After Tracy Yates’ middle-aged Quarter-Horse was diagnosed with a hoof disease, her veterinarian suggested she explore the Hope After Racing Thoroughbreds (HART) program in search of a sound riding horse. That advice led her to Including All — now affectionately known as “Clue.”

Yates was matched with Clue through the guidance of Robin Sprafka, program director for Hope After Racing Thoroughbreds. Clue had three screws in one of his knees and could not jump or perform strenuous riding activities.

Yates aboard Including All, known know as “Clue.” (Courtesy of Tracy Yates)

“For casual trail and road riding, though, he would be fine, and that is exactly what this middle-aged adopter was looking for,” Yates shared. Including All is a 2015 bay Thoroughbred gelding with three starts and $2,965 in career earnings.

Clue’s easy-going personality made retraining a breeze, and he quickly became Yates’ go-to horse “when I am mentally fatigued and just want to relax and ride an unflappable horse.”

Clue proved highly intelligent, finding the various locations they rode to be quite interesting, and thus, he has thoroughly enjoyed their time together.

“His ‘Steady-Eddie’ nature was perfect for encounters with bicycles, dogs, people of all ages, other horses, and more, all of which are common on trail rides,” Yates said.

A couple of years later, Yates adopted Beautiful Bridge, now known as “Beauty.” She is a 2014 bay Thoroughbred mare who made only two starts before her retirement. Beauty’s personality was quite the opposite of Clue’s. Described as “feisty and opinionated” by the Horse and Hound trainer, Yates’ husband laughed and said, “Oh, she and my wife will get along great, then!”

Tracy Yates couldn’t resist adopting Beauty, admitting she was “attracted to the challenge of her personality and had a gut feeling about her.”

Beauty’s retraining took longer, as she had to learn to walk flat-footed instead of constantly jigging. Their first trail ride was a true test of patience, turning a one-hour ride into a four-hour adventure filled with bridges, bicycles, fishermen with smelly buckets, motorbikes, and more. But that ride became a turning point: “She apparently decided that I was ‘lead mare’ after that, settled down, and now looks to me for guidance and reassurance in most things.”

Now, Beauty is Tracy Yates’ first choice when she wants to feel fully engaged and connected with the horse and surroundings, while Clue remains her steady, relaxing ride. She has truly enjoyed her two Thoroughbreds and has no regrets about stepping outside her Quarter-Horse comfort zone.

As Yates likes to say, “I have a Beauty with a Clue!”

She looks forward to many more years of riding and eventually traveling to explore new trails in different states.

The Jockey Club supports many aftercare initiatives including the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance, the only accrediting body in aftercare, and Thoroughbred Incentive Program (T.I.P.), which encourages the retraining of Thoroughbreds into other disciplines upon completion of careers. View all of the initiatives supported by The Jockey Club.