Trainer Danny Gill burst on the scene at Monticello Raceway last year. On the final day of the 2012 season at the 'Mighty M' he harnessed his 117th winner and walked away with leading trainer honours with one more victory than runner-up Bob Lounsbury.
Gill, a Kentucky native that now calls Ballouville, Connecticut home, is battling Lounsbury for leading trainer honours again this year. Gill currently leads Lounsbury by three wins.
Gill, 57, must be just as tough as any of his racing stock, because on Thursday afternoon he was back in the winner’s circle posing with his victorious pacers.
So what’s the big deal, you say? Well, one week ago to the day Gill had triple bypass surgery. He’s on the mend and back in action, although his services will be limited for a while.
“It’s good to be back,” Gill said. “Monticello Raceway never looked so good.”
Gill had been feeling off before he got checked out by his physician. When the doctor told him he had almost one-hundred per cent blockage in three arteries in his heart he thought the end was near.
“When he told me of the blockages I was scared to death,” Gill related. “They immediately sent me to Westchester Medical in Valhalla (New York) by ambulance for immediate surgery. There I had a tremendous team of doctors working on me.”
Asked if he was afraid to go under the knife, Gill admitted that didn’t bother him nearly as much as his diagnosis did.
“I had the greatest doctors in the country, so I had faith that all would be okay. Their team does thousands of heart surgeries and to them it’s like taking out an appendix. It’s almost routine.”
“I’m feeling better every day and now I’ll be going to the barn often,” said Gill, who has 17 horses stabled at the Mighty M.
“I can’t drive (my car), but my wife will take me to the track. I won’t be doing much for a while, but I will be able to oversee my stable operation.
“It felt real good coming back to two winners today (May 2) and I’m so glad to be back in action,” Gill added.
“I’m a lucky guy.”
(Monticello)