Adena Springs North doled out some New Year’s cheer with a nice open house and stallion show and tons of people braved the cold temperatures to take a peek.
PACKED HOUSE at the Adena Springs Open House, hosted by track announcer Dan Loiselle – photo by Santino DiPaola
GIANT GIZMO poses at the Adena Springs Open House – Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame photo
New to the Ontario stallion ranks for 2015 is ROOKIE SENSATION, by Unbridled’s Song. He is one of 9 stallions at Adena Springs North – Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame photo
FROM THE PAGES OF THOROUGHBLOG – 2014
JANUARY –
We lost NORA COSTIGAN, racing lover and owner of the Costigan stables with husband Bob. Daughter Carolyn trains the horses. Nora was a popular member of the horse industry and she will be deeply missed. The family has raced top class runners such as Horse of the Year Arravale, champion Inish Glora and Woodbine Oaks winner Roan Inish.
Carolyn has moved her stable back to Ireland for 2015 and we wish her good luck.
WISE DAN won his 2nd straight HORSE OF THE YEAR title at the Eclipse Awards and we look forward to him racing again in 2015.
Canadian Triple Crown winner WANDO died suddenly in his stall at Schonberg Farm while the great AFLEET passed away at the old age of 30.
Canadian-bred 3yo’s WE MISS ARTIE, COLTIMUS PRIME, MATADOR and ASSERTING BEAR gear up for 2014 in races in the U.S. and cause excitement on social media and with local racing fans.
DOMASCA DAN, a top stakes winner in Canada and also a stakes winner int he US, passes away.
FEBRUARY
In early Feb. it was announced FORT ERIE is able to race another meeting, great news for Ontario horse racing.
We lose jockey DEAN DEVERELL, jockey, horse owner and friendly fellow.
WINDWAYS FARM is sold as the Begg family scale down its breeding business.
Canadian tracks battle government: ASSINIBOIA in a fight to keep VLTS at the track, HASTINGS PARK battles to finally get a multi-year funding arrangement among the principal participants in the industry.
WOODBINE seeks a new racing secretary as it enters a 5-year plan from Premier Kathleen Wynne to support horse racing in Ontario.
The Ontario Sired Program rewards outline is altered for the 2014 racing season with lots of cash up for grabs.
MARCH
The RAINBOW PICK 6 at Gulfstream is the talk of the winter as the pool grows and grows. On the verge of a mandatory payout, the bet is won by DAN BORISLOW, owner of Queen’s Plate winner Wild Desert. Borislow passed away just a few months later.
MAJOR MARVEL, once a Woodbine runner, wins the Barbados Gold Cup for Ken and Sarah Ramsay. The gelding later suffers a leg injury upon his return home and then dies from complications. PATRICK HUSBANDS rides the winner, his 4th Gold Cup win, and he won all 3 stakes races on the Barbados card.
CALIFORNIA CHROME featured on Thoroughblog as a horse “on the way up”..https://canadianthoroughbred.com/thoroughblog/on-top/
Canadian horsepeople are doing well all over and they are active in the claim box and at early sales in Florida.
Canadian-bred JUDY THE BEAUTY wins the Las Flores to begin her 2014 season.
PETA releases a dreadful video on Steve Asmussen, Scott Blasi in the barn area that looks terrible for horse racing, Blasi is let go by Asmussen but it all blows over as the year goes on.
WE MISS ARTIE wins the Spiral Stakes at Turfway, he is a Kentucky Derby contender and already a heavy favourite for the Queen’s Plate.
A Canadian bred Distorted Humor colt sells for $450,000 in Ocala, his name is DION and he was 5th in his debut on Dec. 14 at Fair Grounds with a 62 Beyer Figure.
JACKIE HUMBER captured PRINCE RANIER checking out the competition at Hastings Park
APRIL
KEENELAND announces it will take out Polytrack and put dirt back in
A brutal Ontario winter continues as local horsepeople try to get their horses ready for opening day
SOVEREIGN AWARDS – UP WITH THE BIRDS is HORSE OF THE YEAR.
WOODBINE OPENS, with great excitement. Jockey colony is powerful although Chantal Sutherland Kruse, who returns to riding at Woodbine, only stays for half the year.
HIGH TEE wins the first race of the season but is not to be seen again as a claim was put in for her that was disputed and sadly, the case of this filly went on throughout the year.
HARD NOT TO LIKE wins Grade 1 Jenny Wiley for Garland Williamson. JUDY THE BEAUTY wins a Grade 1 too and OCASIONAL VIEW wins a Grade 2- 3 big wins for Cnaadian-breds in the US.
Canadian-bred 2yo’s sell for good money in Ocala – CONQUEST SO TRUE, now a winner, $200K, bred by James and Janeane Everatt and pinhooked by Barbara Minshall, STRONG INCENTIVE $200K, bred by Spendthrift Farm and CONFRONT, a Street Boss colt $250,000 working at Palm Meadows
MAY
CALIFORNIA CHROME is awesome in the Derby, UNTAPABLE in Ky Oaks – the CHROME cruises in Preakness too setting up for exciting Blemont
Woodbine trainer BRIAN LYNCH unleashes graded stakes winners COFFEE CLIQUE and FIVE IRON
Gary Barber’s graded stakes winner DELEGATION suffers fatal injury at start of the Vigil Stakes at Woodbine
PALADIN BAY wins her 3yo debut in the Grade 3 Selene, stamping herself the Oaks favourite at Woodbine
PHIL’S DREAM, the champion sprinter of 2013, wins the New Providence in his 2nd race of the year but he is later sidelined for most of 2014
JUNE
TSN on board for 5 years of big horse racing events – both breeds
Ontario HBPA calls for RACE-DAY MEDICATION ban
CALIFORNIA CHROME is upset in the Belmont by TONALIST, owned Steve Coburn goes berserk on TV
$12 million added to Breeders’ Awards for Ontario horses, thanks to Liberal government
Mike DePaulo wins his 50th stakes race with PENDER HARBOUR on his 50th birthday
LEXIE LOU cruises in WOODBINE OAKS under PATRICK HUSBANDS, who is presented the Avelino Gomez Award.
WE MISS ARTIE wins Plate Trial under wraps
READE BAKER saddles his 1,000th winner – Behold the Bear, owned bu his longtime client Bear Stables Ltd.
MOURAD BOUDRA dies on the sand ring at Woodbine after TAWNEY’S WISH bolts into fence, sending the exercise rider head first to the ground.
JULY
A PAT ON THE HEAD – LEXIE LOU is the story of Canadian racing in 2014 – a $5,500 yearling, sold privately to Gary Barber in spring of this year, gives Mark Casse his first Queen’s Plate. PATRICK HUSBANDS has remarkable comeback from injury to win jockey’s title
LEXIE LOU guts out the Plate, WE MISS ARTIE rears up at start, and MARK CASSE trains his first Plate winner.
With Lexie Lou passing the Prince of Wales at Fort Erie on the last Tuesday of the month, COLTIMUS PRIME and Eurico Rosa da Silva leads all the way to win the 1 3/16 mile, 2nd jewel of the Canadian Triple Crown. It was the biggest win for trainer Justin Nixon, who got his start in Fort Erie, and owner Jayson Horner and Mike Weingarten’s Cabarnet Racing Stable. Horner bred the son of Milwaukee Brew.
UP WITH THE BIRDS gets back to winning form with a score in the Nijinsky Stakes at Woodbine
COLTIMUS PRIME powers to Prince of Wales win – CINDY PIERSON DULAY photo
CALIFORNIA CHROME – the story of horse racing for 2014. Obscurely bred, obscurely owned (at least in the beginning) and the top 3yo on dirt and even on grass, in 2014
AUGUST
FORT ERIE racetrack is sold to Buffalo investors including Carl Paladino
STREET PRANCER, owned by Mike McCarthy and trained by Steve Asmussen, invades Winnipeg and wins the Manitoba Derby.
Canadian Horse racing Hall of Fame inductions include the late WANDO plus breeder BILL GRAHAM and jockey ROBERT LANDRY
EMMA-JAYNE WILSON wins a couple of races at Ascot in the Shergar Cup riders challenge and is honoured with Ride of the Day.
EDISON, a $950,000 yearling purchase, wins the Canadian Derby at Northlands Park for trainer Robertino Diodoro
OCTAVIO VERGARA JR. wins the Apprentice Riders Challenge at Woodbine on a Wednesday night
The CTHS (Ontario) holds another Canadian Millions night VIP party at Woodbine for prospective horse owners and yearling buyers and ANDY KIM rocks the place with a private concert
AMI’S HOLIDAY wins the Breeders’ Stakes for owner/breeder Ivan Dalos and trainer Josie Carroll
SEPTEMBER
WISE DAN wins his comeback from a colic bout and surgery – taking the Bernard Baruch at Saratoga by half a head
Woodbine loses a true friend of racing, MAX BERKETA
SHARP SENSATION, owned by Jim and Susan Hill and trained by Reade Baker, wins the $300,000 Turf Monster Stakes at Parx
A new horse racing TV show, TALKIN’ HORSES, debuts on CTV and CTV One, airing the first of 10 episodes in a trial run supported by the HBPA Ontario. Joe Tilley and Jason Portuondo host what turns out to be a popular magazine show
The CTHS Woodbine yearling sale has a whopping 50% increase is average sale price for the selected yearlings and a Philanthropist colt sells for $325,000 to trainer John LeBlanc as agent.
Conquest Stables (Ernie Semersky and Dory Newell) win both Win and Your’re IN 2yo races at Woodbine with Conquest Typhoon and Conquest Harlanate.
TRADE STORM wins the Woodbine Mile over Bobby’s Kitten (who later wins the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint)
ALERT BAY is the 3rd straight BC Derby winner for owner Peter Redekop, taking the Hastings Park feature in his first Canadian race
JOHNNY LARUE is named Fort Erie’s Horse of the Year
Canadian bred PRIVATE ZONE wins the Vosburgh at Belmont on Super Saturday
OCTOBER
CIGAR passes away
HILLSTAR wins a drama-filled Canadian International (Grade 1) at Woodbine as favoured BROWN PANTHER runs off before the race and is scratched
BAYERN wins the Breeders’ Cup Classic in a thriller, UNTAPABLE wins the Distaff. Canadian bred JUDY THE BEAUTY wins the Filly & Mare Sprint
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER
Canadian breds DYNAMIC SKY and KAIGUN win graded turf stakes in the US for trainer Mark Casse, owners John Oxley and Gary barber, Tina Casse and Harvey Swartz, IRISH MISSION wins the La Prevoyante for Robert Evans
PATRICK HUSBANDS gets closer to Luis Contreras in the jockey standings, ultimately wins the title
DAN LOISELLE announces his retirement from being track announcer at Woodbine, effective May 2015
BRIAN SWATUK, DEREK BALL and MARILYN HILLIER are among some racing people we lost late in the year
TOP TEN HORSE RACING MOMENTS WORLDWIDE
TORONTO STAR FEATURE
http://www.thestar.com/sports/2014/12/23/the_top_horseracing_moments_of_2014.html
