HENDERSON, Ky. — A Kentucky racehorse bucked its jockey, escaped a racetrack, and took off down a nearby highway on Saturday. And the filly’s weekend only got more chaotic from there.
Drivers captured video of the 2-year-old horse, named Bold and Bossy, as it ran north in the southbound lanes of U.S. Highway 41 in Henderson.
Police dispatchers told WFIE that they learned the horse had escaped Ellis Park around the time of the track’s first race at about 1 p.m.
Luckily, Posey County Sheriff Tom Latham happened to be in the area, and he spotted the horse running down the road. WFIE reports that Latham parked his truck, jumped a guardrail, and was able to help a posse of trainers wrangle the animal.
A deputy with the Vanderburgh County Sheriff’s Office told WEHT that the horse, which suffered minor cuts and scrapes, was then transported back the park’s barn area via a horse ambulance.
The horse was reportedly set to race for the first time that day.
“We were very pleased to make sure that that horse was collected safely by our local horsemen. It led us on a merry chase, I will say, but that ended fine,” said Ellis Park General Manager Jeff Inman at a press conference.
Bold and Bossy’s story doesn’t stop there though. Early Sunday morning, she was injured in a fire at Ellis Park, WFIE and WEHT report.
Officials say the horse suffered a “minor injury” in the fire that broke out at the park’s receiving barn shortly after 4 a.m. Sunday. A trainer told WEHT that the injured horse was taken to an equine hospital in Lexington and she’s doing fine.
No other horses or humans were injured in the incident, according to officials.
The cause of the fire hasn’t officially been determined yet, but officials believe it may have been an electrical issue.
As a result of the fire, the track has canceled all of its races until Friday.
