Page 4 - The Game August 2006

4 The Game, August 2006 Your Thoroughbred Racing Community Newspaper
Glen Buttigieg Remembered
March 1968 - July 2006
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His smile....infectious.
His loyalty and generosity....undeniable. His life....taken away too soon.
Glen Buttigieg died after a kite tube accident on the evening of July 4, 2006, despite the heroic efforts of his friends who tried in vain to revive him after being pulled from the water.
Glen was a friend to many and considered a best friend by a handful of people who were part of a close knit “inner circle” which knew no bounds of caring.
“I’ve never seen a guy who had so many friends and was still your best friend.” said Mike Mailhot, who had known Glen for 20 or more years. “He was my best friend and I was one of ten guys who could say that.”
Mike Langlais echoed the sentiments, “He had a close circle of friends and he always made sure that we were not too busy to keep in touch.”
“If I needed anything I could count of him,” said Joey Belowus, “He brought me through a lot of down periods and I am starting to miss him more and more now.”
According to his mother, Jackie, Glen’s first word was “horse”. She mentioned that Glen could see the horses in the paddock at the farm from his crib and he would jump up and down saying “horse, horse”.
“He wanted to be a jockey so bad,” said Jackie who explained that his size was the only thing that held him back.
Glen dabbled in everything to do with horses. He broke yearlings at his father, Paul Buttigieg’s farm, as well as galloped horses at the racetrack. According to Mike Langlais, Glen and his father had had rough patches in their relationship over the years, however just recently they had been getting on better than ever.
Glen was a quarter horse jockey for five years and later a jockey agent for Daniel David and Laurie Gulas. He held a trainer’s license and was most recently learning to become a blacksmith.
He had also had a stint in the U.S. as an assistant for trainers such as Todd Pletcher and Nick Zito where he galloped horses like Unbridled Song as well as many tough to handle horses.
“He moved to the States to see how they ran things there.” said Jackie, “He wanted to acquire as much experience as possible.”
Glen was just as active in his hours away from the racetrack when he would seek out fun and adventure.
“He used to be a motorcross racer before he came to the racetrack.” said Mike Langlais who had also known Glen for more than 20 years, “Glen had said that if there was the kind of money in motorcross racing as there is today, he would have stayed in it.”
Always up for trying different things, Glen had snow skied for the first time this winter, “He fell off the lift.” laughed Mike recalling the event. “We also went hiking in Algonquin. Glen had wanted to see a moose however they always eluded him.”
Glen was also a big “show” buff and would attend as many boat shows, motorcycle shows and car shows as he could get to.
He had a love of the water and enjoyed taking his boat out on lake Ontario where he would travel to Toronto to visit the jazz festival or watch the fireworks.
“He enjoyed his time off the racetrack.” said Langlais, “He didn’t want to spend all of his time at the track.”
Glen would also take off to the cottage with friends or to his R.V. where he could spend some time alone with his dog, Duke.
Although Glen had a lust for adventure, the one thing he wasn’t was reckless.
“He did what he did,“ said Mike Langlais, “and he always did it safely.”
“He loved his boat,” said Mailhot, “He was very safe on his boat at all times. It is a shame we lost him on something that he loved.”
“He was my boating buddy. We’d go water skiing and I don’t know where he got the energy to spend time with everyone.” said Belowus who continued on to say that Glen was a big hearted person who, if you were an honest person and he liked you, he’d do anything for you.
“He had a happy energy that flowed from him to everyone around him.” said Langlais, “It would float from him into you whether you were a stranger or a friend.”
“For 38 years he did more living than I could have lived,” said his mother Jackie, “I was just so proud of him, he rode like a prince and just when he was getting his life in order... he was so happy...I don’t understand why he was taken away.”
Visitation and Funeral Services for Glen were held on July 7 and 8 at Smith’s Funeral Home in Burlington and he was buried at Burlington Memorial Gardens, close to his mother’s home.
Glen sitting on the starting gate during the time when he was a quarter horse jockey
A Friend!
Can’t but remember,
How I made him laugh. Stuck in my mind,
Like a photograph,
Joking about Michaels, Mammy and Poppy! Know what that’s about Then you’d be happy. Glen was a good man But, Heaven needed a Blacksmith, could not wait. Sent an angel for Buttigieg Glen,
I have faith
He is a part of your plan. Creator greet him,
With open hands
He was everybody’s friend It’s a small after world
I have faith
I will see you again Always consider you as, A friend
Written by Errol Farquharson 2006/07/05
Weather Dampens Woodbine’s 50th Anniversary Celebration
The temporary inner dirt track at Woodbine could not withstand the heavy downpour of rain which lasted just over an hour on Sunday, July 23.
The inner track had washed out in spots causing serious unstable conditions for the horses and riders which resulted in the cancellation of seven races scheduled for the dirt that day.
Races3,4,5,7,8,10and11wereall cancelled with races 6 and 9, Stakes races both set to run on the turf, still contested at the regularly scheduled times.
The skies cleared later in the afternoon and the cancellation of the dirt races didn’t dampen the spirits of those in attendance as the majority of fans stayed at the track to enjoy the 50th Anniversary festivities as well as the featured inaugural running of the $700,000 Gr.2 Northern Dancer Breeders’ Cup Turf Stakes. The William Sorokolit Sr. homebred Sky Conqueror was the winner for trainer Darwin Banach with jockey Todd Kabel in the irons.
The other Turf Stakes race run that day was the $75,000 Ontario Jockey Club
Stakes which was won by the Margaret Squires homebred, Millfleet for trainer Michael DePaulo and jockey Steven Bahen.
The Ontario Matron Stakes which was carded that day going 1 1/16 miles on the dirt was cancelled and was run the following Friday, July 28 with the Tucci Stables owned Miss Concerto the winner for trainer Sid Attard and jockey Emma-Jayne Wilson.