By DYAN CASTILLEJO-GARCIA
with JACKIE CASTILLEJO

I’ve been around horses all my life, but I have never been to horse races.

The Santa Ana race track is one of the most historical race tracks in the world.

Here, I met my friend Hermie Esguerra who was awarded “Equine Athlete of the Year” at the 2006 PSA Awards.

He wanted me to experience the thrill of the races and to show me what the horse racing industry is all about.

After hanging out for a bit at Hermie’s private viewing deck, we headed down to his stables where he keeps about 20 horses. Hermie has about 30 horses running.

Hermie's horse, Defiant, is one of his most valuable stallions.

Last December, on the night before Christmas, Defiant run the race of his career. He won the PHILRACOM Juvenile Championship. Defiant was named Juvenile Horse of the Year for 2006.

"Juvenile" is the term for a two-year old horse in the horse racing lingo.

Like any team sport, there must be great teamwork between the horse and the jockey in order to run a good race.

A lot of jockeys work very hard to establish a strong bond with the horses they ride. Communication and understanding each other is key to a successful relationship— yes, it’s almost like marriage.

Majority of jockeys are men but of course, there are also women.

My sister Jackie always mentioned that she wanted to be a jockey when we were growing up.

Hermie showed me the inside ropes when it comes to races. I learned that there are a lot of things to be considered before a race can take place.

I learned about handicapping.

Defiant’s last race for the evening has come. Defiant is a strong contender to win the race but just before the race was about to start, we found out that Defiant has been scratched from the competition.

Hermie mentioned that like in any sport, there will always be unexpected and uncontrollable situations that will arise. And when they do, the best you can do is to charge it to experience.

The second you walk inside the stables of Hermie Esguerra, you’ll immediately get the impression that everything is run in a very professional way.

All the caretakers are in Herma uniforms and you can just tell that they take a lot of pride in the work they do here at the stables.

We were so thrilled to finally meet Hermie's super horse "Real Spicy" This horse was outstanding in 2006 when it earned over P6 million.

We wanted to see how this horse is trained and how Hermie takes care of his superstar horse.

After "Real Spicy" walked around the stable, he was weighed. After weighing that, he was off to the track for a light workout. This is standard operating procedure in Hermie's stables.

There's a rumor that Hermie could be the only horse owner with a weighing scale for his horses.

We went across the road from the stables to get to the San Lazaro Leisure Park.

We couldn’t wait to see this super horse work it on the track. Our expectations were high having heard how tremendously talented this horse is.

You can tell that “Real Spicy" is the talk of the racing world because of how everybody's attention shifts to him once he hits the track.

"Real Spicy" is not just any horse. His dad "Real Quiet" won the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes. In 1998, He was also tagged as horse of the year in the US.

Real Spicy's mother is "Spicy Tail". Hermie bid for her while she was pregnant. Hermie won the bid so she moved to the Philippines already carrying “Real Spicy”. Hermie is proud to say that "Real Spicy" is an island born colt and the rest is horse racing history!

Last year, "Real Spicy" showed his dominance by being unbeatable in 12 races in 2006. He scored first place in each race.

This super horse has won horse of the three times with two of those awards won back to back.

Hermie himself has won Equine Athlete of the Year four times.

Hermie treats all his horses with special care. After a workout, the horses are bathed.

Hermie has two resident vets. And although they are vets by profession, Hermie wants them to be horsemen too.

Hermie knows that a horse can be really great but if they are not healthy, that greatness may not be realized. This is the reason why his stable has a laboratory.

Hermie also imports what his horses eat all the way from Australia and the US.

All Hermie's horses here get the best care. But when you’re the superstar horse, you get a few special privileges like an air-conditioned room.

I have to say, Hermie thinks about all his horses needs. If they work hard then they deserve to relax and play too, thus the existence of the bull ring in the stable.

Now we know why Hermie's horses are a step or two above the rest.

From Hermie's stables in Carmona, Cavite, we headed to Hermie's farm in Lipa, Batangas.

Our first thought when we got there—it was stunning.

Our second thought after about five minutes— we wished we were Hermie's horses and have this place as a vacation home.

Hermie sends his horses here to rest after races and then about a month and a half before racing, they go back to his stables to train.

I can hear the horses saying in unison, “Now this is a good life!”

The horses have about 40 acres of land to run freely about. This is where Hermie breeds his horses and where his mares foan.

"Foan" in horse lingo is to give birth.

There's a lot going on in this farm so Hermie has his over all main person in charge.

Hermie’s face lit up when he showed us his newly born babies. Hermie refers to newly born horses his babies.

Hermie explained to us that a lot of the fulfillment he gets from being in this industry is the opportunity he is able to give to students who are eager and enthusiastic to become vets.

I have to admit that Hermie's passion for horses is infectious. He is proud in a very humble way about what comes out of this farm. He constantly mentions that he has a great desire to make contributions to the Horse Racing industry.

No kid can resist the miniature ponies in Hermie’s farm.

We met some of Hermie's future superstars like the horse that he named after the people's champ "Pacman".

He also told us to watch out for his four-year old Don Ezequiel.

Hermie is relatively a newcomer as a horse owner. He has only been in this sport for about six years but already, he is at the top of the list and his horses are dominating and bringing home the trophies.

Hermie seems to have an instinctive knack for picking out horses that will be great. It’s kind of like having a third eye when it comes to horses.

The great thing about Hermie is how humble he is about all the success he has attained in such a short period of time.

Like every proud father, the highlight of Hermie's day was when he showed us his yearlings. In horse lingo this means 1-year old horses.

He made it very clear that one of the most fulfilling things about being a breeder is being able to give other horse owners a good yearling and seeing them achieve greatness.

Hermie says the satisfaction of being a breeder comes from knowing that when you are part of a team of a champion horse, everyone's quality of life gets better. And when that champion horse happens to come from you, he said that that's the best feeling in the world.

You can tell by the way Hermie talks about his horses that he has great passion and love for them.

I am now convinced that these horses are more than just four-legged animals, they are great athletes.

The story about "Real Spicy's" brother "Macho Man" touched us all.

He was named after Hermie.

Hermie has some of the top stallions in the country including his former superstar horse that got the whole country celebrating.

Does the name "Windblown" sound familiar? "Windblown" was like a rockstar in the world of horse racing!

"Windblown" is now happily retired after earning almost P19 million in his five-year career. He is now one of Hermie's top stallions!

Hermie introduced us to "Hot Pursuit" who came from "Windblown”. Wait and watch out for that name.

Everywhere we turn on this farm there are handsome horses.

There is a saying that by seeing someone’s house you can tell what kind of person lives in it.

After seeing this farm I can say that its owner is on a constant quest for perfection.

The incredible detail that has been put in every area of this farm speaks about how its owner has lifted the standards of what it takes to succeed in this industry. And the beauty that surrounds this piece of land speaks about the immense passion the owner has for life and living in the world of horses.