From Hardwood to Turf, Buss Looks to Keep Winning

The name Buss has been synonymous with winning in sports for decades. To most people, the mind immediately thinks of the National Basketball Association’s Los Angeles Lakers, who under the stewardship of owner Dr. Jerry Buss and the “Showtime” teams that featured Hall of Famers Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and James Worthy and made the team’s colors—purple and gold—ubiquitous. Their record of success continued with Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant, and more recently with LeBron James. 

But now, one of Buss’ children, Janie, is trying to build her own winning tradition. Having a front-row seat as a co-owner of the team after her father’s death in 2013, Janie Buss knows a thing or two about winning. Eight years ago she launched her Purple Rein Racing. 

“In the ’80s with the Lakers, Prince came out with a song ‘Purple Rain’ and that was kind of like the era song during that time. And a rein is what you hold on to a horse with, so when it came time to name the stable, it took me one minute to fill out that paperwork,” she said.

Buss also served as the president of the Lakers Youth Foundation and still sits on its board. It was her passion for giving back that has inspired her approach to racing. 

She discussed summers at Del Mar, winning her first graded stakes this year, the importance of giving back, and more.

BloodHorse: How did you first get into racing? How were you how were you initially exposed to the sport? 

Janie Buss: (My parents) bought a house in Del Mar in the early ’60s. So by the time I was old enough to really understand what was going on, we went every day to Del Mar. That was our summer vacation. I’ve just been around (racing) my whole life. I have always loved horses since I was a kid. … We could hear Harry Henson call the races. We just loved it. My brother Jimmy and I were just fanatics about horse racing. 

BH: Do you have a particular favorite memory of Del Mar?

JB: The one thing I remember is that when we would walk in, we didn’t have a box then, and we would walk out, and that little front area had tables and chairs, and we used to play on the chairs. They were probably from the ’60s, ’50s and they would bounce. And you could do races across the grass. Kids are trying to be entertained when their parents are reading the racing form. And then I figured out the tram system for the backstretch when I was about 7 years old. I would just walk out there like nobody’s going to stop me, and I get on the tram, and I would go through—Charles Whittingham was the first barn—and I made friends with all the pony riders. … I would ask if can I help out and they let me give them carrots. The outriders, they had a fence, and there was a guy named Andy, and he used to let me sit on his horses in between races, and I would just sit there.

BH: When did you decide that you wanted to start a racing stable?

JB: I’ve always been into horse racing. My brother Jimmy was a horse trainer, so I loved seeing what he was doing, and I’ve always wanted to do it. I had my own show horses. I showed competitively, and so it wasn’t until after my dad died (in 2013) that … I thought, ‘Okay, I’m going to do it.’ And my first horse was, I believe it was Air Vice Marshal, and he was a winner. So a great, great thing. Since then, have I had any real luck? Not until Mucho Del Oro right now, I’ve had a little luck. I had one called Seeking Refuge. But he wasn’t anything spectacular, but at least he would win some races. And then I had my mare Magical Thought, who won at Golden Gate Fields, but I retired her, and she’s a mama now. She had her baby standing from Idol, and then I brought her back to Corniche, because I saw Corniche run at Del Mar and I thought, “Oh my gosh, this horse is amazing.” He was running as a 2-year-old, and I thought that he was going to be a Kentucky Derby hopeful. I just love the way that he ran. So I bred my mare back to Corniche for an April baby next year. It’s a whole different ball game doing the breeding thing. I’m not so sure I’m going to stay in it. It’s almost as expensive to take care of them as it is to actually have a horse on the track. 

BH: So when you think about what you know now about horse racing, what do you wish you knew when you started out?

JB: I’ve been around it for so long, and I have my own horses. When you know that they’re injured, you’ve got to give them time off. And then if you give them time off, you can’t just rush back in and get them running again. It takes time to get that but also it’s such a balance of diet. I pay a chiropractor to come, service my horse. I believe it’s good for them, but the horse can’t tell you it is. …  All the different supplements, they’re very costly. When I was competing (show) horses you had extra supplements, maybe $30 a month. It’s like $300 a month instead to keep a horse in that kind of (racing) shape. And Doug O’Neill has done a great job. He knows that if I am sketchy about running my horse in a race, I’ll just say no, he needs more time off. I just gelded J B Strikes Back. … I’ve had horses that I’ve had to geld, and the swelling is still there. Do they feel good? Are they going through attitude changes? How much time does a gelding actually need to get back on the track? You see it happen all the time, and they’re usually very successful when they come off of being gelded. Just little things like that. You learn every day how it works. 

BH: What philosophy or approach that you’ve seen from the NBA do you think would be beneficial to horse racing?

JB: I always say teamwork, it’s the organization as a whole. It’s kind of comparing apples with oranges. I would think that everybody’s long-term goal with horse racing is the safety of animals first. But you know the bottom line is being profitable. You make the moves you make, the changes that it takes to be profitable because if you have a couple of horses that are running in $40,000 claimers, and they’re not producing, you need to understand that you need to drop them in class so that they have the opportunity to win and win money for you because it is very costly. Now I know the Lakers have expenses, but they don’t hit me in the pocketbook as much. It’s usually a year-end statement, this is what we spent. But as an organization, you feel that you’re making the best choices for everybody involved. 

BH: What are your racing operations like now? How many horses do you have? 

JB: I currently have two that are running and one that is my broodmare. I have Mucho Del Oro and J B Strikes Back (in training). 

BH: This year you’ve picked up your first two graded stakes wins, both from Mucho Del Oro. What has that experience been like? And can you tell me a little bit about how you came about getting him? 

JB: I claimed him. I was kind of looking for a new horse and Doug had said there’s a horse running at San Anita Park that he wanted me to take a look at and to let him know what I thought about a claim. I was looking at the race card, and that horse just really struck me. He was a $50,000 claimer. … But then he didn’t come back very sound. We gave him time off and he’s come back with the team of Doug O’Neill and all the vets. It takes a lot to get a horse in that condition. 

We put Kyle Frey on this last time, because interestingly I was watching (FanDuel TV), and they had a telethon for the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund. I was going to donate because (Mucho Del Oro) had just won the San Simeon Stakes and I give all the money that they win to charity. So I call the telethon. And who answers the phone but Kyle Frey. And so it was natural when we were a little disappointed in one of the (previous) rides. I didn’t even know if he was available, but Doug suggested, “Why don’t we use Kyle Frey?” And I was like, that’s unbelievable. I just donated $10,000 to the jockey fund, and here Kyle Frey (answered the phone). I thought he rode him beautifully (In the Daytona Stakes). He made that stride from the grass to the dirt (at Santa Anita) look so easy. And I know it’s a lot of the horse, but the jockey’s got to help the horse maneuver that little piece of real estate right there. And so I’m very happy with them. The fact that he’s won two stakes, just winning the races is fabulous. The fact that he’s earned that much more money just means more money that I can give away, and I have been doing it. 

Everybody has a mission statement and ours is giving back one stride at a time. And that’s what I’ve done with every dollar that they’ve made it goes right back—the horses earned it, in their honor. … I think we’re trying to point him to something at Del Mar, but they don’t have that special turf that he likes, so we’re not sure yet what his next step is but it’s been very exciting. No doubt you always want a winner in your barn, and I am blessed and grateful that he’s done so well. 

BH: What haven’t we touched on that you think would be important for our readers to know about you and Purple Rain racing?

JB: The fact that I did the nonprofit business, charity for the Lakers community relations for 35 years. I just love the nonprofit sector. I tried to combine the two. I feel like it’s almost good karma to pay it forward. I can pay my own bills. I don’t expect my horse to win, to pay for his own feed. I can take care of them. So what’s important to me is that I keep giving forward to the community. 

My silks have the JB patch because if it wasn’t for my father, I wouldn’t even have some of the money that I have. So I get to live out this dream, but I always want to remember where it came from. That is on the sleeve of Purple Rein. I was always infatuated with Pegasus and that’s on the back of our racing silks, just kind of how beautiful horses are when they run. I feel like there’s a free spirit; my dad died, then Kobe (Bryant) died. It’s a tribute to that part—off to heaven. It’s my own personal tribute.