Authors
Adam Spradling
Adam Spradling has been active in the horse racing world since 2007 where he helped guide BloodHorse to the digital realm, championing their efforts for almost ten years. Earning recognition from the American Horse Publications for contributions to BloodHorse.com and other digital content related projects. Early favorite Thoroughbred athletes included Arson Squad, Einstein, Brass Hat, Jedi Code and Wild Again.
Jason Beem
Jason Beem has worked in the multi-media space for several decades. Most famous for his voice as a race track announcer and race caller, podcaster, plus a plethora of other talents including video and song writing. Let Beemie help you become ingrained in the horse racing world while sharing his flare of humor and entertainment.
J. Keeler Johnson
J. Keeler Johnson (also known as “Keelerman”) is a writer, blogger, videographer, handicapper, and all-around horse racing enthusiast who was drawn to the sport by Curlin's quest to become North America's richest racehorse.
James Scully
James Scully is a passionate sports analyst who grew up traveling to various sporting events around the country. James follows the NFL and NCAA, but also plays golf and other sports as time allows. Whether it be pro or college football, basketball, baseball…James can share solid insight with actionable information. When James isn’t watching sports, he can be found handicapping horse racing and playing golf. Twitter: @James_Scully111
Alastair Bull
Alastair Bull has been writing on sports and horse racing for many years. Starting in his home near Auckland, New Zealand as news editor for several papers and since contributing for BloodHorse, The Associated Press and Churchill Downs, Inc after relocating to Cleveland, Ohio. Other sporting events Alastair has enjoyed covering are the 2012 London Olympics, Dubai World Cup, Melbourne Cup, Royal Ascot, Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, Cheltenham Festival and the Grand National.
Scott Shapiro
Scott has been handicapping sports and horse racing since he was a teenager in New Jersey. He focuses on pro football, college basketball, Kentucky racing and golf. You can find Scott on Twitter (@scottshap34), watch him on the Churchill Downs simulcast show and hear his thoughts on the “Who Do Ya Like Podcast,” which can be found on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher and Google Podcasts.
Ashley Anderson
Ashley Anderson was born and raised in Louisville, Kentucky. She previously worked as a staff writer in her hometown before serving as an editor for Bleacher Report while based in New York and LA. She's a fan of the New England Patriots, Louisville City soccer, college football and basketball, and is still trying to quit the fantasy football league she joined back in 2013.
John Mucciolo
Handicapper and journalist John Mucciolo has been a contributor to Brisnet and TwinSpires since 2004. Mucciolo's work has included efforts in the 'Notebook' series of The Handicapper's Edge in the early days of Brisnet.com and most recently on TwinSpires Edge. John has also offered selections for a varied array of Brisnet products. Outside of Mucciolo's frequent analysis on horse racing, Mucc is an acclaimed high school soccer coach who earned Times-Tribune's Coach of the Year honors in 2020.
Rowan Ward
Rowan Ward calls Hawthorne Race Course and Arlington International Racecourse home, and has been writing about horse racing since 2014. Rowan's favorite things include late '90s rock and betting against horses who always finish second.
Josh Powell
Josh is based in Dublin, Ireland and has eight years experience working in the industry writing betting and sports content for Paddy Power among others. A keen gambler and self-admitted stats nerd, Josh is always on the lookout for value in the sports betting market. He's a man happiest when racing his greyhounds at the local track.
Sara Dacus
Sara Dacus is a lifelong Arkansan who teaches eighth grade English. While she was dating her now-husband, he took her to Oaklawn Park, and a love affair with both ignited. Dacus is now an avid racing enthusiast who follows the sport closely.
Andrew Brown
Andrew Brown started learning about betting not long after he learned how to walk. With a father involved in Australia’s horse racing industry, some of Andrew’s earliest memories include visiting the local horse and greyhound tracks, studying the past performances, and begging his Dad to throw a few dollars on his picks. Some year’s later Andrew became a television racing and sports journalist, and has since worked in the industry in both Australia and the UK. After winning multiple journalism awards in Australia’s horse racing industry, Andrew transitioned into the corporate world of betting on sports, and moved to the United States not long after the Supreme Court of the United States joyously struck down the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act in 2018, paving the way for the legalization of sports betting.
Frank Cotolo
Frank Cotolo has been a horse racing journalist since the 1970s. He has been published in major magazines on the subject of betting pari-mutuels and was editor of the popular TIMES: in harness weekly, where he won a John Hervey Award for magazine journalism. An initial voice on ADW sites, he wrote for YouBet and moved to TwinSpires.
Vance Hanson
Vance Hanson has been a contributing writer and editor for BRISnet.com, TwinSpires.com and KentuckyDerby.com since 2008. Prior to joining the Churchill Downs Inc. family, he served as a publicity assistant at Canterbury Park and as a handicapper/writer for Daily Racing Form.
Kellie Reilly
Kellie Reilly is a journalist and turf writer specializing in international horse racing.
Jennifer Kelly
Jennifer Kelly is a horse racing historian, writer, and author of Sir Barton and the Making of the Triple Crown. When she's not writing about racing's past, she's watching and wagering on racing's present, eagerly awaiting our next Triple Crown winner.
Darin Zoccali
Darin Zoccali grew up around horse racing, visiting The Meadowlands and other nearby racetracks on a weekly basis with his father throughout his childhood. He would go on to become the morning line oddsmaker and track handicapper for The Meadowlands before becoming the Director of Racing Operations at the age of 29. Darin was also a fixture on The Meadowlands television broadcasts and spent many years calling races at over a dozen racetracks.
From there, Darin moved onto TVG where he worked in VIP Operations before finding a home with Churchill Downs Incorporated in a similar role while also providing handicapping videos for TwinSpires. In addition, Darin is one of the partners in ThoroughCrowd which has a stable of Thoroughbred racehorses.
In his free time, Darin enjoys golf, traveling with his family and coaching his son's basketball team.