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Category: 2018
Obituary: Billy Cannon
Billy Cannon passed away peacefully in his home early Sunday morning, May 20, 2018, LSU announced. He was 80 years old.
A Baton Rouge native, Cannon was the winner of the 1959 Heisman Trophy as a halfback, and led the Tigers to the 1958 national championship. He was a longtime member of the Louisiana Thoroughbred Breeders Assoc.
He was inducted into the LSU Athletic Hall of Fame in 1975 and into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2008. He was named LSU Alumnus of the Year in 2010.
“There may be no other figure in LSU sports who was more beloved and revered,” LSU Vice Chancellor and Director of Athletics Joe Alleva said. “His loss will be felt across the world today. The LSU family mourns with the Cannon family. He will always be a Tiger and will always be in our memories.”
“To say that Billy Cannon was legendary is an understatement,” LSU President Dr. F. King Alexander said. “His talent catapulted LSU Athletics into the national limelight, but more than that, he had unwavering commitment to his alma mater. He will forever remain a part of the LSU legacy throughout the nation.”
A private ceremony for Cannon is planned for early this week, according to LSU Athletics. Details for a public remembrance will also be announced.
The Cannon family asks that donations be made to Johnny Robinson’s Boys Home and the Tiger Athletic Foundation Billy Cannon Endowed Scholarship in lieu of flowers.
“Billy Cannon was LSU football through and through. He was a legend. He will be missed and never forgotten,” LSU football head coach Ed Orgeron said.
Cannon Family statement:
“Today is profoundly sad for all of us. We know the thoughts and prayers of so many who were touched by my father’s life are with him and with us. There are no words to express how grateful we are for the outpouring of support from all over the country. It is overwhelming and comforting.”
“LSU meant more to our dad than anyone could ever know. It wasn’t the awards or the acknowledgements on the football field. It was always the love of the LSU family that meant the world to him and to all of us. There is simply no other place on earth where so many come together to love and support their own like LSU. His life was intertwined with the purple and gold, and he wouldn’t have had it any other way.”
Obituary: Allen J. “Pummy” Guillotte, Jr.; Services to be held Tuesday, May 22
Allen Joseph Guillotte Jr., a native of St. Mary Parish, longtime former resident of Franklin, and a resident of Kentwood for the past 17 years, passed away at the age of 71 on Thursday, May 17, 2018, at his home. Pummy, as he was affectionately known, was a Horseman through and through. His passion in life was breeding and racing Thoroughbred Horses. Most of his days were spent caring for his horses and managing his 75 acre Horse Farm.
Those he leaves to cherish his memory include his son, Steven Gerard Guillotte and his wife Mindy of Metairie; granddaughter, Kaitlyn Guillotte of Hammond; his longtime companion, Judy Simoneaux of Kentwood; one brother, Ronnie Paul Guillotte of Baldwin; one sister, Connie G. Darden and her husband Oneil of Charenton; three step-children, Bethany Kuhlman and her husband Marc of Franklin, Shay Brasseaux and her husband Chris of Franklin, and Joseph Simoneaux and his wife Candie of Kentwood; step-grandchildren, Marcus Kuhlman, Sarah Kuhlman, Ty Brasseaux, Myles Brasseaux, and Selene Simoneaux; one nephew, Oneil Darden Jr; two nieces, Tricia Mestayer and Pamela Darden; and his former wife, Elizabeth Blanchard.
He was preceded in death by wife, Virginia Tyler Guillotte; his parents, Allen J. GuillotteSr. and Thelma Hebert Guillotte; and two sisters, Pamela Guillotte (infant) and Patricia G. Mora.
A gathering of family and friends will be held at Sacred Heart of Jesus Catholic Church in Baldwin on Tuesday, May 22, 2018, beginning at 9:00 a.m. with a Mass of Christian Burial being celebrated at 11:00 a.m., with Fr. Cedric Sonnier officiating. Following the Mass he will be laid to rest in the Sacred Heart Cemetery. Serving as pallbearers will be Ronnie Guillotte, Oneil Darden Jr., Mickey Michel, David LeBourgeois, Marc Kuhlman, and Marcus Kuhlman. Honorary pallbearers will be Joseph Simoneaux, Tony Scelfo, Barney Core, Paul Labiche, and Jules Hebert.
Family and friends may view the obituary and express their condolences online by visiting www.iberts.com.
Arrangements have been entrusted to Ibert’s Mortuary, Inc., 1007 Main Street, Franklin, LA 70538, (337) 828-5426.
VISITATION
Tuesday, May 22
9:00 AM to 11:00 AM 
Sacred Heart of Jesus Catholic Church
414 Martin Luther King Jr. St. Baldwin, LA 70514
MASS OF CHRISTIAN BURIAL
Tuesday, May 22
11:00 AM
Sacred Heart of Jesus Catholic Church
414 Martin Luther King Jr. St. Baldwin, LA 70514
Supreme Court Opens State Sports Betting Flood Gates, Sen. Hatch Offers Federal Framework
Today the Supreme Court released its opinion in Murphy v. National Collegiate Athletic Association, rejecting the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA), a federal statute which effectively banned sports gambling in most state jurisdictions. In a six to three opinion, the high court reversed a 2016 decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, which upheld the federal law. Importantly, the court affirmed Congress’s authority to regulate sports betting directly. However, the court struck PASPA on the grounds that the statute infringed on a state’s ability to “authorize” gambling within its jurisdiction, thereby violating the constitutional principle of “dual sovereignty.” The court states that in the event Congress doesn’t place direct regulations on gambling, then states are free to enact betting laws as they see fit.
While today’s decision gives the green light for individual states to move forward with sports gambling schemes, Congress was quick to offer a legislative fix to address the role of the federal government in sports gambling activity. Not long after the release of the Supreme Court decision, Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) announced that he plans to introduce legislation that he states will remedy a “patchwork” of state laws that won’t adequately protect the “integrity of sports.” As an original sponsor of PASPA when it was enacted in 1992, Sen. Hatch states that his legislation will “protect consumers, safeguard against underage and problem gambling, and help states who choose not to permit sports betting within their borders.”
“Until today, pari-mutuel wagering on horse racing has been the only legal form of sports wagering available throughout most of the United States at both physical locations and online. Now that the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled PASPA unconstitutional, states are free to regulate sports betting as they see fit. Horse racing must rise to the challenges and seize the opportunities presented by this expansion of sports betting,” stated Alex Waldrop, Chairman of AHC’s Racing Committee and President of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association.
AHC will provide a more detailed analysis of the Supreme Court decision and legislative responses during the days ahead. To view a copy of the Supreme Court decision, please click here: https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/17pdf/16-476_dbfi.pdf. To view a copy of Sen. Hatch’s (R-UT) announcement for a federal framework for sports gambling, please click here: https://www.hatch.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/releases?ID=02C2FD7A-6D68-40B9-8002-BA458CF4DD4F
Indigo Girl Dies
It is with great sadness Randy Davis & Associates, Inc. announced the recent death of multiple stakes winning mare Indigo Girl. Sired by Leestown out of Sister of Soul (Bluebird), Indigo Girl won 8 stakes races from 2-6 years in addition to several 2nds and 3rds in stakes company. With total winnings of $486,000 she was Leestown’s leading female earner.
Farm Manager Sandra Coffman is raising the 30 day old orphaned Tizway filly Indigo left behind at Mathews Farm in Benton.
Indigo Girl was a crack sprinter, but was able to harness her speed to win a stakes going a flat mile. She was trained exceptionally by Sam Breaux and was able to compile a 13-4-2 record from 25 starts.
She will be missed.
Dispersal of the Estate of Lee Young
TRAINER BECKY J. LEBLANC SADDLES HER FIRST WINNER MONDAY, MAY 14 AT HARRAH’S LOUISIANA DOWNS
Bossier City, LA – Monday, May14 was a very good day for trainer Becky LeBlanc. Just two months after getting her trainer’s license, she shipped in two horses to Harrah’s Louisiana Downs and won her first career race. On, Tuesday, May 15, she added a second win!
Born and raised in Sioux City, Nebraska, LeBlanc native fell in love with horses at an early age and spent her summers working and grooming at various farms. She relished the demanding work; everything from mucking stalls to cleaning tack and credited Nebraska horseman Harlan Norman for teaching her the ropes.
“He taught me everything I know,” said LeBlanc.
So after graduating from high school, LeBlanc began her pursuit of a career in the racing industry. She has been an assistant trainer since 1990, working for a number of horsemen. Owner Thomas Holyfield got to know LeBlanc when she was serving as an assistant to trainer Keith Bourgeois and encouraged her to go out on her own.
On March 10, she took out her trainer license and set up a 12 horse stable at Evangeline Downs. Fittingly, her first win came for Holyfield in Monday’s third race at Louisiana Downs when Opportunity Cost won the mile and one-seventy yard claiming event under jockey Thomas Pompell.
Track announcer John McGary recognized her achievement and tweeted that Opportunity Cost, a son of Tapit and $400,000 Keeneland sale purchase, was making his first start since October 17.
LeBlanc admits the handsome gray gelding didn’t always keep his focus, but ran a very good race Monday, sustaining his lead against the race favorite.
“He’s a big feeler in the barn,” LeBlanc said. “He likes to bite and play, but that’s what makes him happy!”
One day after winning her first career race, LeBlanc returned to the Bossier City racetrack and scored with another horse owned and bred by Holyfield. She’screative, a filly by Creative Cause, captured Tuesday’s fourth race, a $17,500 optional allowance claimer. Pompell was in the saddle as she drew off to a 2 ¼ length victory.
“She’s my baby girl,” admitted LeBlanc. “After breaking her maiden in her first start, she won the D.S. Shine Young Futurity (at Evangeline Downs). She ran her little heart out on Tuesday.”
LeBlanc, 48, married her husband, retired jockey Kirk LeBlanc in 2011. The former top rider on the Louisiana circuit is now a jockey agent at the Opelousas, Louisiana racetrack and handles the business for riders Pompell and Alfredo Contreras.
After cooling out her filly Tuesday afternoon, LeBlanc loaded both horses for the four-hour trip back to Evangeline. No big celebrations were planned as she recognizes that winning two races back-to-back is not the norm for a new trainer.
“It was a big step, and I wasn’t sure I was ready,” acknowledged LeBlanc. “But this was a very nice two days! I’ve been blessed.”
Simulcast of the 143rd Preakness Stakes on Saturday
Harrah’s Louisiana Downs will offer an exciting afternoon of racing on Saturday, May 19 with seven live races and the simulcast of the 143rd Preakness Stakes from Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. Fans can watch and wager as Justify, conditioned by Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert goes for the second jewel in Thoroughbred racing’s Triple Crown.
Post Time for the first live race at Louisiana Downs is 3:15pm! The full card at Pimlico will be simulcast with the Preakness scheduled to run at 5:20 pm(Central). The Harrah’s Club will offer an All You Can Eat Buffet for just $39.99 this Saturday. Reservations are strongly encouraged and can be made by calling 800-551-7223 or 318-752-6367.
Trainer, Jockey and Owner Standings
Through the first eight days of the 2018 Louisiana Downs Thoroughbred season, trainer Joe O. Duhon tops his fellow conditioners with four wins. Jorge Lara, Dana Whited and Danny Pish have each saddled three winners.
As expected, a very tight battle for leading jockey is off and running! Four riders are tied with five wins each. Last year’s leading jockey Gerardo Mora, Richard Eramia, Eddie Martin, Jr. and Joel Dominguez are each off to a solid start for the meet. Kevin Smith, Emanuel Nieves and Eguard Tejera follow closely with four wins.
Dream Walkin Farms, Inc has won three races to take the early lead in the owner standings. Brittlyn Stable Inc,, Thomas L. Holyfield, P and D Racing Stables and Lara Racing Stables, Inc. follow with two wins each.
Wednesday and Saturday Race Day Promotions
Louisiana Downs offers value for racing fans each Wednesday with Dollar Day. They will be able to enjoy $1 hot dogs, $1 beer at the Paddock as well as $1 programs. Saturday’s weekly promotion is the Family Four Pack featuring four hot dogs, four sodas, a program, and a box seat for four at the affordable price of just $16.
The Total Rewards program is free for horseplayers. With the swipe of their card each Saturday, members will receive valuable incentives. These include:
- Play $250 or more to receive a 5X multiplier
- Play $1,000 or more to receive a 7X multiplier
- Play $5,000 or more to receive a 10X multiplier
Participant’s multiplier cannot exceed a total balance of more than one hundred thousand (100,000) Reward Credits during one promotional day after the multiplier is applied.
About Harrah’s Louisiana Downs
Located near Shreveport in Bossier City, Louisiana, Louisiana Downs opened in 1974 and was purchased by Caesars Entertainment in December, 2002. With annual Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse racing seasons, the track is committed to presenting the highest quality racing programs paired with its 150,000 square foot entertainment complex offering casino gambling, dining and plasma screen televisions for sports and simulcast racing.
For further information, please contact:
| Trent McIntosh | Assistant General Manager O 318-752-6980 8000 East Texas Street | Bossier City, LA 71111 www.caesars.com |
Two Scholarships to be Awarded at Louisiana Legends Night
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HARRAH’S LOUISIANA DOWNS LEADING TRAINER JOEY FOSTER RETURNS WITH A HEAVY HEART
Bossier City, LA – The 2018 Thoroughbred racing season at Harrah’s Louisiana Downs got underway on Saturday, May 5. It was a bittersweet beginning of the meet for 2016-2017 leading trainer Joey Foster.
The Vinton, Louisiana resident topped all conditioners with 301 starters and a record of 68 wins, 55 seconds and 48 third-place finishes in 2017. He had won the 2016 meet with 41 wins, after finished third in the standings in 2015 with 39 wins. His stakes winners last year included Big Game Baby, in the $75,000 Elge Rasberry and Illusionofreality, who kept her four-race win streak alive in the $50,000 Louisiana Cup Distaff.
And while he hopes to continue to build on his momentum this season, Foster, along with the entire Louisiana Downs racing community, faced an unspeakable tragedy last month involving one of his exercise riders, Amaniel Ortiz. A tornado hit Haughton, a community just east of Bossier City, around midnight, at the Hill Crest Mobile Home & RV Park on Highway 80. His daughter, Carly Stephanie Ortiz Osorio, 2, was killed when a large tree fell on the family’s camper.
“It was beyond what words can describe,” said Foster. “It’s stuff that you see on TV but can never imagine that it can happen to someone you know.”
A memorial service took place on Tuesday, April 17 at Hill Crest Memorial Funeral Home in Haughton and Carly was laid to rest. Ortiz and his wife, Delfa, have a 1-year-old daughter named Maddie.
Ortiz has been employed by Foster for the past eight years. Affectionately dubbed “Shorty” by the trainer, he is now back to morning works at the barn.
“He works for me from 6:00 to 8:00 am and then gets home,” explained Foster. “Mornings are really tough for Delfa and he needs to be there for her.”
Foster credits Chaplain Jimmy Sistrunk and everyone at Louisiana Downs for banding together to assist the Ortiz family.
“That part was amazing,” added Foster. “You expected everyone here to show their support, but people all over the country responded with donations and letters.”
Sistrunk has been in daily contact with the Ortiz family and admits that in his fifteen years of serving as a Chaplain, he had never dealt with such a heartbreaking catastrophe. However, he was encouraged by the unprecedented outpouring of support, both locally and nationally for the Ortiz family.
“It was so touching for me to see the generosity and compassion from people all over the United States when they heard about Carly,” said Sistrunk. “People in the racing community are always quick to lend a helping hand, but this was very special.”
Sistrunk adds that donations are still needed for furniture and many other items that were destroyed by the force of the tornado. Anyone wishing to assist the family can mail a check payable to the Winner’s Circle Fund for the Ortiz Family and send it to the Winner’s Circle Church, P.O. Box 157, Princeton, LA, 71067.
John McGary Back as the Voice of Louisiana Downs
Track announcer John McGary returned to the booth for his fourth season at Louisiana Downs. McGary, 52, was the announcer at Evangeline Downs for ten years and now divides his time between Louisiana Downs and announcing the races at Zia Park in Hobbs, New Mexico in the fall. He and his wife, Julie, make their home in Bossier City.
“We had a great opening day,” said McGary. “There was a fantastic turnout on Saturday for the Derby and I called my first turf race on the Monday card; the course looked really good!
McGary is looking forward to the marquee race of the Louisiana Downs meet, the Grade 3, $300,00 Super Derby, which is set for September 2.
“I love the decision to move it to the Sunday of Labor Day weekend,” he added. “It’s perfectly placed on a major stakes weekend. It will give us an opportunity to really shine.”
Mother’s Day Diamond Dig This Saturday
Harrah’s Louisiana Downs will celebrate Mother’s Day on Saturday, May 12. Live racing gets underway at 3:15pm. Mothers can swipe their Total Rewards card in to the Diamond Dig drawing at the Racing Kiosk located across from Racing Publications. Ten entrants will be drawn for a chance to dig on the racetrack for a Diamond Ring valued at $2,500! One lucky Mom will celebrate with the gorgeous diamond and nine others will walk away with a Cubic Zirconia Ring. The Mother’s Day Diamond Dig will take place following the seventh and final race of the day.
Post Times and Stakes Schedule
Live racing will be conducted Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday and Saturday with a 3:15 p.m. (Central) post time through September 27.
The 84-day meet will include 14 stakes highlighted by two major events, Louisiana Cup Day on Saturday, August 4 and Super Derby Day on Sunday, September 2. As previously announced one major change for the upcoming season is that the Grade 3, $300,000 Super Derby will return to the main track at a distance of mile and one-sixteenth on Sunday, September 2.
Wednesday and Saturday Race Day Promotions
Louisiana Downs offers value for racing fans each Wednesday with Dollar Day. They will be able to enjoy $1 hot dogs, $1 beer at the Paddock as well as $1 programs. Saturday’s weekly promotion is the Family Four Pack featuring four hot dogs, four sodas, a program, and a box seat for four at the affordable price of just $16.
The Total Rewards program is free for horseplayers. With the swipe of their card each Saturday, members will receive valuable incentives. These include:
- Play $250 or more to receive a 5X multiplier
- Play $1,000 or more to receive a 7X multiplier
- Play $5,000 or more to receive a 10X multiplier
Participant’s multiplier cannot exceed a total balance of more than one hundred thousand (100,000) Reward Credits during one promotional day after the multiplier is applied.
About Harrah’s Louisiana Downs
Located near Shreveport in Bossier City, Louisiana, Louisiana Downs opened in 1974 and was purchased by Caesars Entertainment in December, 2002. With annual Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse racing seasons, the track is committed to presenting the highest quality racing programs paired with its 150,000 square foot entertainment complex offering casino gambling, dining and plasma screen televisions for sports and simulcast racing.
For further information, please contact:
| Trent McIntosh | Assistant General Manager O 318-752-6980 8000 East Texas Street | Bossier City, LA 71111 www.caesars.com |
Midnight Lute Filly Tops Equine Sales Company 2-Year-Old Sale
(Opelousas, Louisiana – May 7, 2018) — An accredited Louisiana-bred daughter of Midnight Lute sold for $77,000 on Monday to top the Equine Sales Company 2-Year-Olds in Training and Horses of Racing Age Sale in Opelousas, Louisiana.
Named Nite Jean, the sale-topper went to prominent Southwest owner Carl Moore from the consignment of Pike Racing, agent. The May foal worked an eighth-mile on Sunday in :10 1/5, just one tick off the fastest time of :10 flat set by a trio of horses. Nite Jean is out of the winning Macho Uno mare St. Jean, who has produced a winner from her only starter and whose second dam is Grade 2 winner and graded stakes producer French Park.
The second-highest price was $65,000 for an accredited Louisiana-bred from the first crop of Sum of the Parts. The filly out of stakes winner La Salle Glory worked :10 flat and went to J. Stevens Bloodstock, agent, from the consignment of Ricky Courville, agent.
J. Stevens Bloodstock also picked up the highest-priced colt and third-highest price overall. The accredited Louisiana-bred by top Louisiana sire Half Ours sold for $55,000 after working :10 2/5.
All told, 42 of 61 horses sold for a total of $733,400. The average 2-year-old price was $18,168 with a median of $12,000. Last year’s sale posted an average 2-year-old price of $20,308 with an identical median. That auction was fueled by two six-figure sales, including an all-time sale record $110,000 for a Flat Out filly named Special Blessing. That filly just won the $75,000 Equine Sales Oaks this past Friday. There were two horses of racing age in this year’s sale that brought a total of $6,700.
“Last year’s 2-year-old sale was our best ever and we knew it would be hard to match those results, but I’m pleased that we came pretty close,” said Foster Bridewell, sales director.
Equine Sales Company has two auctions remaining this year with the Consignor Select Yearling Sale on September 6 and the Open Yearling and Mixed Sale on October 28.
Full results are available at www.equinesalesofla.com.
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