Cancer Survivor Nelson Enjoys Bond With Authentic

Rickelle Nelson is one of those rare and remarkable individuals whose life revolves around helping others.

In a full life that seems to exceed the 24-hour boundary of a normal day, she works as the reservations manager for the Kentucky Derby Museum and also operates an equine photography and painting business under the corporate name of Deck the Stalls.

Yet what puts Nelson in such a special category are the countless hours she logs helping about 200 children in the Louisville area through Grace Kids: A Church for Children, where her husband, Corey, serves as the pastor.

Each day, other than Saturday, the Grace Kids church provides needy inner-city youths with a rotating schedule of meals, tutoring, a safe environment for after-school activities and worship, and even some rather spirited dodgeball games.

"We try to give the kids a safe place to be. It's not a safe place around here and since the pandemic it's getting worse. People are getting desperate," she said. "Some of these kids come from broken homes and don't have hope, so we try to show them how there's something better out there and when you see changes in so many of the kids it's heartwarming. Our message is that they are not alone. They are loved and we are here for them and they have self-worth."

Yet for all of the time and energy the 50-year-old Nelson has devoted to making life better for other people, she can also speak in heartwarming terms about the way a Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) and Longines Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) winner added so much joy and exhilaration to her life when she needed it most.

Diagnosed with cancer a year ago, Nelson's recovery received an enormous emotional boost in July when her love for horse racing prompted her husband to purchase a $206 microshare in Authentic  for her through MyRaceHorse Stable. 

Over the course of the last five months, the son of Into Mischief  has played a vital role in Nelson's life, giving her the euphoria she needed to push her battle against cancer into the background of her thoughts and strengthen her resolve to enjoy life even in the midst of such a frightening health crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic.

She may have been one of 5,314 people who owned a .001% share of Authentic through MyRaceHorse, but for Nelson, a $206 investment gave back to her an experience that has been priceless and produced a storybook happy ending. Not only is Authentic the favorite to be Horse of the Year and Nelson has delighted in being an owner of a Kentucky Derby and Classic winner, but, most importantly, she is cancer-free.

"Owning that small share of Authentic was extremely important to me. It gave me something to look forward to and something I needed so very much," Nelson said. "This year has been awful in so many ways, but it's also been a blessing for me in so many ways and I wouldn't trade it for anything, even though it was a year of cancer, coronavirus, and chemo."

Watching the Kentucky Derby alongside his wife gave Corey Nelson a scene he will always cherish as the bond between Authentic and Rickelle brought all of the emotions of a year-long struggle against cancer to the fore and overwhelmed both of them. For more than 40 years, Rickelle had been spellbound during the two minutes of the Kentucky Derby, reveling in others' success, but Sept. 5, when Authentic crossed the finish line first, it was a victory that in terms of pure emotions belonged to her as much as anyone else associated with the winner.

"During the Kentucky Derby, we're watching and she's jumping up and down and screaming and I was in tears watching her. It was one of the most special moments of my life," Corey said. "To see all the joy it was giving her and to know what it meant to such a generous person, it was pretty incredible."

Ned Toffey, the general manager at Spendthrift Farm, first met Nelson several years ago through her work as a racetrack photographer.

Talking with her as one of Authentic's many owners, and finding out how much the experience meant to such a charitable woman, gave him even more assurance that Spendthrift owner B. Wayne Hughes made the right decision when he teamed with MyRaceHorse and allowed people of all financial means to revel in the experience of owning a top-level Thoroughbred.

"It's great to have a story like this which shows what great medicine it can be to own a racehorse, and it illustrates what MyRaceHorse can be and how it can affect people," Toffey said. "This was a shining moment in what was a very difficult year for Rickelle. As trivial as owning a horse, even a great racehorse, can be compared to battling cancer, it has the power to affect people so positively. Rickelle is a wonderful person who does tremendous work and it's a great story. We couldn't be happier for her. If we have been able to help her, even in a small way, to make her year better, it's worth everything that's gone into this."

A Battle and a Blessing

It was back in September 2019 that Nelson's life changed.

At the time, she was completely immersed in her work and a ubiquitous figure at Churchill Downs, where some of the backstretch workers also knew her from her work at nearby Grace Kids. Aside from the care the United Methodist church provides to children, it also distributes food to members of the backstretch community who come to their Denmark Street location.

Since its inception about 7 1/2 years ago, the church has provided about 100,000 meals to local residents.

"It's challenging work," said Corey Nelson, who converted the church to a place of worship primarily for children about three years ago. "This isn't what I would have chosen for myself. If someone had told me I would do this, I would have run the other way, but I can't imagine my life without it now. It's pretty spectacular."

When Nelson first experienced some tremors, she believed it was just a reaction to medication she was taking for headaches. But when Corey noticed a change in the shape of her stomach, he urged her to visit her doctor.

An ultrasound revealed a cyst that was surgically removed a few days later, but the growth was cancerous. As devastating as that news was, Nelson did her best to persevere through it.

"She was such an easy patient," Corey Nelson said. "As a pastor, I deal with people who have cancer and people who are dying from it. You see the treatment and know that sometimes the treatment is worse than the disease. We went in with our eyes wide open and I couldn't be more proud of Rickelle. She showed so much grace and strength throughout it. I'm a former Marine and she's tougher than me. She's something else."

As Rickelle began her chemotherapy treatments, she prepared herself mentally for the long road ahead. Knowing the impact it would have on her long hair, she opted to cut it off in one sitting on her own terms rather than allow the disease to control the process at a slower pace.

Instead of wearing a wig to disguise what had happened, Nelson opted to wear a hat and can recall seeing Toffey and Starlight Racing founder and managing partner Jack Wolf on the Churchill Downs backstretch one day. When Toffey asked how she was feeling, Nelson smiled and told him she was recovering nicely but she looked different. She then took off the hat without flinching.

In response, Wolf took off his hat, revealing a bald pate of his own due to the passing of time, and told her "Welcome to the club" as they all enjoyed a hearty laugh.

Nelson's love of horse racing began with Affirmed's victory in the 1978 Kentucky Derby and it became such a passion that she cried the first time she stepped onto the track at Churchill Downs to take a picture.

Being around so many owners and trainers on a regular basis, Nelson jumped at an opportunity three years ago when small shares in Rare Form were offered through the Churchill Downs Racing Club and the son of The Factor  gave her a first taste of being the owner of a victorious racehorse.

In early July, when her treatments were about to end, Corey saw the MyRaceHorse offering for the Bob Baffert-trained Authentic. Spendthrift Farm had bought the racing and breeding rights to Authentic a month earlier from the partnership group of SF Racing, Madaket Stables, Starlight Racing, Fred Hertrich III, John Fielding, and Golconda Stables.

While Starlight and Sol Kumin's Madaket Stables stayed on board for the remainder of the colt's racing career, Hughes sold 12.5% of Spendthrift's share of the racing and breeding shares rights to MyRaceHorse, which in turn sold microshares to the general public with a full disclosure of the risks involved.

For the Nelsons, there was no risk. Just an upside.

"I bought her a share of Rare Form and that was fun and I thought this could be a lot of fun. I bought the Authentic share as a present for ending chemotherapy and it's been such a spectacular ride given all she's been through this year," Corey Nelson said. "When she heard Baffert was involved, she got very excited. She knows him and his help a bit from the backside so we absolutely had to get a share, though I never envisioned what it turned out to be."

Even a six-time Kentucky Derby winner such as Baffert was stunned at the response from so many of the people among a 5,000-strong ownership group that ranges from everyday, blue-collar workers to well-known athletes Walker Buehler of the Los Angeles Dodgers, skier Bode Miller, and NASCAR driver Michael Waltrip.

"She's a smart girl," Baffert joked when it was mentioned how his involvement played a central role in Rickelle's desire to own a share of Authentic, "but it's like a big family now. For B. Wayne Hughes and Michael Behrens (founder and CEO of MyRaceHorse), it was a genius move. You have to see the fan mail I get now that thanks me for turning a bad year into a great year. They tell me how they love horses now after never watching horse racing before. When you own a horse it takes your mind off things, which is what you need to do these days. People tell me it has helped them during difficult times and kept them going."

Behrens has received the same outpouring of thanks.

"It's amazing to hear Rickelle's story and what she went through and to play a role in helping her was pretty neat. I've heard from other MyRaceHorse owners who had COVID-19 or had been laid off and they were also so happy to be a part of the Authentic experience," Behrens said. "Racing was always a welcomed distraction for me when work was crazy. We're awake 16-18 hours a day and we all welcome the opportunity to have our minds take us somewhere away from our problems. People have lost spouses and they bought a share to help ease their pain or in memory of a loved one. It's turned out to be a lot more to people than just having fun and owning a racehorse. It's been bigger than we've ever imagined."

'A Feeling You Can't Describe'

Authentic's victory in the TVG.com Haskell Stakes (G1) pumped up the excitement for the Sept. 5 Kentucky Derby. In a typical year, Nelson would have been at Churchill Downs for the Run for the Roses with camera in hand, but being in a high-risk group due to the chemotherapy, the specter of coronavirus forced her to watch with Corey from their home as something glorious took place.

On the backstretch, when Authentic was in front, there was electricity in the room.

"Corey told me, 'At least you can say you owned a horse who led in the Kentucky Derby,'" Rickelle related.

Yet Authentic did much more than lead at the first few calls, in the stretch he pulled away to beat Tiz the Law by 1 1/4 lengths and trigger a moment that took Nelson light years away from her cancer fight and gave her an incredible sensation she never could have envisioned a year earlier.

"When Authentic came off the turn, I thought he could hang on. I was screaming and crying at the same time. It was crazy," she said. "It was wild to say I am owner of a Kentucky Derby winner because the Kentucky Derby means everything to me. I never dreamed of having a connection to a horse who ran in it, let alone win it. It's a feeling you can't describe."

Adding to the joy, shortly after the race, Nelson received a text from one of her friends, Mike Manganello, who rode Dust Commander to victory in the 1970 Kentucky Derby.

"He wanted to be the first to welcome me to the club of Kentucky Derby winners," Nelson said. "That was unbelievable to read."

Though Nelson was unable to see Authentic before the Kentucky Derby, a few days after it, she was able to finally visit the barn area to take a bath shot like no other of the 3-year-old.

"I was taking a picture of him and Ned told me, 'It's not every day you can take a picture of your own Kentucky Derby winner,"' she said.

No, it's not and after a loss by a neck in the Preakness Stakes (G1), the jubilation was revisited when Authentic won the Classic by 2 1/4 lengths over Improbable .

"When I saw him slingshot off the turn with the lead in the Classic, I started crying all over again," she said. "If he can be named Horse of the Year, it would be the icing on the cake."

With the holiday season in full swing, Nelson's days are busier than ever at Grace Kids.

Yet this December is far different from the last. While Authentic has been retired, Nelson has something else to look forward to through a microshare of 14 yearlings through MyRaceHorse's Future Stars offering. 

And, best of all, she's cancer-free, an altogether fitting turn of events for someone who gives up so much of her life to benefit others.

"What else can I say but it's all been pretty amazing," she said.

Yes, as Rickelle Nelson will happily tell you, even in horse racing there's a Santa Claus—and sometimes, instead of a red suit, he can wear a blanket of red roses.