On July 24, 2011, a horse named Down Broadway made his racing debut at Belmont Park. A New York-bred that sold for $90,000, the 2-year-old was trained by Rick Schosberg, and he finished third by a length and a half.

Over the next 19 months, Down Broadway raced 10 times, his best finish a runner-up by three lengths on Nov. 5, 2011. Schosberg remembers him as a sound, good-looking gray that often showed promise but who ultimately made it clear that he didn’t want to be a racehorse.

So shortly after his last start, on Feb. 24, 2013, Down Broadway, despite never winning a race, or perhaps because he never won a race, earned a distinction that no other horse will have: he was the first horse retired through the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association’s (NYTHA) Take the Lead retirement program, of which Schosberg has been the president since its inception.

Approximately 1,400 retired horses later, Take the Lead is a model of industry initiatives for Thoroughbred retirement, and on Thursday, NYTHA, the New York Racing Association, and New York Thoroughbred Breeders hosted the fourth Aftercare Day, celebrating the versatility of Thoroughbreds and the progress made in responsible horse ownership.

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