Goat Post: Issue 09

We’ll start, weave and end this week’s Goat Post with scenes from Italian restaurants.

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You’ve heard of the horses, trainers and jockeys. But what about the masseuse and horse whisperer behind the champions? Meet Erma Lee Scot... See more

About the time Erma Lee Scott entered her twenties, she left her small Louisiana hometown of Ferriday to work at Liuzza’s Restaurant near the Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots in New Orleans.

In that job, she met a man who was doing fascinating work nearby. That man was Bill Mott, among the greatest trainers in all of horse racing.

Erma, being personable, curious and just honestly loving life’s potential, asked Bill — with the scent of Creole Italian cuisine in the air — whether he could teach her how to walk horses.

Soon, Bill would not only have a remarkable caregiver of horses, but practically a member of the family he, his wife and kids couldn’t imagine living without.

The story is serendipitous for Goatnet in that it was brought to our attention by Billy Teinowitz and his brother Danny, both of whom enlisted us to help them document the great stories of horse racing.

The sport is near and dear to them, still mourning the recent loss of their brother, Harry. Erma and Bill were two of the voices they recognized as personifying beautiful opportunities in the field, an industry that clearly has a family feel, particularly all around the grounds in Saratoga Springs, NY.

That’s where we met Erma. What a delight. What’s her message for girls who might want to pursue a great life in horse racing?

“You never know if you don’t ask,” Erma said. “I’d never been around horses before. They taught me how to walk horses. … I feel happy. Proud. I just love them.”

She’s been with the Motts for 41 years.

Her latest bestie: Sovereignty, winner of this year’s Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes.

“He’s a good boy,” Erma said. “I love all of our horses. I’m attached to ‘em as soon as I see ‘em.”

And you can tell by the way they warm up to her and gently enjoy their carrots — she hand cuts those carrots — they love her, too.

So, people, when you’re working that shift as you’re trying to figure out what’s next, you never know what that intersection with a customer can spark in your journey.

“As far back as I can remember in my life, she was there,” Bill’s son, Riley, told TrueNicks.com. “I wasn’t lucky enough to grow up having grandparents. They all passed away when I was really, really young. So she very much was a grandparent figure to me. … She helped shape who I am today.”

Thanks to the Teinowitz family, we are off to the races collecting inspired stories from Erma, the Motts, Hall of Fame jockeys, breeders, investors, trainers, nutritionists, promoters, handicappers, fans and philanthropists, all connected by the love of horses and their magnetic splendor.

Here’s Billy, talking about why he has become a Goatnet partner and an advocate for great storytelling. Side note: Among our many highlights at Whitney Weekend was dinner at Village Pizzeria & Ristorante with Billy, Danny and Gina. Thanks, you three.

Speaking of food, our onboarding of legendary jockey Laffit Pincay Jr. included the awesome rider sharing that, in his formative years in Panama, Laffit wanted to be the next Mickey Mantle.

Coaches said he was too small. Somebody suggested, try being a jockey like your Dad. Horse racing buzz killers told him he’d be too heavy. Laffit, like Michael Jordan, took that personally.

He’s watched what he eats his entire life and attributes his massive success to nutrition and discipline.

Laffit became — at the time —  the winningest jockey ever and, just one year into his professional career, earned enough money to buy his Mom a house and himself, fittingly: A Mustang.

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Laffit Pincay Jr. wanted to be Mickey Mantle. But they said he was too small to make it in Baseball. Next, they said he’d be too heavy for... See more

Mustang, you say?

Goats don’t get much greater than the marvelous Mustang from SMU by way of Sealy, Texas: Eric Dickerson.

Capturing content for Eric’s story — told in print in a super book, Watch My Smoke — brought loads of riveting segments and the source work for football material that’s attracting hundreds of players and their high school programs to the Goatnet platform.

Here’s a peek at one trailer we generated about Eric.

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You think you know Eric Dickerson? Sealy, Texas. No Pop Warner. Family secrets. Racism. And still… greatness. #NFLHistory #EricDickerson #... See more

Not far from Eric’s shotgun-shack childhood and stomping grounds, is where Gunnar Smith resides, between San Antonio and Austin.

Who’s Gunnar?

He’s a hugely valuable member of the Goatnet family. He and Braedon Watkins, Gunnar’s technology partner in climb, headed up to our headquarters in Bucks County, PA, this week.

We went through partnership deliverables and sprints that will bring to life our exciting next wave of product functionality in September.

I cannot stress enough how fortunate we are to have Gunnar and Braedon leading the charge to make our stable Triple Crown caliber.

But let’s not leave out the food. We wrapped up three days of meetings with “the best pizza I’ve ever had,” as Gunnar put it.

Well played, Conte’s in Princeton.

Delizioso! 

Let’s sign off with a nod to Happy Gilmore 2.

“I can’t believe I’m saying this, but you’re all free to go.”

Watch the movie, and you’ll appreciate the line.

Goat Big!