Nick Costa Speaking With Mike Cohen
Recently, I was on the backside of Fort Erie and caught up with trainer Mike Cohen, who was very hospitable and kind enough to share some of his rare free time to answer some questions I posed at him. Here is my interview with him.
MIKE COHEN
Birthplace: Jamaica, West Indies
Wife: Lynda
Children: Ken, Kevin
Grandchildren: Ashley, Nathan
ENN--How did you get introduced into this wonderful sport of Thoroughbred horseracing & why did you choose it for a career?
MC--I used to work in a factory for about 10 years, but I always loved the sport of horseracing from back in Jamaica when I used to go to the racetrack. There was a spark from watching the races and I enjoyed the sport. When I came here (Canada), I didn't really get into working with the horses, I used to just go to the races. Then after I got laid off, I decided that I should try my hands at training. Try hot walking horses and see if I can move my way up. So I started out at Fort Erie and my first hot walking job was with Candy Warwick. She taught me how to really walk a horse. Then I hot walked for Norm DeSouza for a time and just moved on from there. I became involved with Dorna Gordon and Gilbert Searchwell. I stayed with them for awhile and they taught me a few things
ENN--So the names who you just mentioned were the people that were your earliest influences.
MC--Yes they were.
ENN--What time do you arrive at the barn?
MC-- I arrive at 6 a.m.
ENN--Take us through your morning regimen.
MC-- First of all, I feed the horses their breakfast, then I get my water buckets all lined up. Then I do the stalls. It's just me, so I do my own stalls. Look at my schedule for my riders and what time they are coming, what horse I'm going to send out that day, what horse I'm going to walk. I have it all planned out, but sometimes things change, like a rider don't show, then you have to go to plan-B. There isn't any straight line, things can and do change all the time, but the morning routine is basically the same. You just have to improvise when the situation calls for it.
ENN--Currently, how many horses are in your care?
MC-- I've got 4 horses here at Fort Erie and 6 at Woodbine.
ENN--One of those horses stabled here at Fort Erie, AGAIN PLEASE, who is owned by your wife, was a winner opening day. Tell us about that?
MC--AGAIN PLEASE was given to my wife two years ago by the owners because of the uncertainty regarding Fort Erie. No one was sure if we were going to have a racetrack. The owners didnt know what to do. My wife said she liked the horse, so instead of keeping and wintering the horse, they gave the horse to her. I kept him and ran him last year and he had a few in the money finishes. So, I gave him the winter off, did alot of things different with him. I knew this spring he was a different horse. I could see it in him. Even though he was a longshot that day (38-1 odds), in my mind I knew he was going to do something good. The only thing that surprised me was, he never runs on the lead, he is always coming from off the pace. I was surprised he stayed up there and drew off. That was a good feeling.
ENN--What other tracks, if any, have you trained at?
MC--Keeneland, Thistledowns, Mountaineer and Beulah Park. Those are tracks I've trained at and raced at.
ENN--As a trainer, what goals do you have that you would like to accomplish?
MC--I would like to win a stakes race, at least one stakes race. I'd like to get the century mark of 100 wins on my slate. Right now, I'm at 67 wins I believe. So, those are a couple of goals. I've been training for 10 years and I've seen some nice horsemen. One of my mentors was the late Bobby Frankel. I met him at Palm Meadows (Florida), sat down and had a conversation with him.. He was a very pleasant man. I told him how many horses I had in my barn and how many races I won, and he told me to always think of yourself proud of what you accomplish, because some trainers are licensed for a long time and haven't even won 10 races in 10 years because it is such a tough game. Those are words of wisdom that I still follow today.
ENN--What is most satisfying accomplishment as a trainer?
MC--I'm satified how far I've come in this business. The people that I've worked with, like Winston Wilkinson for eight years, he taught me alot of stuff. As an assistant trainer to Audre Cappuccitti, plus working under Harvey Tenenbaum, Steve Owens. All notable people that I worked for and accomplished alot. I use that knowledge in different ways to run my stable. The wins that I've had in the last couple of years makes me feel very good. As a one-man show, I'm proud of myself.
ENN-- Do you like the switch to the new 4 pm post time here at Fort Erie on Mon & Tues?
MC--Yes, it's great for the horses, especially on hot summer days because its a little cooler in the late afternoon. Gives us horsemen alot of time between morning training hours and post time to relax. It is also good for our simulcast, especially out on the West Coast because of the time change (1 pm). We can market the races here from Fort Erie which is good for our track.
ENN--During the race season, how do you spend your valuable free time away from the track/horses. What are some of things you enjoy doing?
MC--It's really hard to get free time because most of the time I finish late in the afternoon and your tired. But the things I can do are: My wife and I can go for dinner, go for a walk, which we do. We try to spend leisure time together. It is short time, you don't get to spend alot of time to do alot of things. I wish I could get into a situtaion where I could relax and do more, spend more of my leisure time. That would be just great.
ENN--You've visited several racetracks in your career, excluding Fort Erie, what track stood out as your favorite?
MC--Oh, Keeneland, Keeneland by far!! (Mike states emphatically). It's such a nice place. What impressed me the most was how you are treated there. I like how the crowd really gets involved. All the people are having such a good time, it doesn't matter who the horse is or the class of the race, they're all whooping it up near the winner's circle whether they bet on the winning horse or not. Keeneland really caught my eye. It's a fashionable place, it's immaculate. A marvelous place for racing.
ENN--What line of work would you be doing if you were not training horses?
MC--I like the courier business. Since I love driving, I would look for some type of work in that field.
