Oaklawn’s “Ring The Bell” program generated just over $100,000 toward Thoroughbred aftercare during the 2024-2025 meeting, according to Jeanette Milligan, executive director of the Arkansas Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association. This includes donations from bell ringing, as well as fans who made donations at the track.

The figure represents a significant increase over the 2023-2024 meeting, when $71,590 was raised.

Donations to Oaklawn’s Ring The Bell program have increased each season since it debuted late in the 2021-2022 meeting. Milligan points out that while money has increased, so has the number of horses the program is caring for.

Money raised is earmarked for the Arkansas Thoroughbred Retirement Program and Rehabilitation Foundation, a collaboration between the Arkansas HBPA, a trade organization that represents horsemen, and Oaklawn. Founded in 2021, the foundation was established as a safe path to a second career for Oaklawn-raced or trained horses upon retirement from racing.

Milligan credited the work of Ring The Bell program coordinator Paul Holthus, a retired trainer, for the increase in donations during Oaklawn’s 62-day season in 2024-2025.

“He was instrumental in getting more and more owners, trainers and jockeys to participate,” Milligan said on the eve of Friday’s 2025-2026 opener.

Donations to the program at Oaklawn – a $100 minimum – are loudly signaled following a race by a member, or members, of the winning connections hand-ringing a large copper-colored bell in the Larry Snyder Winner’s Circle.

The foundation uses a nearby farm owned by longtime Oaklawn pony person Jan Pettinger and her husband, retired jockey Don Pettinger, as a foster home for horses awaiting adoption. All money raised, Milligan said, goes to the care of horses – feed, hay, farrier, veterinarian, equine dentist, supplies, etc.

All adoption applications are vetted and references checked before horses are adopted out, according to the foundation. Any adoption fee collected – typically around $1,000 and based on what the horse’s second career might be – goes immediately back into the program to help care for other horses under the foundation’s care.

Milligan said the foundation has taken in 39 horses since December 2024 and 134 overall since its inception in 2021. Milligan said 113 horses have been “adopted out to their forever-loving homes.”

“Without the generous donations from our horsemen ringing the bell, we could not take care of this many horses,” Milligan said. “It seems every year there are more horses needing a place to retire and the foundation helps to find their new homes and new jobs. We even had a lady adopt one of our Oaklawn Thoroughbreds for herself to trail ride, but she is also a Garland County Sheriff officer and uses him as mounted patrol when necessary. They worked the Garland County Fair this fall.”

The idea of intertwining a bell and Thoroughbred aftercare at Oaklawn was introduced by trainer Ron Moquett of Hot Springs, best known for his work with Whitmore, a seven-time Oaklawn stakes winner and 2020 Eclipse Award winner as North America’s champion male sprinter.

The Ring the Bell program debuted at the 2021-2022 meeting, with $14,000 collected during the final six days of the season. It was officially launched with Oaklawn President Louis Cella and Bill Walmsley, a longtime Thoroughbred owner and president of the Arkansas HBPA, each donating $5,000 on behalf of their respective groups.

Cella is also a Thoroughbred owner and the son of Oaklawn’s late president, Charles Cella, who campaigned 1995 champion grass horse Northern Spur.

Milligan said the program raised $68,000 during the 2022-2023 meeting, with $48,000 coming from owners, trainers and a few jockeys ringing the bell following race victories. Milligan said the additional $20,000 came through donations from two generous owners and popular social media personality Dave Portnoy ($5,000).

Sandman Works Toward Return

A week after arriving at Oaklawn, Arkansas Derby winner Sandman returned to the work tab Friday morning in advance of his 4-year-old debut for dual Hall of Famer Mark Casse.

Under exercise rider Autumn Lavertu, Sandman breezed over a fast track during the designated 15-minute workers-only period following the first surface renovation break. Sandman covered the distance in :49. Sandman’s splits, according to clockers, were :25 for the opening quarter-mile and :36.80 for 3 furlongs. He galloped out 5 furlongs in 1:02.

“Just have an easy half for him,” said assistant trainer Caden Arthur, who oversees Casse’s Oaklawn division. “His first breeze here, so I didn’t want anything, like, too fast. Looked great on the track. Very comfortable.”

Sandman, unraced since late August, had previously been based at Casse’s Florida training center, where he had published workouts Nov. 26 and Dec. 3. The gray son of Tapit started four times last season at Oaklawn, including its final three Kentucky Derby preps, and bankrolled $1,168,000, a single-season Oaklawn record.

Following the Arkansas Derby, Sandman competed in the first two legs of the Triple Crown, finishing seventh in the Kentucky Derby and third in the Preakness. Sandman also ran fifth in the G2-Jim Dandy Stakes July 26 at Saratoga.

“Hopefully, start looking for a race, maybe early February, middle February,” Arthur said.

Casse said last month that the major spring objective for Sandman is the $1.25 million G2-Oaklawn Handicap for older horses at 1 1/8 miles April 18. Oaklawn’s series of major two-turn stakes races for older horses begins with the $500,000 G3-Razorback Handicap at 1 1/16 miles Feb. 28.

Wiggins Back at Oaklawn

Trainer Lon Wiggins has a horse entered in the first race Saturday at Oaklawn, which would mark his first starter in Hot Springs since March 26, 2023. Zippin Pippin, who finished fourth in that maiden special weight sprint at Oaklawn, also marked Wiggins’ last starter for a little over two years.

Wiggins, 57, said pulling the plug was all about numbers.

“I didn’t have enough horses coming in, in the way that the claiming game’s gotten,” Wiggins said. “We had six when I quit training. You could see the writing on the wall. I didn’t have horses coming in. So, instead of waiting and having a slow bleed, we just went ahead and stopped.”

Stints as an assistant under trainers Jason Barkley, Terry Brennan and Kelsey Danner followed before Wiggins resumed training last spring after meeting David Workman, an owner from Sheridan, Ark., through a mutual friend.

“Everything worked out great,” Wiggins said. “So, we started from scratch and we’re just kind of building the business.”

Wiggins has 10 horses at Oaklawn. All are owned, solely or in partnership, by Workman (Workman Ranch).

Wiggins and Workman have teamed for two victories, Jr’s Gift Aug. 17 at Hawthorne and Stomping Hotrod Oct. 2 at Belterra Park. Jr’s Gift represented Wiggins’ first training victory since September 29, 2022, at Belterra Park.

Wiggins saddled the first of his 204 career winners to date in 1997. At his peak, Wiggins said he carried as many 18 horses, but it was normally “eight to 12.” Wiggins trains privately for Workman and said he would like to maintain a 10-horse stable, adding the plan is to return to Kentucky this spring. Wiggins’ last 11 starts were at Churchill Downs or Keeneland. Wiggins launched his training comeback last April at Keeneland.

“Right now, it’s going to be Arkansas and Kentucky because David’s from here,” Wiggins said. “He loves the game. He’s sunk some money into it. He just really loves it. We’ve been claiming a lot, just trying to get built up.”

In addition to Adalene in the first race, Wiggins entered Jr’s Gift in Saturday’s fourth race.

Wiggins is the son of retired trainer and racing official Hal Wiggins, the original conditioner of multiple Oaklawn stakes winner and 2009 Horse of the Year Rachel Alexandra. Lon Wiggins has 29 career Oaklawn victories, the first coming Jan. 30, 1998.