Page 10 - November 2007 The Game

10 The Game, November 2007
Farm Managers Raise $15,000 for CARD
View Pontiac, Canadian Livestock Insurance, CHFI, Pizzaville and Coca Cola.
As well as the hole sponsors: Westover Farms; King eld Racing Stable Ltd.; CTHS; Ledson Hold- ings Inc.; Huntington Stud Farm; Schonberg Farm; HBPA; Cana- dian Thoroughbred; Wind elds Farm; RMC Stable; Ontario Potato Distributing; Reade Baker Racing Stable; Kingview Farm; Councillor Lynn Foster - Town of Richmond Hill; Windways Farm; Persley Den Farm; BFL Canada; Old Forester; Crypto Graph; Where’s the Ring; Bold Executive; Philanthropist; Trajectory; Ciano Cat; Peaks and Valleys; Colebrook Farms; JC & Francine Benoit; Adena Springs North; Samson; IHT; Woodlands Farm; Gairdner & Associates Real Estate Brokers; Emma-Jayne Wil- son; Fieldstone Farms Inc.; Mil- ton Equine Hospital; and Xerox Canada.
Canada’s Thoroughbred Racing Newspaper
The Thoroughbred Farm Managers of Ontario in partner- ship with CARD raised more than $15,000 in support of CARD, the Community Association for Riding for the Disabled, during their 4th Annual Charity Golf Classic at the end of August.
The Best Of Company
CARD’s mission is to improve the lives of children and adults with disabilities through quality therapeutic riding programs.
Aside from Bobby Venezia’s horses, I had a supporting cast
in some of the smaller stables.
I enjoyed working with the trainers in the morning, preparing the horses and knowing all of their idiosyncrasies. Oc- casionally, I picked up a horse shipping in and one such horse was truly a gift.
Harry. Popular opinion admitted that the horse was sound but was always running over her head. The racetrack adage, keep yourself in the best of company and your horse in the worst didn’t apply in this situation. Rountation ran in allowance company but though she’d hit the board, at 4 she was still a maiden.
More than 140 golfers participated in the fundraising event which was held at the Kleinburg Golf Club.
Legged up into the saddle, I peered through exquisitely sculptured ears. The horse moved with a con dence that as- sured me instantly. A total professional, he warmed up without a pony and walked quietly into the gate. Throughout the 6 furlongs, he weaved his way through the pack, knowing when to move and when to steady, nishing a strong second.
Then, it was back to my esoteric crew. One morning, while I was galloping the infamous Pat And Turn, a horse sprinted onto the track and ew by, the inexpe- rienced apprentice hauling desperately on the reins. I immediately thought of Check Carefully and my initial entrance onto the Suffolk Downs oval. I followed the horse when she made her way back to the barn and made a mental note of the trainer.
Harry assured me the mare preferred to go to post without a pony. I suspected the $5 fee was the real issue but I pre- ferred to warm-up alone.
The winning mens foursome was Zach Simbrow, Ely Rechtsman, Brian Rudolph and Jon Tkatch and for the women, it was a threesome consisting of Jennifer Morrison, Debbie England and Peggy Higgins who took the honours.
Until that race I didn’t know that a horse could be so straightforward.
Rountation walked obediently through the post parade but the moment we turned around, she shot off like a rocket. I waited quietly and within a furlong, she came back to me. When we broke from the gate, she ran sluggishly at the back till mid-race. At that point, she took a huge breath and I felt her ribcage expand between my legs. Suddenly, we were in the race, ying by the tiring horses to close within 2 lengths of the winner.
The winner of the men’s longest drive contest was Syd Seid and the ladies longest drive was won by Debbie England. Closest to the Hole for the men was Kevin Weston and Caitlin Walsh was the winner for the ladies.
She picked up a fourth place cheque.
The Thoroughbred Farm Managers of Ontario and CARD would like to thank their sponsors: Proshot Event Photography, Pine
For more information on CARD visit www.card.ca or call 416-667-8600
Next year’s tournament is scheduled for Tuesday August 26 at Kleinburg Golf Course.
Later that morning, I paid him a visit. Harry introduced himself and the sole horse in his barn, the runaway mare named Rountation. She was a deadringer for Ruf an and I was instantly in love.
Rumour had it that Harry had a strange deal with the breeder—that he would only have to pay for the horse when she won. Thus, he was happy to run her over her head and pick up cheques. I stopped by the barn every morning to make cer- tain the cheques were evenly divided be- tween the feed store and the liquor store. The mare seemed to be getting as much grub as she could eat though her groom- ing often left a lot to be desired. I insisted that Harry remove the mud from her coat but didn’t expect spit and polish.
A Head at theWire
A series of real life stories by Paddy Head majeek05@hotmail.com
Photo Left
Mens winning team: (l-r)
Ari Laskin; Brian Rudolph; Zach Simbrow; Ely Rechtsman
Photo Below
Ladies Winning Team: (l-r) Debbie England,
Jennifer Morrison, Peggy Higgins
The royal breeding of the dark bay mare, by Roundtable out of a Citation mare, was evident in her awless confor- mation and intelligent gaze but not in her surroundings. The sordid atmosphere of the shedrow could more aptly be called a skid row. I had been warned to stay away from this ‘end of town’.
I rode another 4th and then Harry out- did himself. A lly stakes race had only 5 entries and he put Rountation in, know- ing he’d get a cheque. When I walked into the jock’s room, Denise Boudrot patient- ly explained that it would be no disgrace on my part when I was outdistanced. I knew the mare should have been in an easier spot but I couldn’t imagine her being that far behind. When she was led to the paddock, her coat was gleaming. Harry was in classier company and rose to the occasion. We did our usual sprint in the warm-up and broke a little sharper from the gate. The company seemed to inspire the mare too. At the 3/8ths pole, I felt the big inhalation, and she shot off around the turn, passing horses that were supposed to outdistance her. The thrill of closing in on classy mares wasn’t lost on me either as we came ever so close. One more length and we would have moved from show to win.
There was, however, class buried be- neath the rough exterior of both horse and trainer. Harry had been a successful businessman, and his eloquent language belied his present situation. He loved his horse but I suspected he loved Jack Dan- iels even more.
Photos by ProShot Event Photography
When the overnight came out, the reaction was what I expected—everyone told me I was crazy to ride for a gyp like
The next morning, as the mare bar- reled onto the racetrack, I allowed her the initial sprint. The moment she was ready to relax, I reeled her in. She gal- loped like a show horse the rest of the way. I was now Rountation’s jockey.
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GAIL WOOD
Co-Breeder of Champion Edenwold
P.O.Box164,Hillsburgh,ON N0B1Z0
519-855-4915 Fax:519-855-4514 www.woodlandsfarm.com
The celebration surrounding Roun- tation in the unsaddling paddock was louder than Denise’s gathering in the winner’s circle. Rountation had acquired many fans with her gutsy performance. Harry was as well turned out as his horse on this eventful day and took me out for ne dining. He promised me he would look for an easy spot for her next race.
Harry’s idea of easy was allowance or high claiming. The mare gave her all but by the end of the year with earnings of
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