Eoin Harty - profile of the former assistant to Bob Baffert

There was always an air of levity at Bob Baffert's barn when Eoin Harty worked there. Not that the game they played wasn't serious. It was. Preparing 1,000-pound equine athletes with spindly legs to perform at their peak on the world's stage is not a job for anyone in short pants.During the seven years Harty was Baffert's assistant, they won the Kentucky Derby twice - with Silver Charm in 1997 and Real Quiet in 1998-and missed by a heart-breaking nose with Cavonnier in 1996. But in between the regimented tedium, there was always time for a good hoot. Fact is, it was and still is part of Baffert's DNA.
26 June 2008 - Issue Number: 6