from the media Eclipse Awards for her photograph of Amazombie, which recently was featured in a charity auction at the annual National Turf Writers and Broadcasters banquet.

Because she practically knows everyone in racing, Chris has been hired by NBC as a production assistant and “spotter” for both the Belmont Stakes and the Breeders Cup. I asked Chris what she loves about racing. She said she loves “getting to the barn in the morning. It’s a reason to get up and get out of bed. To see and care for the horses; I think that has been the biggest impetus for me to carry on. Having the horses to care for because they are wonderful.” 

But when I look at the wonderful people surrounding Chris, I think that her life is not just about the horses. Through her personality and charm, she touches many lives for the better. When one looks back at life, it is sometimes amazing to see the path one ends up on. Chris said that after college “the racetrack found me.” Thank goodness! Our world is a better world for it!  

APLIN WITH RACING AND NHL ANALYST EDDIE OLCZYK

Photo courtesy of Chris Aplin

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