Many things have to go right to create a Horse of the Year. Attentive care and expert horsemanship are key and a dash of fate and luck helps too. The evolution of Lexie Lou from an idea of a mating by one of Ontario’s most innovative breeders to a three-time Sovereign Award champion in 2014 is just such an example of a perfect thoroughbred project.
The gritty bay filly, owned by Gary Barber and trained by Mark Casse, became the first horse to collect a Sovereign Award triple since another three-year-old filly, Sealy Hill, won the exact three trophies in 2007. Oh, yes, Casse trained her, too.
Lexie Lou beat out Champion Male Sprinter Calgary Cat and Turf Female finalist Deceptive Vision for the Horse of the Year honour.
“I am proud of her and the barn,” said Casse, who collected his ninth Sovereign for Outstanding Trainer. “I think she represented Canada very well. I have always believed that Ontario-breds can run and do well anywhere.”
Lexie Lou provided Casse with his first Queen’s Plate victory as she came back three weeks after a powerful Woodbine Oaks win to beat the boys, including favoured We Miss Artie, trained by Todd Pletcher. The daughter of Sligo Bay (Ire) out of Onexcessivenite by In Excess (Ire) won the Wonder Where Stakes and Grade 3 Autumn Miss Stakes, but it was a loss that put an exclamation point on her champion season.
In a rare meeting between a Plate and Kentucky Derby winners (in the same year), Lexie Lou chased the imposing colt California Chrome to the wire to be second in the Grade 1 Hollywood Derby.
“For this little filly to compete so well against the Derby winner, well, it was a proud day,” said Casse.
Casse accepted the awards on behalf of American movie producer Barber, who thanked all of Casse’s team members through a written statement. Casse recognized the filly’s breeders – Dr. Moira Gunn and the late Dr. Mike Colterjohn, owners of Paradox Farm – as well as John Ross, her original owner.
Ross, who once worked the track camera for Woodbine, has been a trainer for more than 25 years and won more than 500 races.
He remembers the day he saw the filly for the first time when she was led into the auction ring in September 2012 for the annual Woodbine sale.
“She caught my eye right away,” said Ross. “She had a (strong) back end and correct conformation. I was a little scared that none of her siblings had raced, but she was beautiful so I took a shot.”
The filly was the result of a breeding set up by Colterjohn, who purchased Onexcessivenite because he was a fan of the top handicap runner In Excess (Ire). Sligo Bay (Ire) had been brought to Ontario two years earlier by Adena Springs and Dermot Carty to stand at Gardiner Farms, where Colterjohn managed. The mare did not have any success with her foals prior to Lexie Lou arriving and that put a crimp in her commercial value.
For $5,500, Ross took the filly home and named her after his granddaughter Lexie, who lives in Fort Erie. ON with parents Gord (Ross’ son) and Shannon. As a juvenile for Ross, Lexie Lou won over $310,000 from eight starts. Her talent and durability caught the eye of Barber. An offer of $400,000 was something Ross could not turn down.
“I adored her, but it’s a tough game to keep going in unless you have money behind you,” said Ross, whose main owner, Bud Reynolds, proprietor of Jam Jar Stable, had recently passed away and left the trainer with quite a few horses. “I was happy for her and it’s nice to know that my eye for a horse is still half-decent. If I had a crystal ball and knew she was going to win those races, I wouldn’t have sold her.”
Ross packed up the filly, told Casse about her favourite treats and her love for a window in her stall, and watched her march through a campaign of four wins in eight starts with earnings of $1.95 million.
Casse gave Ross his due – “she wouldn’t be the filly she is without John Ross” – and was emotional when he acknowledged long-time friend and farm trainer Mike Anderson, who passed away recently.
A lot of credit goes to Lexie Lou herself, of course. An Ontario-bred filly, born in Caledon East, ON and moved about several times in three years, she was up to every challenge and her interests and the fans hope there is more to come.
