Page 14 - August/September 2008 The Game

14 The Game, August/September 2008
Ron Grieves Continued from Page 13
Canada’s Thoroughbred Racing Newspaper
For every horse in between, the guidance comes from Monique Goulet who has been with him for many years and has become his go-to girl.
Trainer
Ron Grieves at Northlands
point out – he also admits its tough being away from his wife and children who reside in Calgary. They get together often during the Summer Thoroughbred Meet at Northlands Park in Edmonton, but that still doesn’t make it easy.
“Monique has worked with me for a long time and she’s now the Assistant Trainer in the barn,” Grieves explains. “She’s the barn foreman and pretty much does it all. Whatever needs to be done, she does it. I couldn’t do this without her.”
A dedicated family man, he was happy to talk about the other thing in his life that gives him a spark.
Grieves was also quick to point out the stellar efforts of Sarah Johnson who has also been working in his barn for many years along with a compliment of new staff which have come on recently as his barn continues to expand.
“They’re totally different,” he smiles. “My son Owen (14) wants nothing to do with horses and my daughter Jill (7) can’t be around them enough. She absolutely loves being around here.
Like all trainers, Grieves has had some favourites over the years including one of the best horses to ever race in Alberta, Code Name Fred.
point I think the highlight of my career was when he won the Speed To Spare. He always knew when it was race day and he wanted to win.
“Owen is totally committed to hockey and has no time for horses. He plays goalie in (Bantam) AAA and is an honour student at school, so that keeps him real busy.”
Fred, as his is commonly referred to, was
a magni cent animal that not only knew when it was race day, but he had a stoic personality and that created a unique human-animal bond with his trainer.
“Another horse that was really special was Sly Lady. She was very, very special even though she was never really that sound. She won stakes as a two, three, four and ve-year old and had knee surgery after every season. She just wouldn’t quit.”
Although he nished second in earnings during
the Spring Thoroughbred Meet in Calgary with over $208,000 in purse money, Grieves wasn’t happy with the fact his stable only posted 14 wins, sixth on the circuit. He’s hoping for more success this summer
at Northlands and heads into August with a glimmer of hope for the $300,000 Canadian Derby on August 23 in the form of Papa Time. The three-year-old
You can see in his eyes the admiration Ron held for his close friend, Fred.
While Grieves says he’s not likely to ever leave the industry – unless he wins the lottery, he was quick to
“He was an incredible animal,” he adds. “To this
star of the barn has nished second behind Arkhill in both the $100,000 Alberta Derby and $50,000 Ky Alta Handicap at Northlands on July 12, two of the biggest prep races of the summer. At a distance of 1 3/8-miles, it offers
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a chance for an upset and Grieves is committed to pointing him to the Derby where he is expected to be one of the local favourites.
Still young, you can expect to see Grieves around the backstretch for many years to come and if you don’t see him there, you can assume he won the lottery and is salmon shing off the shores of British Columbia. Until then, he’ll be a pretty easy guy to track down as he ful lls his destiny.
Gerry Mochuk Retires
Mochuk who has been a test inspector at hastings Racetrack for twenty years. A popular gure around the back- stretch Gerry has worked at the track since he was 15 years old beginning as a hotwalker and groom he worked in the feed store and the jockey’s room as a valet before becoming a test inspec- tor in 1988. His greatest thrill around the track was watching a young Danny Williams ride. Gerry has not missed an opening day in 45 years and from now on he’ll enjoy the races as a fan.
Gerry Mochuk hold up the last sample after 20 years of whistling! Retirement will sit easy with Gerry
The Game AUGUST 2008.indd
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