1: Freelance exercise rider Mark Cowan takes a break outside of a barn on the backside of Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky. Mark has been involved with horses since becoming a horse walker at the age of seven.

2: Mark Cowan rides down the backside of the Churchill Downs track. Cowan has been riding horses for over 30 years.

3: After exercising the horse, Cowan walks on a muddy track back to a gate, past a tower where horse owners can watch their horses exercise while staying out of the rain and gold.

4: Cowan waits for a horse to be saddled before taking the horse out on the track. The dirt track of Churchill Downs is open from 6 to 10 a.m. everyday for the horses to exercise.

5: Cowan walks towards the west barns looking to find more horses to excercise before the end of the practice time. The rate for a horse exerciser is between $10 -$15 a horse. He rides around ten horses a day.

Photos by Scott Bort

The Daily Illini