Charles Fenwick, Jr. ’70, P’95

DEGREE: B.A. in history

JOB TITLE: President of Valley Motors, Inc. automobile dealership; director of the Land Preservation Trust in Baltimore County; former board chairman of the Greater Baltimore Medical Center; former president of the board of trustees at Gilman School in Baltimore, Maryland; steeplechase jockey, five-time winner of the Maryland Hunt Cup, 10-time winner of the Grand National Steeplechase in Maryland, three-time winner of the Virginia Gold Cup, and 1980 winner of the English Grand National.

FAVORITE TRINITY MEMORY:
I had a wonderful experience with Alpha Delta Phi, I made a lot of friends, several of whom I have reconnected with in the last few years. I also remember very clearly the spring of 1970. We had comprehensive exams scheduled at the end of the year, but the Kent State shootings happened and the campus shut down three weeks early before a lot of the violence started.

REPORTER: What is Steeplechase racing?
FENWICK: It is a form of thoroughbred racing at a longer distance than you would normally
see at a racetrack and one where the horses jump fences. The shortest race would be two
miles with eight fences, longer races are four miles or further and you jump many more
fences. It is very similar to races at the track—the jockeys wear silks, but they are a bit bigger.

REPORTER: How did you develop an interest in horse racing?
FENWICK: As a child I was very familiar with it because it was happening all around me. I grew up in Baltimore County, which is a hub of American steeplechase racing. At a young age I enjoyed fox hunting and riding horses, and my environment certainly fostered these interests. I rode as an amateur jockey for 28 years. I rode as much as I could, and I had a wonderful career. I retired in 1994, but I continued to train horses, and I still do now, but to a much smaller degree.

REPORTER: You are currently director of the Baltimore County Land Preservation Trust. What purpose does this organization serve?
FENWICK: The Land Preservation Trust is a non-profit established in Baltimore in the mid-1960s to hold easements on land, preserving it in perpetuity as open space. One of its assets is a 250-acre parcel of land known as Shawan Downs. About 15 years ago, I helped put together a group that raised the money to buy
that property and preserve it as open space because it was in danger of being developed. It is now the site of an equestrian center.

REPORTER: Are you also involved with the equestrian center?
FENWICK: Yes, I am. The Shawan Downs equestrian park hosts several featured events throughout the year that raise money for local charities. There is one major event each year at the end of September, which is The Legacy Chase. I am the general manager of that event. The beneficiary of that day’s activities is The Greater Baltimore Medical Center, of which I was a board member for many years.

REPORTER: You won many awards during your career in steeplechase racing. What would you say is your greatest personal accomplishment?
FENWICK: In my mind, the greatest thing that happened was winning the English Grand National in 1980. That was a one-in-a-million opportunity. When I was 16 years old, Tommy Smith, who lived in Baltimore County, did the same thing, and up until that point he was the only American who ever won the English Grand National. I competed twice, and the first year we were brought down by a loose horse, but we went back and tried it a second year and we ended up winning the race. It was something that I had aspired to do, and I was fortunate that the opportunity to compete was presented to me. The horse I rode was named Ben Nevis, and in 2009 he was inducted into the National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame in Saratoga, New York, which was a nice way to cap off his career. The English Grand National was life-changing, but more than that it was an amazing feeling that I will never forget.