D. Wayne Lukas: The Modern Trainer

D. Wayne Lukas: The Modern Trainer chronicles the life and career of one of the most significant trainers of the current era. The exhibit illustrates how this Wisconsin native combined a love of horses, a strong work ethic and an innovative mind to change and enhance modern Thoroughbred training. Fascinated with horses at a young age, Lukas started training Quarter Horses in the 1960s, eventually being inducted into the American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame in 2007. Moving to Thoroughbreds full-time in the 1970s, Lukas has won 14 Triple Crown races, 20 Breeders’ Cup races and numerous Eclipse Awards recognizing his record 26 champion Thoroughbreds. He was inducted into Thoroughbred racing’s Hall of Fame in 1999 and is still an active trainer. The exhibit looks at the training innovations that spurred this success, and the impact his methods have had on other trainers and the industry as a whole.

The exhibit largely relies on the personal collection of D. Wayne Lukas to tell this story, a collection he permanently entrusted to the museum’s care in 2017. The artifacts in the exhibit document races won by Lukas, his achievements both inside and outside the racing industry and his personal collection of Thoroughbred and American Western art.