A handful of racehorses are off to a quick start in 2024, racking up wins, earnings and season's speed records.
Trot Insider takes a look at some of the top ranked Standardbreds in Canada and their on-track achievements through the first three months of the year.
Male pacers Hapuna Beach and Hugh Heff currently lead all horses in Canada for wins this year, each victorious eight times. The pair ranks second-best in all of North America, just one behind Dontpokethedragon, who earned six of his nine victories on Canadian soil before heading stateside for the rest.
Hapuna Beach earned his eight wins in the care of trainer Isaac Waxman while climbing the claiming ranks at Woodbine Mohawk Park. Making a dozen starts so far this year, the six-year-old gelded son of Sunshine Beach has bounced back and forth between the Waxman and Carmen Auciello stables, where he currently resides. Claimed three times for an average value of $19,000, he is currently owned by Ryan Bender of Cookstown, Ont.
Hugh Heff has earned all eight of his victories competing at the $20,000 claiming level at Flamboro Downs for trainer Gerard Demers. The four-year-old Betterthancheddar gelding, who has earned top three finishes in his five other seasonal starts, is owned by Ronald Nobes of Fergus, Ont. and Craig Ellis of Barrie, Ont.
Also trained by Demers, pacing mare Timewaitsonnoone, the Kelly Hoerdt-trained mare Diva Amour and Cameron McQueen's mare Blossom Onthebeach round out the top three win leaders with seven victories each.
The trotters top out at five wins, with Special Mission, O Narutac Perfetto and Final Dream as the gait's co-leaders.
New Holland Pacing Series champion Poseidon Seelster is the richest Standardbred racing in Canada with $90,920 earned so far this year at Woodbine Mohawk Park for trainer Don Lindsey. His 10-1 upset victory by a nose in the $71,000 series final on March 30 marked his third win of the campaign and provided the biggest boost to his seasonal bankroll, although he's picked up cheques in 10 of his 12 starts racing for upper conditioned and Preferred level purses. His Fergus, Ont. trainer shares ownership with Paul Kleinpaste of Orangeville, Ont., Garth Bechtel of Meaford, Ont. and Will Alempijevic of Lexington, Kentucky.
Mohawk Preferred pacer Taurasi, trained by Richard Moreau, is a close second with $90,000 earned going five-for-five so far this year, while multiple Mares Preferred winner Tells On A Roll, trained by Jodie Cullen, completes the top three money-earners with $81,000 banked from four wins and a second-place finish.
Whichwaytothebeach is the fastest winner and first to pace sub-1:50 in Canada this year after a 1:49.2 victory on Feb. 10 at Mohawk for trainer Garry Merner and owner Gino Toscani of Mount Hope, Ont. The six-year-old Somebeachsomewhere gelding set the national season's record winning his fifth start of the year.
Fraser Downs Open rivals Sunshine Boy and Armycaptin Hanover share the Canadian season's record for a five-eighths-mile track of 1:51.3. The former, a Jim Marino trainee, set the mark on Feb. 16 and the latter matched that time on March 22 while racing from the Rod Therres stable.
The time to beat over a half-mile track is 1:53.4, with Moreau trainee Twin B Powerball (Jan. 4), the Cullen-conditioned Yourtheone (Jan. 18) and Tom Riley stable's Smooth Lou (March 21) sharing that season's record after their respective victories over Flamboro Downs.
The national season's record on the trot is 1:52.3, with winning miles by Special Mission and Amigo Volo just a week apart in February at Mohawk (Feb. 5 and Feb. 12). Special Mission matched the season's record again in the New Holland Trotting Series final on March 30. The winning time was a lifetime mark for Special Mission, a five-year-old son of Walner, trained by Blair Burgess for American owners Daniel Roland and Bred Winr Stables. Double millionaire Amigo Volo is a seven-year-old son of Father Patrick who shipped to the Meg Crone stable last year for U.S. owners Pinske Stables and David J. Miller and has been dominating the Mohawk Preferred ranks of late.
From limited trotters competing over five-eighths-mile tracks early in the year, Crossfit is the fastest courtesy of his 1:57.1 victory on March 31 at Rideau Carleton Raceway for conditioner Victor Puddy.
Trained by Stephen Bossence, El Toro Loco's 1:56 win on March 13 in a Preferred at The Raceway at Western Fair District is a season's trotting record for a half-mile track.
**All statistics include Canadian starts from Jan. 1, 2024 up to the first Wednesday in April.
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(Standardbred Canada)