THUMBS UP! Asserting, a half brother to the top mare INISH GLORA, won the Coronation Futurity for Bear Stables, trainer Reade Baker and jockey Jim McAleney. TERENCE DULAY/WWW.HORSE-RACES.NET
THE BEAR CIRCLE
In 2005, BEAR’S KID won the Grade 2 Summer Stakes at Woodbine on the grass and became the first stakes winner ever trained by Reade Baker for Danny Dio’s Bear Stables.
Dio, who hails from Alberta, grew his stable up from there, adding high priced yearlings and 2yos, sometimes buying privately.
There have been many stakes winners but one of his coolest winners had to be ASSERTING BEAR in the $250,000 CORONATION FUTURITY on Sunday at Woodbine.
This 9 furlong Canadian classic, the top 2yo race in the country, lured Cup and Saucer winner Matador, Grey Stakes winner Ami’s Holiday (the odds-on favourite) but it was Asserting Bear, 3rd in the Cup and Saucer, who stormed to viuctory. Man O’ Bear, another Baker trainee, was 3rd.
And ASSERTING BEAR is the first stakes winner from the first crop of runners for Bear’s Kid, who was re-acquired privately by Dion earlier this year. The Kid will stand at Colebrook Farms in Uxbridge, Ontario for 2014 for a fee of $2,500.
The stallion has had just 2 starters from a crop of 10.
That is mainly because the stallion was somewhat of a lost soul after he finished racing in 2008. The son of Lemon Drop Kid – Tap to Music (a Grade 1 winner).
Originally a $60,000 2yo in training purchase, Bear’s Kid sold for $11,305 in 2009 at the Canadian Thoroughbred Horse Society’s mixed sale at Woodbine.
Them in February 2010, Bear’s Kid sold for a whopping $260,000 at the Kentucky winter mixed sale to Novel Group.
He stood at stud briefly at T C Westmeath Stud, owned by John Carey, who bred ASSERTING BEAR, but then disappeared off the radar until Dion went looking for him this summer.
They found him, bought him and now he will get a good chance at stud.
Oh yes, JIM MCALENEY rode Bear’s Kid AND Asserting Bear. McAleney has been one of the nice stories of 2013, recovering from a serious injury in 2012.
ASSERTING BEAR posted an 83 Beyer in the Coronation and will race in the Kingarvie Stakes next month. Man o Bear is on the shelf.
ASSERTING BEAR holds off MAJESTIC SUNSET (far right) and MAN O BEAR (far left). TERENCE DULAY/WWW.HORSE-RACES.NET
It has been a very good run lately for JOHN CAREY and COLEBROOK (John Burness).
Carey also is the breeder of the exicitng 3yo gelding BATTLE FOR GOLD, who won his 2nd straight race on Sunday with ease. The son of Bold ‘n Flashy – Gladiator Queen by Great Gladiator put up an 85 Beyer Figure. He is owned by Kingfield racing Stable and partners.
Burness has had a lot of winners recently including the 3yo Marcavelly gelding FAIRLY CERTAIN who won his maiden in his 2nd start on Sunday in a $25K claiming race.
In other races, QUAESITOR won the prep for the Valedictory Stakes by a head over TURKISH. The winner is a Friends Lake 4yo bred by Nancy and Gill Howard and Don Ross and owned by Wayward Stable. Mike Doyle trains the former Ian Howard horses currently.
Doyle also won with DANCE TO THE MOON in an allowance/optional claiming race and it was the 6yo mare’s first win in several years. She is a homebred for C. Scott Abbott.
LEWIS VALE is a nice Canadian-bred prospect for Eugene Melnyk. The son of Flower Alley out of Graded SW Indian Vale won his maiden in his 3rd career race with a 65 Beyer. Josie Carroll trains.
In the following race, Ontario sired COLTIMUS PRIME zoomed to a big win in his 2nd career strat and put up a 71 Beyer. He is a Milwaukee Brew colt out of Certainly Special by Distored Humor, bred by J. Horner and owned by Cabernet racing. Justin Nixon trains.
Sunday there were a couple of breakdowns – THESPIAN’S FATE, owned by Sam-Son farms and BRUNNERA, from the Ravendra Raghunath Stable both sufeFred injuries.
THE BEAR YEARS
(through Nov. 17) 2013 158 29 16 21 $1,457,324
2012 274 52 43 40 $2,171,361
2011 197 40 23 25 $1,689,980
2010 214 43 43 28 $1,873,365
2009 238 38 36 26 $1,771,862
2008 261 51 38 36 $2,488,609
2007 287 38 48 37 $2,042,535
2006 251 47 37 36 $833,250
2005 233 35 35 31 $717,208
MAJOR BLOW TO ONTARIO HORSE RACING
143-year-old CANADIAN SPORTSMAN to cease publication
The Canadian Sportsman, Canada’s oldest magazine, will cease publishing in December 2013. Dedicated to the sport of harness horse racing, The Canadian Sportsman produced its first edition in 1870 and ran continuously for 143 years.
“Several factors have led to this very difficult decision,” said Canadian Sportsman president Gary Foerster. “Print magazines face unprecedented challenges in the digital age and the demographics served by the magazine pose their own unique challenges.”
There has also been a severe contraction of the industry expedited by recent government policies in Ontario.
“Our major source of advertising revenue has traditionally come from Ontario horse breeders. Since the Ontario Liberal government under then Premier Dalton McGuinty announced in 2012 that it was scrapping the Slots At Racetrack Program (SARP) in just a matter of months, the breeders have suffered dramatic losses. The adverse financial circumstances visited on the breeders, and the industry at large, have been reflected in our advertising sales and subscription revenue which have plummeted to the point where, after nearly a century and a half, this magazine is no longer economically viable,” Foerster said.
read more:
http://www.standardbredcanada.ca/news/11-18-13/sportsman-cease-publication.html
HUNTERS BAY IN MARYLAND
Canadian champion HUNTERS BAY is headed off to stud in Maryland as the Adena Springs/Frank Stronach team want to make a presence known in that State.
The horse will stand with 5 others at Heritage Stallions owned by Dr. Brooke Bowman and Louis Merryman.
The 2012 champion older male in Canada had six wins in 14 starts for earnings of $611,091. Bred in Kentucky by Frank Stronach’s Adena Springs, the 5-year-old Ghostzapper horse won the Grade 3 Dominion Day Stakes and Eclipse Stakes during his championship season.
The DAILY RACING FORM reports that his fee of $6,000, Hunters Bay will be the highest-priced stallion of the farm’s inaugural stallion roster, which also includes three transplants from Adena Springs’ Kentucky and Ontario farms: Kentucky Derby winner Giacomo ($5,000); Group 3 winner Plan ($4,000); and Grade 1 winner Showing Up ($3,000).
Other stallios are Despite the Odds and Street Magician.
