Old Friends to be final resting place for Medina Spirit

GEORGETOWN, Ky. (WKYT) - Medina Spirit will be laid to rest here in the commonwealth.

The former racehorse died back in December and now his ashes will be interred at the Old Friends Thoroughbred Retirement Farm in Georgetown.

“He’s kind of like the James Dean of horse racing,” said Michael Blowen, president and founder of Old Friends Thoroughbred Retirement. “You know when James Dean died you know he made three movies and now he’s still a superstar. So, it’s like Medina Spirit. Look he didn’t do anything, except win.”

The former ‘winner,’ who had his Run for the Roses win repealed just weeks ago, will rest in peace at Old Friends farm in Georgetown.

“We’ll generally have a celebration of his life where people can talk about him, and we’ll show some videos of his great races, and really give him the kind of sendoff that he really earned,” said Blowen. “So, his fans can come and see him, and we can talk about him, and he’ll have daily visitors now.”

Medina Spirit will forever be tied to that controversial Derby, but Blowen says 2 minutes on a Saturday in May shouldn’t define a horse’s story.

“Gayle Rice sold him for a thousand dollars as a baby and then Bob bought him, got him for $30,000 and he wins all these races and it’s just an unbelievable story,” said Blowen. “You know, some of these horses are 30-31 years old. They last a lot longer than the fastest two minutes in sports, and we can appreciate them for who they are as personalities, as living creatures.”