Joshua “Josh” Fry of Washington, D.C., was born on September 13, 1935 in the borough of Queens in New York, New York. Succumbing to a tired limb on October 4, 2014, he pulled up lame on the backstretch of what would be his final journey to his favorite haunt, Saratoga Springs. Keenly aware of and accepting of racing’s amoral ironies, Josh wryly observed, “Who gets beat before reaching the track?”
Josh was a friend, father, brother, husband, grandfather, breeder, horseman and punter.
His lifelong passion for thoroughbred racing was pure and defining. Born from his days as a boy sneaking through fence holes at Jamaica Race Course, and continuing into adulthood, including speeding through country roads to Belmont Park to witness Secretariat’s epochal moment, Josh found the Winner’s Circle on myriad occasions.
Josh was a member of numerous syndicates over the decades, a regular participant at 2-year-old sales up and down the Eastern Seaboard, and the primary owner and managing partner for Whip Stables, based out of Laurel, Maryland. Working exclusively with trainer John Salzman, he enjoyed modest success on the Maryland, New Jersey, Delaware, Florida and New York circuits in the ’80s and ’90s.
His impact on racing was global, as he was at the forefront of the technological modernization of pari-mutuel computer systems as an original associate at GTECH. In this capacity, Josh participated in racing in Australia, Hong Kong, and throughout the Americas and Europe. Few have enjoyed the Sport of Kings in more locales and on more continents than Josh.
A boisterous presence, always quick with a joke, a hearty laugh, or a poignant observation, Josh’s happiest moments may have been quiet sunrise walks on cool mornings through the barns, checking on his horses and getting the latest scoops chatting with riders, jocks, trainers and all who shared his passion.
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A Good Day to Remember My Friend
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