Over 20 years, Chuck Simon won 359 races and stopped training in 2019. He died on Sunday at Saratoga Hospital after a battle with cancer. He was 57 years old.
He worked for Wayne Lukas, Pete Ferriola, Nick Zito, and Tom Skiffington before going out on his own. Allen Jerkens was one of his teachers. He worked for Jerkens for six years as one of his helpers. When he went out on his own in 1999, he hired Cherie DeVaux, a young track worker who had never worked before.
We are saddened to hear of the passing of former trainer and Saratoga native Chuck Simon. We extend our heartfelt condolences to his family, friends, and all those who knew him. His presence will be missed. https://t.co/BHcUPtryDP
— NYRA (🎪) (@TheNYRA) September 9, 2024
DesVaux said, “Chuck is the only reason I’m where I am in life right now.” “I worked for him early on, and I was crazy in my early 20s.” He could tell I was going in the wrong direction. He didn’t make me do anything I didn’t want to, but he did point me in the right way and took me under his wing. He was like a big brother. He has known my family for a long time. He first worked with harness horses in Saratoga to learn how to race. I owe him everything in my life. He led me in the right direction.
When people found out that Simon was sick, the business owner, Carlo Vaccarezza, set up a GoFundMe page to help pay for his medical bills. The page raised $101,270.
Vaccarezza said, “It’s very sad.” “I won the first race today at Kentucky Downs and gave it to Chuck as a gift.” Many people loved and cared about him as a friend. Chuck and I were very close friends for a long time and spent a lot of time together. He had been in pain lately.
He grew up in Saratoga Springs and started working with both thoroughbreds and standardbreds when he was a youngster. He went to the University of Arizona and got a BS in Animal Science through the Racetrack Industry Program. He worked as an assistant race secretary at Yonkers Raceway, which was one of his first jobs.
He started a public stable in 1999 and won 15 races that year. By 2019, Simon only had a few horses left. He found it hard to keep up with the best trainers and only won two races that year. He stopped training and started being the host of the podcast Going In Circles. He also regularly appeared on X, where he wasn’t afraid to say what he thought and didn’t care who he might have upset. There was a section on the Going In Circles website that showed how Simon felt and how ready he was to look into stories that might have made some people feel bad. “No subject is too touchy for us to handle, and we will not avoid it,” it said.
DeVaux said, “He spoke his mind.” “He wasn’t afraid to be the bad guy or say something bad.” He wanted to improve the sport as a whole in the end.
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He was chosen to run the newly formed Gulfstream Horsemen’s Purchasing Association, which is a for-profit branch of the Florida Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association, after he finished training.
More than $11 million was made by Simon’s stable. He was in charge of 19 stakes winners, including the Grade III winner Sabellina (Langfuhr) and the Grade II winner Battle Won (Honor and Glory).
