By Ben Massam
Linette Stables, a New York-based ownership group operated by Graig Couton and his family, is donating a portion of its horses' earnings to help aid victims of Sunday's deadly mass shooting in Las Vegas. For Couton, a former Las Vegas resident and a 2012 graduate of UNLV, the attack hit uncomfortably close to home.
“UNLV is a three-minute drive from where the shooting took place,” Couton said. “I drove past that area every day on my way to school.”
In response to the tragedy, Couton said his family's stable will contribute 10% of their share of the earnings accrued by their horses for the remainder of the 2017 calendar year to the Las Vegas Victims Fund set up by Steve Sisolak, the Clark County Commission Chair from Las Vegas. Although Couton relocated to New York in 2016, he said Las Vegas is never far from his mind–particularly in the wake of recent events.
“Las Vegas will always be my second home, and watching all of the coverage on TV made me wish I was still living there so I could have provided more help,” Couton said. “At this point, donating money is the best way that we can do that.”
Couton stressed that Linette Stables is by no means a large-scale operation, and understandably, their donations will likely max out at a few thousand dollars. The fledgling stable launched in late 2016 and scored its first victory soon after the calender flipped to 2017 when the hard-knocking gelding Chelios (Distorted Humor) captured a claiming race at Aqueduct Jan. 2. Linette has only registered seven starts in 2017, but their runners have hit the board in six of those tries–a more-than-respectable rate for an outfit that competes exclusively on the hyper-competitive New York Racing Association circuit.
Re-connecting with the Las Vegas community from afar, Couton said the outpouring of kindness and goodwill in the aftermath of the shooting played a major role in his family's decision to join the cause.
“The Las Vegas residents and first responders have done an incredible job in response to this tragedy,” Couton added. “The videos showing these huge lines of people waiting to donate blood and supplies are inspiring.”
Couton said his hope is that others will follow their lead and consider donating to the victims fund. The co-owner noted that Gary Contessa-trained veteran turfer Aire Bueno (Chi) (Ivan Denisovich {Ire})), owned in partnership with Winning Move Stables and Saltor Thoroughbred Stables among others, will likely be ready to compete at Belmont later this month.
While Sunday's tragedy makes a slow gate break or a lost photo finish seem trivial, one can only hope that the Linette Stables colorbearers receive a healthy dose of luck as they race to help the city of Las Vegas heal.
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