Wasn’t it great in 2008?

Ryan Roshau for HRND

Every year the scene is the same. The dust has barely settled on the racetrack and you notice horse trailers in the barn area loading up the equine athletes with an agenda of heading for home. Many will be turned out for the season and it’s a right they have earned because they and their connections all made this 2008 meet a rousing success.

As I see this picture unfold every year I can’t help but hear the distant strains of Auld Lang Syne in my mind. Here in the barn the horses are anonymous; unrecognizable without silks or a saddle cloth number. I wonder who they are and how they did out there on the track. I’m happy for the winners but I can’t help but feel for those who just missed. They say football is a game of inches but horse racing is truly the sport where dreams and heartache are separated by the smallest of margins. Flat-footed at the break, carried out wide on the turn, shut off at the rail; all can spell defeat in the cruelest of fashions.

Races involving photo finishes this year seemed particularly brutal. Two or more horses running their hearts out, giving their connections and supporters a thrill only to wait in silence to see if their number is the one that is posted. Owners and their families wait to walk into the winner’s circle while two horses are circled around and probably wondering what all the fuss is about. I encountered this experience in the meet’s middle weekend when North Dakota-bred maidens Manny Ray and Cody’s Escape hit the wire together in a six furlong contest. You can see the tension on the faces of those involved and the seconds of waiting seem like hours. Minutes earlier the crowd of 2,500 was watching a thrilling, action-packed event now all of their eyes are trained on an inanimate tote board waiting for it to do or say something. This time, the story had a happy ending for both sets of connections as the result was a dead heat. Anxiety is replaced by relief and that bewildered look is captured for posterity in the winner’s circle photo. As a fan or a bettor you are put through the ringer. I can only imagine what the experience feels like for an owner, breeder, trainer or groom.

Some Surprises…Trainers seem to specialize in their areas. Some are better with youngsters, some with claimers, and usually one is either a quarter horse or a thoroughbred specialist. It was unique therefore to watch Bob Johnson win three races in one weekend with thoroughbreds. Johnson’s abilities as a quarter horse trainer are undeniable and even though he is merely “dabbling” in the thoroughbred game to help out some friends he is proving that a good trainer is a good trainer, no matter the breed. The same can be said for Dave Bernhardt who won a few with quarter horses when he normally sticks to thoroughbreds.

The quarter horse racing, particularly in stakes events continues to meet and exceed expectations. The fields comprised for races like the Min Dak Futurity, Red River Derby, Northern Plains Series, and the ND Bred QH Derby and Futurity were among the best in the upper-Midwest. Whatsmore, the races themselves backed up the quality of the fields as they truly were the most exciting seconds of the entire meet.

Some “Sure Things”…With new horses, new jockeys, and a few new owners every year it still amazes me how things tend to hold to form here at the Horse Park. The competition is incredible and fierce but the same “streaks” remain in tact. Do you have a horse to win the Northern Plains Derby or Futurity? Well, you better ask Bob Johnson know about it first. Do you have your eye on the Derby or Futurity for an Open-company quarter horse? You might want to check if Tom Maher’s in town. Or maybe you have a four, five, or six year-old North Dakota-bred thoroughbred who can win some stakes races. Does Dave Bernhardt have one in the race? OK, how about a two or three year old quarter horse who was bred in the Peace Garden State. Ever heard of a couple of guys named Wisdom and Hanson?

Now it’s clear these guys aren’t going to win every race mentioned above but because of their commitment to bringing the best horses they have to Fargo you know you have to go through them to get to the winner’s circle. You know you’re doing something right when it’s “news” when they don’t win a race they are supposed to. I take my hat off to their abilities as horsemen. Their consistent success makes the meet all the more entertaining.

The Takeaway…Like many of us, I love fast horses. As much as fast horses thrill me I appreciate and applaud a young fast horse all the more. If there is one race that stands out it would have to be the Trials of the ND Bred Futurity on an obscure Friday night, August 22nd. This race was the third match-up of the meet between juveniles Rockinrollin Nolan and Shake Em Diva. Each had bested the other in their two previous meetings but on this night one left no doubt about who was the best and who was the fastest. Shake Em Diva and jockey Jerry Vaughan’s dramatic move on the outside proved to be the memory of the meet. That orange blur on top of that grayish-white filly was enough to practically sway the trees. Dave Wisdom and Vic Hanson’s would go on to win the ND Bred QH Futurity on Labor Day with another rousing finish but that terrific run in the Trials by Shake Em Diva truly shook me to the core. With three wins in four starts over five weekends, her durability is a testament to trainer Vic Hanson and his staff. She did enough this meet to make her my runaway choice as Horse of the Meet.

Until next August, I’ll see you when the horses return.