Living the Dual-Breed Dream

TORONTO, March 24, 2025— Omar Moreno’s horse racing journey has taken several unexpected yet rewarding turns, particularly through his growing relationship with horses and his active involvement in the Standardbred racing community.

It was around two years ago when Moreno, Canada’s champion apprentice jockey of 2009 and winner of both the Sovereign and Eclipse Awards for the same in 2010, was sitting at home on a non-descript weekend evening, talking to his friend, longtime horseman Arthur Silvera.

“I was acting grumpy and pouty,” recalled Moreno. “At one point, Arthur remarked, ‘You need to get out of the house.’”

The journeyman rider, who lives two minutes away from Woodbine Mohawk Park, one of the top Standardbred racetracks in North America, repeatedly resisted Silvera’s offer to go watch the races at the 7/8ths-mile oval in Campbellville, Ontario.

Finally, Moreno relented, slipping on his shoes and throwing on a coat.

Minutes after they arrived the two made their way to the bustling paddock situated not far from the finish line.

Silvera introduced Moreno to Amanda Fine, a trainer he had come to know through his sales work with an equine and pet supplies company.

“I just stood there, listening to the conversation,” Moreno recalled. “I didn’t contribute much – and that was it.”

One and done, he thought.

“Some time went by, and we started communicating again. I ended up going to the farm where Amanda is and then I went to the racetrack to see her horses race.”

Silvera, son of the late Thoroughbred trainer Laurie Silvera, no longer had to plead with Moreno to accompany him to Mohawk – now it was the other way around. If Silvera couldn’t make it, Moreno would go on his own.

Friendship between Moreno and Fine soon turned into a relationship.

At first blush, the two might be horse racing’s version of The Odd Couple. Dig deeper, however, and they are very much on the same page in many ways.

“When her horses have an off night, I feel it too,” said Moreno, who graduated from the jockey program at Olds College in Alberta. “Watching her emotions, I can relate to it. As a jockey, if we don’t win, it’s tough to turn it off. As a trainer, it’s the same thing – you question what you could have done differently or better.”

Moreno, a former boxer, who made his first Queen’s Plate appearance aboard Maple Leaf Kitten in 2011, stepped into the Standardbred ring with a sense of curiosity and wide-eyed wonderment.

“I began by visiting Amanda’s barn and observing how she worked with her horses – the care and attention to detail that went into everything. It made me respect her work even more. I am not biased because she is my girlfriend, but even before that, I watched the level of care and attention she has for her horses, and it just had this effect on me.”

As the bond grew between Moreno and Fine, so too did his connection with the pacers and trotters Fine doted on.

She quickly took notice of it.

“Having Omar come into our barn has been a pleasure,” said Fine, who launched her training career in 2019. “Omar definitely helps my day get shorter. He enjoys putting a horse away or helping with whatever our barn needs a hand with. He brings a positive vibe pretty much everywhere he goes. I respect Omar’s willingness to be open minded and his genuine compassion towards horses.” 

Fine added, with an accompanying laugh, “There is a reason I call him ‘happy feet.’”

Working so closely with his girlfriend’s horses prompted Moreno to recollect the times when his relationship with Thoroughbreds was vastly different.

“I had a love for racing – that’s what it had always been for me. I was the type of person who if I went on a trail ride, and the horse wasn’t tacked up, I wasn’t interested in going. I was always about the fast pace of racing and nothing much more.”

That began to change a few years ago.

“I started galloping for (Thoroughbred) trainer Michelle Love and I found a whole different perspective of horses and horse people. I finally woke up from my entitlement mentality. I fell in love with horses.”

Fine, who posted a career-high 28 wins in 2024, was delighted in what she saw.

“Having him try out our breed and come out for race nights has been a blast and it’s nice to see the genuine love and compassion towards the horses that he has. I think that has been my favourite part. He truly just enjoys being around them and seeing the different personalities they all have.”

Moreno’s unbridled joy for the breed and its equine stars gave him the confidence to make the leap from inquisitive bystander to active participant in Fine’s barn.

“Amanda and I have been together just over a year now and this past winter is the first time I started grooming some of her horses. She is very particular about how she cares for her horses, and I wanted to make sure I respected that. She has very high standards.”

Which is why Moreno was somewhat hesitant when he approached Fine early last year with an ask: the jockey who had saddled up for 5,433 career starts wanted to jog a Standardbred.

Fine’s answer was to hand him the lines.

“She told me that there was only way to learn, to just go out and do it,” recalled Moreno. “I get on horses all the time, but this is something completely different. Amanda was in New York at one point in 2024, and I asked her if I could try jogging a horse.”

The trainer with 105 lifetime wins gave Moreno an uncomplicated pacer to work with.

“She gave me a horse and told me to go four laps. The speed was obviously different from that of a Thoroughbred, so I wasn’t sure if I was going too fast or too slow. This horse wasn’t a tough horse, but I had to hold him for four laps – my arms were like jelly after I was done.

“With a Thoroughbred, you might have to hold them for six furlongs, maybe, a mile and a half – these Standardbred ones are so strong too. You need soft hands with them.”

This winter, Moreno was back in the sulky. Trepidation had been overtaken by exhilaration.

By the time the snow had disappeared, he had hit his best stride on the training track.

“It is amazing. Amanda’s dad couldn’t do it one day, and I offered to help. I just enjoy being in the moment, feeling that closeness with each horse.”

Just as it is with the jockey’s life.

As the days draw closer to the start of the Thoroughbred season in Ontario, Moreno, like his contemporaries, is up before the sun rises above the Woodbine backstretch, working horses for various trainers.

Gone are the times when Moreno would work his last horse of the day and then be on his way.

“The love of the horse part is what has changed for me. If you had asked me three years ago, I would have never imagined this. With the Thoroughbreds, it was always about the racing – you would have never seen me hot walking a horse. I see things a lot differently. I love horses. If I can grow from that, my life will be full.”

In many ways, it already is.

Moreno is a fixture at Woodbine Mohawk Park and other racetracks where the Fine horses compete. Some nights he is there as a fan, others he helps Fine in the paddock, certain ones he does both.

Whatever role he plays, he’s grateful.

“I love it. I try to go to all her races. Since I groom some of her horses and I jog some of her horses, I feel like I am part of the team. When I am at the races, if she needs me to do something, I let her tell me. It’s a lot of fun being part of this world.”

It isn’t only the horses who Moreno has connected with.

His passion for horses has also allowed him to forge meaningful connections within the harness racing community, from drivers like James MacDonald to fellow horse people, all of whom have embraced him.

“James, who is the best driver in Canada and one of the top ones in North America, never fails to say hello to me. Sometimes, we have conversations about him being a driver and me being a jockey – the mentality we have. We are both athletes and we both want to win. It’s interesting to get into the mind of a top driver. I also talk to Jason Ryan, who drives for Amanda at Flamboro.

“Everyone is very welcoming.”

MacDonald, Canada’s four-time defending Driver of the Year, has enjoyed getting to know Moreno.

“It has been great having Omar around,” said MacDonald. “He was in our barn for a while, and it was awesome to be able to pick his brain about Thoroughbred racing. He also asks lots of question about driving Standardbreds as well. 

“He’s inquired a bunch of times about training a horse together, which we will do now that the weather is better. However, he has implied he wants me to do the same with a Thoroughbred as well – not sure I have what it takes to do what he does though. We all look forward to seeing him around lots more.”  

It is one more reason why Moreno feels right at home in the harness racing community.

Fine is happy to have him along for the ride.

“It’s really just two breeds and one passion that we both share.”

As to where his harness racing experience might lead to, Moreno, closing in on 600 career wins, isn’t sure.

“I am not looking that far ahead. I am just enjoying the moment and the learning process. My focus now is Thoroughbreds. I am very excited about the upcoming season, and I can’t wait to get racing. Hopefully, it’s a great year.”

Silvera, aside from his matchmaking duties, has taken the role of jockey agent for Moreno.

He has seen a different side of his longtime friend over the past three years, a more content and grounded person.

“Omar is always smiling,” said Silvera. “I think this is the happiest I have ever seen him.”

Moreno, happy feet and all, is exactly that.

“Career-wise, the past few years haven’t been my best years, but they have been my happiest ones. It is a whole different way of looking at things.”

Especially the way in which he views all horses.

“I love every single one of them. Amanda sometimes asks which is my favourite, but each horse has its own unique personality – on and off the track – and that’s what makes them so special to me.”

It’s a thought that comes to mind whether Moreno is in the irons, in the sulky, grooming, walking hots, or cheering from the rail.

“I’m incredibly grateful for all I’ve learned in the past three years. Horses are a gift, and every day spent with them makes my life better.”