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The (Mostly) True Legend Of ‘Diamond Jim’ Brady

Brien Bouyea
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The (Mostly) True Legend Of ‘Diamond Jim’ Brady

Besides all of its immortal horses, legendary jockeys and masterful trainers, what makes Saratoga Race Course a one-of-a-kind horse racing venue is the countless larger-than-life personalities—the owners and high-rollers—who’ve frequented its stands. One such character is the legendary James Buchanan Brady, better known as “Diamond Jim.” When I first heard about Brady and the outlandish tales associated with him, I essentially pegged him as a fictitious character. While some of the stories of Brady’s excesses and exploits have been embellished or outright debunked, others have held water, providing authenticity to Diamond Jim’s iconic stature.

A true “rags to riches” story, Brady grew up poor, working as a telegraph messenger before acquiring his voracious appetite for the spoils of wealth. Born in New York City in 1856, Brady eventually secured work through the New York Central Railroad system. He went on to a lucrative career as a railroad-car builder and made shrewd moves on Wall Street that garnered him a fortune reported to be north of $12 million. With that enormous wealth came a penchant for diamonds. According to some reports, he owned more than 27,000 of them, including 31 curated sets—one for each day of the month. “Them as has ’em wears ’em,” Brady was quoted as saying in the National Turf Digest. Brady was even known to wear diamond-studded underwear! 

“Diamond Jim” Brady (left) with jockey Arthur Redfern at Saratoga Race Course in 1905. (Keeneland Library Hemment Collection)

Diamond Jim became a Saratoga Race Course regular in the 1890s. He owned a notable stable of racehorses, which included champions Gold Heels, who set a world record for 1¼ miles, and Accountant, the three-year-old champion in 1906. Upon his arrival at Saratoga in the summer of 1896, Brady “rented three cottages,” with more than two-dozen staffers, stocking his temporary homes with “hundreds of bottles of beer, wines and whiskies…along with huge quantities of such varied edibles as caviar and corned beef and cabbage,” noted Hugh Bradley in his 1940 book Such Was Saratoga. 

Brady’s crowning achievement as a horse owner at Saratoga took place in 1906 with the aforementioned Accountant, a colt he purchased for $30,000. He was widely criticized for paying such a considerable sum for the horse, but Diamond Jim got the last laugh. That August, Accountant defeated Gallavant in the Saratoga Derby, a race described by the New York Times as the “biggest event of the Saratoga meeting for 3-year-olds.” From 1904-06, the Saratoga Derby was a richer race than the Travers Stakes, with a value to the winner of $9670 compared to $5800 for the Travers. Accountant earned Brady $81,925 for the year, prompting Diamond Jim to quip to his naysayers, “I didn’t know a thing, eh?”

I’m not the only writer that’s been mesmerized by Brady’s story. His life inspired the 1935 film Diamond Jim, which detailed his high-profile relationship with actress Lillian Russell, another Saratoga notable. Brady’s also long been considered the character “Big Jim” in the Bob Dylan song “Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts” from the 1975 album Blood On The Tracks. And author (and one-time General Electric Company publicist) Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. wrote Diamond Jim into his novel Jailbird, recounting a story about Brady winning a bet by eating four dozen oysters, four lobsters, four chickens, four squabs, four T-bone steaks, four pork chops and four lamb chops.

Brady died of a heart attack in 1917 at the age of 60—but not before leaving a giant-sized legacy. He considered his Saratoga memories among his fondest. “Goin’ up to Saratoga,” Brady once said, “is a hell of a great way to spend a month in the summer.” I couldn’t agree more. 

Saratoga Santa: Get To Know The Man Behind The Beard

Hannah Kotler
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Saratoga Santa: Get To Know The Man Behind The Beard

Picture this: You get a call from an unknown number and hesitantly pick up the phone. Who’s on the other line? Santa Claus. That’s the situation I found myself in this past November, when Fred Clark, known throughout town as “The Saratoga Santa,” called me to schedule a time to meet up. 

With his thick white beard, charming red suit and heart as full as his belly, Clark’s been bringing Father Christmas to life in Saratoga Springs for more than two decades and, honestly, it’s hard to believe he isn’t actually from the North Pole. His at-home factory—a Christmas-themed office space, not a toy workshop—and Santa-mobile, complete with a custom Christmas vanity plate, Santa self-portrait car wrap and soon-to-be installed Christmas lights, only make him that much more believable as Kris Kringle himself. 

But given how big those black boots are to fill, it shouldn’t be surprising that Clark hasn’t always played Santa. In fact, before growing out his beard, he portrayed country artist Kenny Rogers, winning several lookalike competitions, until his wife convinced him to answer a 1998 Hewitt’s Garden Center advertisement looking for someone to play Santa. For that first year, Clark had to glue on a fake beard and mustache to complete the look, but was hooked on the idea of making people’s wishes come true. Things snowballed from there, and nowadays, Clark’s booked every holiday season with private home visits, breakfasts, commercials and branding deals all over the Capital Region and Vermont. “Wherever I go, I get recognized,” he says. “When you’re Santa, people just want to talk.” I can’t help but wonder out loud if that ever gets annoying, but he assures me it’s the best part of the job. “I get to meet so many wonderful people,” he says. Now that’s a Santa I can believe in.

Saratoga Bite: Solevo Kitchen’s Winter Vegetable Panzanella With House-Made Focaccia And Vinaigrette

Staff Report
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Saratoga Bite: Solevo Kitchen’s Winter Vegetable Panzanella With House-Made Focaccia And Vinaigrette

For my Saratoga Bite, I wanted to highlight Saratoga Springs’ namesake: its water. The minerality in Saratoga’s water gives our house-made breads and pastas a distinct flavor, and our focaccia is an expression of that. This is a great “beginner’s bread” for those wary of yeast baking…use quality ingredients and you can’t go wrong. Then, you can dress it up, like in this to-die-for vegetable panzanella. (Find recipes for the Focaccia and apple cider vinaigrette below.)

Chef: Ronnie Solevo
Restaurant: Solevo Kitchen + Social
Saratoga Bite: Winter Vegetable Panzanella with Focaccia and Apple Cider Vinaigrette

Winter Vegetable Panzanella with Focaccia and Apple Cider Vinaigrette

Ingredients
1 c. Honey nut squash
1 c. Red beets
Salt
Pepper
2 Sprigs thyme
5 Sage leaves 
Olive oil
1 c. Brussels sprouts
1½ c. Solevo Focaccia, cut into cubes*
**Apple cider vinaigrette 
1½ tbsp. Toasted pine nuts
4 oz. Burrata

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 400° F. Peel and dice squash and beets into ½-inch cubes. Keeping them separate, season with salt, pepper, thyme sprigs, whole sage leaves and
olive oil. Roast squash for 25-30 minutes and beets for 35-40 minutes until both are soft and caramelized but still al dente. Remove thyme and sage.

• Cut the stems off of the Brussels sprouts and peel back individual leaves. Season leaves with salt, pepper and olive oil and roast for up to 5 minutes, or until they just begin to brown.

• Toast cubed focaccia on a dry baking sheet until just brown and crisp. If you’re using day-old bread, there’s no need to toast. You want the bread slightly dry so that it soaks up the dressing.

• In a large mixing bowl, combine beets, squash, Brussel sprouts, toasted pine nuts and focaccia. Add just enough apple cider vinaigrette to coat.

• Stack panzanella high on a flat plate. Cut burrata into quarters, taking care to leave the creamy inner “stracciatella” intact. Nestle burrata into the panzanella and spoon over additional cider vinaigrette to taste.

*Solevo Focaccia recipe

Ingredients
850g All-purpose flour
2 1/4 tsp. Active dry yeast
Pinch of sugar
2 Tbsp. Kosher salt
Flaky sea salt
5 Tbsp. Saratoga extra virgin olive oil
Saratoga tap water

Instructions
• Combine flour and 21⁄2 cups room-temperature water in a large bowl. Using a wooden spoon, mix until a shaggy dough forms. Cover bowl with plastic and let sit for while you prepare the yeast.
• Stir yeast, sugar, and 1⁄2 cup warm water with a fork in a small bowl to dissolve. Let sit until yeast is foamy, about 5 minutes.
• Pour yeast mixture on to the dough and mix until dough absorbs all additional the water. Add kosher salt and continue to mix vigorously for 5 minutes until the dough is elastic and very sticky and resembles a thick batter.
• Pour 3 Tbsp. oil into a large bowl and swirl to coat sides. Scrape in dough with a large spatula. Cover and place in a warm spot until dough is doubled in volume, 2–3 hours or alternatively, allow the dough to rise in the refrigerator over night.
• Drizzle 2 Tbsp. oil over a 18×13″ sheet pan and use fingertips to rub all over bottom and sides. Using large spatula, fold dough onto oiled baking sheet. Using oiled hands, lift up dough and fold over onto itself in half. Begin to gently stretch the dough across the length of the baking sheet in an even layer all the way to the edges. Cover with well oiled plastic and let sit in a warm spot for 2 hours, or in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 450°. If you have refrigerated the dough, remove and bring to room temperature (at least 45 minutes). Remove plastic and drizzle dough generously with more oil. Oil hands again and press fingertips firmly into dough, pushing down all the way to bottom of pan to dimple all over. Sprinkle generously with sea salt, or any other herbs and spices you would like.
• Bake focaccia on the middle rack until surface is deep golden brown all over, 25–35 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 20 minutes. Slide a thin metal spatula underneath focaccia to loosen from sheet pan and transfer to a wire rack. Let cool completely before cutting as desired.

**Apple Cider Vinaigrette recipe

Ingredients
2 tbsp. Apple cider vinegar
3 tbsp. Apple cider
1 tbsp. Honey
1 tsp. Whole grain mustard
Salt
Pepper
1/3 c. Olive oil

Instructions
Whisk together all ingredients except for olive oil. Once combined, begin to slowly pour in olive oil while whisking. Adjust seasoning to taste.

Power Player: Megan Baker’s No BS PR

Jeff Dingler
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Power Player: Megan Baker’s No BS PR

Whether I’m crafting a short story for a literary contest or reporting on a new restaurant opening for saratogaliving.com, I’ve come to realize that writing, no matter what the style, is about understanding an end goal and shaping the language to that purpose. Get the words just right, and you can make magic happen. Megan Baker, founder, CEO and president of Baker Public Relations in Albany, has had that on lockdown for more than a decade. “As a natural storyteller, it gives me great joy to help business leaders achieve their goals through creative and strategic communications,” says Baker, who founded the company in 2007. She and her team of communications specialists are making both local clients (Mohawk Honda, Complexions Spa) and national ones (like Fresenius Kidney Care) very happy indeed. Baker Public Relations’ client list even boasts some Fortune 500 and Global 500 companies. (saratoga living has also retained Baker PR’s services.)

Baker was honing those storytelling skills long before she ever mastered the Tao of PR. She spent almost a decade on the “other side,” working as a broadcast journalist, including a two-and-a-half-year stint as an anchor/reporter at WBNG-TV in Binghamton and more than three years at Capital News 9 (now Spectrum News), where she was awarded a New York State Emmy. Following that feat, after having just re-signed a four-year contract with Capital News, Baker about-faced, deciding it was time for something new. “I’d covered two presidential visits; the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston; and countless breaking news, human interest and feature stories,” she says, noting that the Capital News gig didn’t afford her much free time. “I missed interacting with real people and telling their stories.” Hence, the switch to PR, an industry that thrives on constant facetime with clients. “It’s an easy transition for any journalist,” says Baker. “It allows us to continue to do what we do best, just in a different capacity with more tools and resources.”

A dozen years on, and the future’s bright at Baker. In addition to launching InfluenceHER earlier this year—a video podcast series on YouTube, iTunes and SoundCloud that features interviews with female “movers and shakers” such as Real Housewives Of New York City star (and our most recent saratoga living cover celebrity) Dorinda Medley—Baker also opened a satellite office on Pittsburgh’s South Side in October. “I took a few team members to Pittsburgh for a quick trip so they could learn to appreciate its charm and beauty,” says Baker, who grew up about an hour away in Butler, PA. “I just might have persuaded them to become Steelers football fans after we took in a home game at Heinz Field.” As a journalist who receives pitches from publicists all day and night, I can only imagine how persuasive she actually was.

‘saratoga living’ Editor In Chief Richard Pérez-Feria On Giving

Richard Pérez-Feria
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‘saratoga living’ Editor In Chief Richard Pérez-Feria On Giving

Those who know me well—and I’m lucky to say a lot of amazing people can easily make that claim—have invariably heard my go-to refrain whenever I’m asked to do something I’m not particularly excited about: “I give and I give and I give…” My quasi-comical aside is usually met with equal parts laughter and exaggerated eye rolls. But, as yet another holiday season rolls in, I couldn’t help but wonder (cue Carrie Bradshaw), if, in fact, I actually do give and give and give. And that’s precisely the moment my honest answer stopped me dead in my tracks.

For years and years, I knew I was a “giving” person because I won awards for it. Even writing that now sounds, I don’t know, icky. For decades, I was happy to donate my time, money and passion to several organizations that I believed were serving a purpose in our society. So, as most of us who believe in philanthropy do, I devoted my energy to causes I felt connected to, most notably GLAAD. For the uninitiated, GLAAD is essentially the watchdog organization over all media and entertainment to ensure fair and inclusive representation for LGBTQ individuals.

As the former Editor in Chief at Time Inc.’s People en Español, the country’s largest Hispanic publication, I was proud to lead a magazine that won three consecutive GLAAD Media Awards for myriad stories impacting the LGBTQ community. I also served as Executive Producer of the GLAAD Media Award-winning film, East Side Story, directed by Carlos Portugal, and I capped off my run by receiving the organization’s first-ever “Visibility Award.” Fairness. Equality. Leveling the playing field. Those are ideas that are not only logical and indisputable, but also deeply matter to me, in all aspects of life—especially now.

As I enter my third year charged with leading saratoga living in all aspects of the company, I’ve made it my mission to get to know a number of selfless, generous, local heroes, who walk among us and devote vast amounts of their time and treasure to causes they believe in most. From where I sit, few people anywhere are as eager to help their fellow man as Ed and Lisa Mitzen. The Mitzens are, of course, no strangers to saratoga living: Ed was the magazine’s inaugural “Person Of The Year” exactly a year ago, and Lisa has become one of saratogaliving.com’s most important and best-read contributors. We’re so thrilled to count Ed and Lisa Mitzen among the saratoga living family, largely because of their herculean efforts to help and, perhaps most importantly, humanize Saratoga’s growing homeless population. This Saratoga-based couple is indefatigable in their single-mindedness on this issue, and Lisa’s poignant, heartbreaking profiles of “people without homes,” as she puts it, persevering and ultimately finding self-respect and triumph are absolute must-reads on our website.

The Mitzens, like the great Saratoga philanthropists who came before them—Marylou Whitney, our iconic cover subject, very much included—make it all too obvious that it’s now once again time for me to rethink what giving means to me. It’s going to be a tough question to fully answer because of the many worthy organizations I have to give back to in our beautiful Spa City. But, happily, I have the knowledge that it isn’t so much who you’re helping, but if you’re helping.

With love, kindness and charity front and center in this most generous of seasons, I hope you join me in digging deep and thinking about what giving means to you. Not the easiest question to confront head on perhaps, but, in the end, is there a more important question you should be answering? Exactly. Happy holidays, Saratoga.

Saratoga’s Stunning Holiday Designs

Beverly Tracy
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Saratoga’s Stunning Holiday Designs

The holidays are all about tradition for my family. Having spent 15 years—the majority of my sons’ lives—in Saratoga Springs, but recently moving to Beverly Hills, our best holiday memories are all tied to this sweet, oft-snow-covered community. To us, the holidays in Saratoga meant bustling crowds of holiday shoppers along Broadway, the sparkling lights that line the streets and the promise of the fun, seasonal festivities that await. 

To me, nothing said “the holidays in Saratoga” more than the larger-than-life, glorious holiday wreath that hangs from the Adirondack Trust Company building each year. I recall eagerly awaiting the day when—and watching with glee as—the wreath took its place on the building’s stately, alabaster façade, a sure sign that the holidays were right around the corner.

Another, equally special, albeit newer tradition that I looked forward to with every passing year was the elegance, beauty and sophistication of The Adelphi Hotel’s luxurious holiday decor—whether I was taking it in downstairs at Morrissey’s or just gawking at it from street level. And then, of course, there were the glitzy decorations that adorned the many spectacular houses in the city. Some homes were completely decked out in lights from their chimneys to their foundations, while others had white, twinkling lights ever so perfectly placed. Every year, my kids would pick the perfect, flurry-touched night, and I’d fill up the car with hot chocolate jugs, warm cookies and eager boys, and we’d drive around Saratoga, enjoying our neighbors’ most spectacular holiday displays. While it was always a joy picking out our favorites, the most important house in town was always Santa’s, which magically appeared on Broadway each November. Once it was in place, my boys and I would count the days ’til Santa and his reindeer would arrive there—the night of the Victorian Streetwalk—and although the line would be long, we’d look forward to that moment when we were able to patiently enter Santa’s abode and deliver our wishlists directly to him. Imagine the sheer joy of the occasion! 

Now that I’m bicoastal, there are many things that I miss about living in Saratoga year round, but none so much as this magical time of year. Saratogians should truly feel fortunate to have these beautiful traditions, and as I walk beneath the palm trees under a clear blue sky, I find myself dreaming about our special time in Saratoga and asking quietly to no one in particular: What’s your favorite Saratoga holiday tradition?                

Mohawk Honda Celebrates Its Centennial By Giving Back (Advertisement)

Zachary Gold
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Mohawk Honda Celebrates Its Centennial By Giving Back (Advertisement)

Not many local car dealerships can say that they’ve been selling their wares for a century (remember, Henry Ford only introduced his automotive assembly line a little over a century ago in 1913). But that’s exactly what Mohawk Honda, founded in 1919, in Glenville has achieved. The dealer of new and used Hondas celebrated its centennial all year, first with a modest birthday cake for itself—and then a generous gift to the Capital Region, in the form of $100,000 ($1,000 per year) to local charities and nonprofits, plus an inaugural charity event that raised an additional $25,000.

“Our overall mission and goal has always been to ‘treat others the way you want to be treated,’” says Mohawk Honda President Jeff Haraden. “That goes for our customers and our employees; happy employees lead to happy customers, and those happy customers lead to our creating long-lasting relationships with them.” In that spirit, Mohawk Honda donated $10,000 each to ten local nonprofits and held an inaugural charity event, the Haraden Family Foundation Golf Tournament last March, which raised an additional $25,000 for the Lyme Action Network. Additionally, Mohawk Honda got its staff involved in the campaign, with employees pledging a cumulative 10,000 hours of volunteer time to a nonprofit of their choice. “We have close to 200 employees, and they’re all part of the family,” says Haraden. “That’s not just a cliché; it’s how we run our business.”

Mohawk Honda
In addition to its recognition for giving back, Mohawk Honda is also a Honda Platinum level environmentally friendly dealer.

Mohawk Honda’s giving spirit traces all the way back to Haraden’s grandfather, Joseph, who settled in Schenectady with his family after Thomas Edison recruited him to work as an engineer at the General Electric Company. Once in the Electric City, Haraden’s grandfather saw the rising demand for primitive automobiles—or what were then called “horseless carriages”—and he quickly established Mohawk Auto Sales in 1919. Haraden’s father carried on that same innovative spirit, and in 1971, he brought the first-ever Honda dealership to the Capital Region, turning Mohawk Auto Sales into Mohawk Honda.

Since then, the dealership has become one of the region’s top auto traders, and it’s not done growing yet. On November 19, Mohawk Honda announced a major expansion by purchasing Northstar Chevrolet in Clifton Park. Haraden says he plans to refurbish and rebrand the dealership as Mohawk Chevrolet. “This is exciting, because from 1919 until 1980, we were a Chevy dealership,” Haraden says. “We can’t wait to bring the same customer-friendly buying experience and our corporate culture to Mohawk Chevrolet.”

Your Year-End Portfolio Check-Up In 5 Crucial Steps (Advertisement)

Maureen Parker
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Your Year-End Portfolio Check-Up In 5 Crucial Steps (Advertisement)

Before Saratoga Springs rings in the New Year (and new decade), it’s important to finish this one with a few crucial check-ins. Here at the Charles Schwab Independent Branch in Saratoga Springs, we want to help make sure that everything you do is maximizing your potential earnings. Here are the top five things to do before toasting 2020.

The end of year is a good time for investors to think about their portfolios and overall savings and investing approach. In between your holiday parties and family time, you may want to consider a few steps that could help minimize your tax liability for the current tax year, and position your portfolio for the coming year: 

1. Rebalance your portfolio: According to Schwab’s 2019 Modern Wealth Survey, less than 50 percent of investors have rebalanced their portfolio in the last year. Amid the increased market volatility this year, it’s possible investment portfolios have strayed from their original target asset allocation.

Over time, assets that have gained in value will account for more of your portfolio, while those that have declined will account for less. This can leave you exposed to unintended risk if the market environment should suddenly change, turning former “winners” into underperformers. 

Rebalancing means selling positions that have become overweight in relation to your target allocation and moving the proceeds to positions that have become underweight. The end of the year is a good time to take a look at your portfolio allocation and make sure it’s aligned to your goals and risk tolerance. This can be especially important for people nearing or in retirement, who might not be able to withstand sudden volatility.

2. Consider tax loss harvesting: Tax loss harvesting is an underappreciated investing strategy that investors should consider while rebalancing their portfolios. Investors generally don’t want to sell anything at a loss, but there can be a significant advantage if you have gains to offset. Tax loss harvesting can also serve as a motivation to sell underperforming investments or re-diversify overly-concentrated stock positions. Consult a tax professional to determine what strategy works best for your situation.

3. Max out retirement savings (if you can): According to Schwab’s Modern Wealth Index, just 15 percent of investors max out their 401(k) savings. End of year is a good time to evaluate your overall savings and determine if you can bump up what you’re putting away for retirement. For 2019, the maximum 401(k) contribution is 19,000. It’s a good idea to take full advantage of your employee retirement plan, at least to the point of any employer match. You can also use lump sums, like an annual bonus, to give your savings a boost. 

4. Consider a Health Savings Account (HSA): It’s open enrollment season, and if your employer offers a HSA—and you qualify to contribute to one— it can serve as a stealth retirement savings account in addition to a 401(k) or an Individual Retirement Account. If you’re able to contribute to a HSA and leave it alone, it can be used to cover healthcare expenses in retirement without tapping into other savings, and after age 65, money in an HSA can be used for any expense without penalty.

5. Charitable giving: End of year is a time when many people think about charitable giving. As with other aspects of your finances, it’s important for charitable giving to be part of a broader financial plan. One consideration, particularly for older investors, is donating a portion of your retirement income that you don’t need for living expenses, as you can deduct contributions to qualified organizations.

If you’re 70½ or older, you could also consider donating directly to a charity from your retirement account, using a qualified charitable distribution (QCD). A QCD allows you to meet the required minimum distribution and has the added benefit of not being included in your taxable income. The sooner you start working on a QCD the better because, depending on where your IRA is and how long it takes to process, you may need two to three weeks to get it done and December 31 is the deadline. You’ll want to check with your IRA custodian on the proper process since it will be different than a typical distribution.

Maureen Parker is an Independent Branch Leader and Financial Consultant at Charles Schwab with over 20 years of experience helping clients achieve their financial goals. Some content provided here has been compiled from previously published articles authored by various parties at Schwab.

Experience Racing At Its Finest At The Dubai World Cup

Tom Pedulla
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Experience Racing At Its Finest At The Dubai World Cup

As someone who’s traveled all over the country writing about horse racing—I’ve covered every Triple Crown race since 1998—I occasionally consider stepping outside of my comfort zone and experiencing international racing. I’ve been told that, to experience racing at its finest, you need to venture to the Dubai World Cup Carnival at Meydan Racecourse in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), at least once. 

US-based trainers have been raving about the quality of the competition, facilities and hospitality in Dubai since the great Cigar, trained by Bill Mott, won the inaugural running of the Dubai World Cup in 1996. “You have to go with a really good horse that’s doing really well, and it’d better have some speed,” says Bob Baffert, a three-time World Cup winner, nodding to the speed-favoring nature of Meydan’s sandy surface. The Carnival consists of 11 racing dates spread over 3 months. All that leads up to Super Saturday—March 7, 2020—which offers more than $35 million in purses and culminates with the $12 million World Cup.

Meydan Racecourse
A jockey at Meydan Racecourse in February 2019. (TJ Tracy)

His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, vice president and prime minister of the UAE and ruler of Dubai, has invested heavily in the sport—and built a powerhouse global racing and breeding operation under his own Godolphin stables. In a statement provided by officials at Meydan, Sheikh Mohammed told saratoga living: “As Dubai’s home team, team Godolphin works hard to reflect the pioneering spirit of Dubai—constantly looking forward, relentlessly innovating—in everything we do.” That home-track advantage is profound: Godolphin dominated last year’s standings with 30 victories. 

American trainer Ken McPeek, a fixture at Saratoga Race Course each summer, is a well-known risk-taker—so much so that he entered a longshot in the 2002 Belmont Stakes, pulling off the greatest upset in the race’s history. This past January, he rolled the dice on the Carnival, sending four horses to compete there. All went winless, and three were so ineffective that they were shipped home ahead of schedule. “There’s a learning curve that goes with taking these trips and making these adventures,” says McPeek. Talk about stepping out of your comfort zone.  

Saratogian Of The Month: Kathie Gonzalez

Richard Pérez-Feria
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Saratogian Of The Month: Kathie Gonzalez

You sense it instantly. Kathie Gonzalez, the whip-smart, striking dynamo standing in front of you, is one of those people; you know, the type who does everything well—very well—to the inevitable annoyance of everyone in their orbit. But somehow, remarkably, the longtime travel public relations virtuoso instead elicits the opposite reaction: devotion. In a word, Kathie Gonzalez is a boss.

I became friends with the Saratoga Springs native—she was born in Saratoga Hospital—shortly after I met her husband, Alexander Gonzalez (Alex and I share a Cuban heritage and a love for the Miami Dolphins). As Kathie and I got to know each other over time, I kept thinking how congenial, engaging, attractive, professional and funny she was and I wanted to make sure as many people got to know her as possible.

Gonzalez received a Bachelor of Arts from Carnegie Mellon University and a Master’s from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She lives on a picturesque farm in Saratoga with Alex; her children, Sean, 14, and Chloe, 9; and her beloved “adopted rottie,” Tobey. Every time you run into her out on the town or out grabbing a quick cup of coffee, the result is the same: You’re greeted with a huge smile and instant engagement. The best people always make you feel as if you’re the most important person in the world. Mrs. Gonzalez has this particular skill down to a science. And she wears it well.

I caught up with the busy executive—current clients include New Orleans & Company, Saint Lucia Tourism Authority, Williamsburg Tourism Council and many more—and asked her a few questions I wanted answers to. She, predictably, didn’t disappoint.

Kathie Gonzalez is indeed one of those people. Lucky for us, she’s ours once again.

Are people confused by what exactly public relations entails?
One hundred percent! It’s often said that the business of public relations has a public relations problem. Many confuse PR with advertising or marketing—not the same thing—so when someone asks me what I do, I’ve learned to simply tell them I make my clients look good by coordinating interviews and providing information about them to the media. That usually works. And then they ask me for travel advice.

Did you go through any sort of cultural adjustment when you met Alex’s Cuban family?
Yes and no. I love to travel and learn about other cultures, and have always been intrigued by Cuba, so I was excited to meet his family and learn how to cook authentic Cuban food! I always said I had the perfect relationship with my in-laws: Alex’s mom spoke very little English, I spoke very little Spanish! [Laughs]

You love Saratoga because…
It’s home! I left at 18 and thought I’d never return, but now that I’m back with my own family, I appreciate all the city has to offer—and, it’s a great place to raise kids.

You wish Saratoga would change…
Saratoga has an amazing variety of restaurants, but I’d love to see Cuban food added to the culinary landscape. One of the first gifts my husband gave me was a Cuban cookbook—subtlety is not his strong suit! [Laughs]

PR is an awesome career because…
There’s never a dull moment. The very best thing about working with clients in the travel industry is the actual travel. The perks of my job are pretty fantastic.  

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