Horsemanship and hard work is serving Travis Cullen very well. The Alberta based trainer/driver has posted a 2015 season of a lifetime. And at age 23, it appears that the optimistic horseman is just getting started. Story by Chris Lomon
He’s the best in the west and certainly could be a beast in the east, but for the time being, one of standardbred racing’s can’t-miss stars is content to keep his career on the fast track in Alberta.
At the age of 23, Travis Cullen is a young horseman that delivers a winning one-two punch as one of Canada’s top trainers and, drivers.
And while there is little doubt he’s going places, figuratively speaking, Cullen isn’t going any place, literally speaking, when it comes to his career path… at least for now.
“Right now, my home is Alberta,” offered Cullen. “Racing keeps getting better here and with the new track (Century Downs), things are moving in the right direction. I never really know where I want to be. Just as long as I’m racing, I’m happy. I have thought about moving, but for now I like the way things look in Alberta.”
And who could really blame him for wanting to stay put? Multiple-win days, dominant performances, plenty of positive press – it’s a definite win-win situation.
Cullen’s numbers have climbed steadily and impressively since he launched his career, as a trainer, in 2008, a year in which he posted one win and a third from six starts.
From 2009-15, he sent out 6, 7, 14, 40, 120, 174 and 224 winners, respectively. His number of wins while holding the reins, beginning in 2010, are equally impressive: 3, 22, 50, 159, 192 and 242.
Big numbers? Yes. Big talk? No.
“I have always been a very competitive person growing up playing sports, so to be able to compete in a sport I love every day is a great feeling,” noted Cullen.
Travis isn’t the only Cullen to have enjoyed high-profile standardbred success. His father, Ron, recorded over 1,500 career victories, and once represented Manitoba in Canada’s National Driving Championship. His mother, Jodie, trains and owns horses, including a few she co-owns with Travis.
Now following in his parents’ footsteps, the younger Cullen didn’t need to be persuaded, not even gently, to take an interest in the sport. And being a bit of a couch potato, at least in this instance, helped spark Travis’ affinity for racing long before he launched his career.
“My mom and dad taught me so much about training and horsemanship,” said Travis. “Growing up, I always watched racing with my dad. When Windsor was on, I always watched Al Cullen (Travis’ father’s cousin) and when Mohawk or Woodbine was on, I always watched Mark MacDonald. I looked up to both of them as drivers and tried to learn as much as I could by watching them drive. I would sit on the couch pretending I was them when I was young.
“My parents both grew up in the business, so it was in my blood from day one,” he continued. “They always told me that hard work will always pay off. They always taught me to have the horses fit, healthy and happy. The most important thing dad said was to never stop learning - keep your ears open.”
He’s certainly heeded those words over the years and throughout his standardbred sojourns across Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Alberta.
“Traveling to many provinces to race gave me the opportunity to learn so many different things from all the drivers and trainers,” said Cullen. “I always watched the leading drivers at each track to see what different things they were doing that I could learn. One thing they all told me is that you need to be able to take the good with the bad and the bad with the good because it can be like a rollercoaster.”
And in fact, there actually was an on-track moment – he can’t remember which day it was – where he felt like he indeed was on a rollercoaster ride.
“The most embarrassing moment was one day while I was racing, I came up with the flu and was halfway down the lane in a race, coming to the wire, and I got sick [literally],” Cullen said with a laugh.
That experience aside, it’s been a thrill ride that’s exceeded Cullen’s expectations.
One memorable day the Manitoba native delivered in the bike was on the curtain-closing card of Alberta Downs’ 2013 season, racking up five wins and taking both the driving and training titles at the Lacombe oval. It was a campaign that yielded $407,682 in trainer purse earnings and $619,750 as a driver.
At the end of that Alberta meet, he posted 64 training triumphs accompanied by 86 driving scores. And his 2013 total of 120 training wins in Canada saw him finish third among all the nation’s trainers. His .430 UTRS led the nation.
His impressive results have resulted in some hardware delivered away from the racetrack, too.
In 2014, he was named the recipient of the prestigious Future Star O’Brien Award. This year, he’s up for another O’Brien, namely, the Horsemanship Award.
“It was a great feeling to win the O’Brien award, for myself and my family,” said Cullen, who lists Yannick Gingras, Tim Tetrick, Ron Burke and hockey superstar Sidney Crosby as his sports idols. “To be nominated for the O’Brien Award for Horsemanship is a huge honour. I can’t thank my horses, partners and grooms enough for another wonderful year.”
Eye-popping numbers and accolades aside, Cullen, whether he happens to be enjoying an easy win, or enduring a narrow loss, is simply grateful to be doing what he loves.
“I want to keep training a stable of horses and also keep driving, because you can’t get that rush anywhere else,” he said. “It’s a great feeling being in behind the gate.”
For now, Cullen, who heads to the lake in the summer and enjoys skiing in the winter months, will continue to hone his craft in Western Canada.
Where he’ll find himself down the road, that’s still to be determined. Cullen only has a single necessity when it comes to his standardbred life.
“I’m not sure where I’ll eventually wind up,” he admitted. “But just as long as I am racing, I’ll be happy.”
It’s the one place where Cullen will always feel right at home.
