Michele Rodriguez, a dedicated horsewoman from Louisiana, has carved a significant niche in the equine industry through her farm, Elite Thoroughbreds. With three decades of involvement in every facet of horse care, Rodriguez’s passion for the sport is evident. Her journey began in the 1980s with a single pregnant mare, and she quickly expanded her operation by rescuing another mare and foal. This foundational experience led to her first starter horse. Her most notable success came with One Brick Shy, the 1999 Claiming Crown Jewel Stakes winner, whom Rodriguez co-owned. She reflects positively on her past association with trainer Al Stall, Jr., with whom she maintains a strong connection. Today, Elite Thoroughbreds, co-owned by Rodriguez and her husband Lee D. Thomas, manages approximately 40 horses in active training, split between the Folsom Training Center and Delta Downs.
The core division of the farm, housing horses in training and stallions, features a round pen for breaking young horses. Rodriguez explains, “When the horse starts rockin’ and rollin’ and really needs a bigger track – ’cause my track is only four furlongs – then we move them to our barn at the Folsom Training Center and we get them rolling there a little stronger.” Following their initial training, young horses are sent to Lee M. Thomas, Rodriguez’s eldest son and the operation’s trainer. Thomas regularly races horses at both Delta Downs and Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots. Rodriguez notes the farm’s financial reliance on his success, stating, “Honestly, we are completely dependent on Lee winning races.”
Rodriguez is anticipating her son’s first stakes victory, expressing, “So hopefully we’ll have that this year…I told him be patient. It just doesn’t happen overnight.” She humorously adds, “It’s hard to work with your children because they always know so much more than you do, even though you might have 30 years on them. But I am pleased, very pleased, the way my oldest son has evolved in the business…” Her younger son, Reece, a recent Tulane University graduate, is also finding his place within the family business.
Breeding is a substantial component of Rodriguez’s operation. The current stallion roster boasts notable names such as Sun King and Tenpins, alongside newcomers for 2014, Salute the Sarge and Neko Bay. Rodriguez consistently supports her stallions by breeding her own mares.
She explains her breeding strategy, “It’s only if I’m really thinking about selling (the resulting foal) that I should go out of state because the Kentucky sires, those babies always sell for more at our sales than the Louisiana-sired babies.” However, Rodriguez also keeps stallions out of compassion, even if they are not fashionable winners. She shares, “It’s hard for me just to cut them loose and send them away because you don’t know where they’re going to end up…many of them are just there because I’m just going to take care of them until their time is over.”
Elite Thoroughbreds also maintains a 600-acre facility for mares and foals. A prominent mare is Raspberry Wine, a 12-year-old stakes winner who is currently in foal to Tizway. After experiencing the loss of a promising foal, Rodriguez holds high hopes for Raspberry Wine’s future offspring. Of the 60 mares on the farm, Elite owns approximately 30, with the remainder being boarders. For 2014, only 15-18 of Elite’s mares are in foal, and Rodriguez plans to breed 21 this year. She elaborates on the financial challenges, “I can’t afford to have 40 babies a year. It’s hard for me to sell them. And for a while the market was so bad, you have to give them away practically.”
Rodriguez is a fervent advocate for the Louisiana horse industry, serving on the boards of the Louisiana Thoroughbred Breeders Association and the Louisiana Horse Rescue Association. She humbly states, “We have a wonderful breeders’ program down here, and I don’t take any credit for that,” highlighting Louisiana’s exceptional breeders’ rewards program. This program’s stability, funded by slots revenue rather than track revenue, has allowed Louisiana racing to persevere through challenges like Hurricane Katrina. “It’s a great program and I’m pleased with that,” Rodriguez affirms.
After 30 years, the horse business continues to captivate Rodriguez. She likens the exhilarating win-or-lose dynamics to her prior experience in energy sciences law, where the risk and reward of breeding a top-tier stakes winner offer a thrill comparable to discovering a multi-billion barrel oil field.
She concludes, “There’s an air of excitement about the racing world and I like it.”
Congratulations to Michele, TOBA’s January member of the month!
