By America’s Best Racing for @TheDailyPayoff

Janet Rome is the wife of sports personality Jim Rome and the mother to their two sons, Jake and Logan. Together Jim and Janet own Jungle Racing, which has campaigned, in partnership, top racehorses including Mizdirection, Gypsy Robin and most recently champion Shared Belief, who is expected to be a heavy favorite in Saturday’s $1.5-million Charles Town Classic Stakes.

We sat down with janet recently to talk horses, racing, heroes and philosophy.

What does it feel like to own Shared Belief, the No. 1-ranked racehorse in the world?

It’s almost indescribable as it doesn’t even seem real. Shared Belief has taken us all on a ride of a lifetime. We love him, and we’re all just grateful to be a part of Team Shared Belief!

How and when I was introduced to Thoroughbred racing:

Growing up in Long Beach, Calif., about once a year my parents would take my brothers and me to Los Alamitos and Santa Anita Park. I remember how exciting it was to watch the horses run past. I didn’t really understand Thoroughbred racing until I was in the radio broadcasting business in San Diego. I would go with friends from the Noble Broadcast Group to Del Mar a few times during the season and we would have such memorable times.

Favorite race track(s):

Del Mar and Santa Anita. You can’t beat those beautiful views and weather anywhere!

My favorite Thoroughbred racing event:

The Breeders’ Cup.

Other sports/teams I follow:

West Coast Baseball Club’s 10- and 14-year-old teams. You can find this mom at their practices and games almost every night of the week.

What I would like to see more of in Thoroughbred racing:

More marketing and promotion to bring in a younger group of fans. More people involved in groups like CARMA, which raises funds for the care and retraining of retired Thoroughbreds.

For the complete interview, visit http://bit.ly/1OCqsYY