Ben Garner, an amateur steeplechase jockey who also exercised horses in the mornings, was airlifted to Albany Medical Center after sustaining serious injuries in a training accident at Saratoga Aug. 24.
Garner, a native of Kent, England, had what appeared to be a severely broken left arm and serious injuries to his left leg and ankle after his mount, Doug Fout trainee Scheming, bolted while returning from the main track to Fout's barn on the other side of the Oklahoma Training Track. According to reports from the helicopter team to the hospital, the horse slipped after bolting, threw Gardner, and fell on top of him.
Fout, a steeplechase trainer, said the horse made it back to the barn and was being treated for abrasions. The extent of all injuries to horse and rider were not immediately known.