The Boss

As a racehorse, Betting Line plays second fiddle to nobody. The Casie Coleman trainee has a mind of his own.

But with team work and lots of patience from groom, Paige Austin, the three-year-old could be unstoppable. By Keith McCalmont

BETTING LINE IS A SPECIAL HORSE. The sophomore son of Bettors Delight carved his name into the history books with a dramatic fifth-to-first closing effort to win the $1 million Pepsi North America Cup.

In the process, he provided driver David Miller with a first Cup win, in his 16th attempt, and his trainer and co-owner, Casie Coleman, with something of a late birthday gift.

“The first time I drove a horse in this race was Falcons Future, I mean that was in ‘94 so, yes, this is very sweet,” said Miller. “I like his never give in attitude.”

Arch rival Control The Moment, who denied Betting Line victory in the Metro Pace in 2015, set a swift tempo in the 33rd edition of the North America Cup, reaching three-quarters in 1:20.3. Control The Moment entered Mohawk’s lengthy stretch run with a pair of rivals breathing down his neck including Racing Hill, who surged past with less than an eighth of a mile to go. But there would be no denying Betting Line who swept by with powerful strides for the win.

“They were going all kinds of quick fractions. I was a little worried that he was a bit too far back, but I saw the clock pop up 1:20 and a piece so I was kind of happy,” said Coleman.

It was the perfect way for the popular conditioner to celebrate her birthday week.

“This was all I wanted for my birthday and Betting Line made it come true,” said the 36-year-old Coleman, who won her first Cup in 2010 with Sportswriter. Not a bad gift at all from a colt well on his way to carving out a very lucrative career as a potential stud.

Not that the carefree colt is aware of the mounting pressure heaped on his capable frame.

“He likes to play,” said Coleman.

Truth be told, Betting Line has been something of a menace in his frequent trips to the winner’s circle in Ontario Sires Stakes events, as well as a recent victory in the Somebeachsomewhere Stakes, in the build up to the $1 million North America Cup.

It’s not that Betting Line is mean. Rather, he’s just completely unaware of his own strength. It’s a trait that keeps Coleman, her fiancé Mark Herlihy, stable driver Jonathan Drury and caretaker Paige Austin on their toes from sunrise to race night.

“He jogs five miles a day and he has to be the first one out in the morning because he can be bad. He is always bucking and rearing,” said Coleman. “Paige has to lead him all the way to the track with Mark to jog him. I just stand back and hope he stays upright.”

And yet, despite a carefree demeanour, the young colt has shown the strength to carry the dreams of Coleman and Miller, and perhaps most importantly, helped reignite a passion for racing in his young caretaker only just coming through the other side of a personal tragedy.

On September 12, 2014, the standardbred racing community was rocked by the sudden passing of veteran conditioner Mark Austin at just 54 years of age.

“It was heartbreaking,” said Paige. “I’m okay now, it’s been a couple years… but we had no idea it was coming. He was losing weight and really healthy, getting fit. He’d shoe all our own horses and never break a sweat.

“We went to Flamboro one Sunday and he missed retention with one of our horses,” she continued. “They found him out in the truck. It was just heartbreaking.”

Austin was one of the more successful trainers on the Ontario circuit and was making a name for himself with top horses such as Sparky Mark and Fool Me Once. Paige found her love of the game through her father.

“We had our own 55 acre farm and all our horses came out of there,” said Paige. “I’d always help my dad out and paddock horses. I helped out whenever I could. One of the first horses I helped out with was Sparky Mark.”

Some kids count the days to their sixteenth birthday and the chance to get a driver’s license. Not Paige, her calendar counted down to her 10th birthday.

“When I turned 10, I couldn’t wait to get my first ORC license,” she smiled. “I went on the day of my birthday. Ever since I could talk, I wanted to be in there and be a part of everything.”

It was with her father, in 2013, that Paige enjoyed her first North America Cup experience when Fool Me Once, a bay son of Art Major, carved out all the fractions to win his elimination over a fast closing Wake Up Peter.

Fool Me Once ended up fourth in the Cup, after leading the way throughout, before succumbing to the well backed Captaintreacherous by just two lengths.

“I would have been 16 at the time and I remember everything about him. He was my dad’s first big stakes horse,” recalled Paige. “He was awesome, a fun horse that always raced well. He won his elimination and it’s too bad he couldn’t win the final. It was a great experience that’s carried me a long way to now coming into this year’s North America Cup with Betting Line.”

It took some time after her father’s passing for Paige to find her way back to the races.

“It was tough for a little while. I didn’t go to Flamboro for the longest time. I couldn’t bear to be there,” she said. “Of course, we had horses at the farm and they needed to be fed. I had to keep grinding away every day and eventually it got easier.”

And then, in the winter of 2015, a door opened for Paige to make her return.

“Carmen Auciello wanted me to paddock for him and that got me back into it a little bit,” said Paige. “It helped me get over it. Once I got back to the races and around the horses a little more, it helped.”

Paige joined the Coleman outfit this year at the recommendation of her boyfriend, driver Jonathan Drury, and promptly fell in love with the horse they call ‘B-Line’.

“He’s a little bit tough sometimes. He’s playful. He’s a stud horse and wants to bite a bit,” said Paige. “But, the good thing about him is that he’s not mean. He just wants to play. He’s just sharp and you have to watch yourself around him. For the most part, he’s a sweetheart. Apples are his thing. He goes wild for them.”

There’s lots to love about Betting Line who won six of 12 freshman starts while banking $540,422 thanks in part to a second-place finish in the Metro and a sharp Super Final score in October at Woodbine, controlling the pace from start to finish, en route to a 1:52 victory.

“He was good the whole season and winning the Super Finals on our home track was huge. He was awesome that night,” recalled Coleman. “Even finishing second in the Metro was impressive because Control The Moment was just a freak at the time.”

Betting Line set wicked fractions in the Breeders Crown final and ended up fourth, after getting parked a long way by a 146/1 outsider, but the big fellow is far from one dimensional. He came from well out of it to win the Champlain at age two, and his first-over trip, engineered by Dave Miller, to win his North America Cup elim in 1:49.1 shocked his conditioner.

“Dave was the first to admit it wasn’t the trip he wanted, and coming off the last turn, we’re first over, and Control The Moment, the one we’re most worried about, is on our back,” recalled Coleman. “I didn’t think it looked good at all, but as soon as Dave started asking him he just dug in and won.

“How he does that I don’t know, but he has a huge heart and big set of lungs and he can go all day long,” continued Coleman. “Realistically, he shouldn’t have been able to win that race the way it set up and he ended up with a lifetime best.”

Coleman, now the first female to train two Cup winners, was thrilled that Betting Line was able to provide Miller, a driver with an extensive resume, with his first in the $1 million event.

“Besides being a great driver, Dave, and his wife, Misty, are really great people,” said Coleman. “One year at the Breeders Crown in New Jersey, Misty asked me if I was going home for Canadian Thanksgiving.

“I told Misty that I couldn’t go home. I had to stay with my horse,” continued Coleman. “She asked how many Canadians were on my staff and invited the whole team over to her house for a big turkey dinner. She made us feel at home.”

Miller has won a lot of big events for Coleman through the years with stars such as McWicked and Idyllic but, until now, the $1 million Canadian classic for sophomore pacers had eluded him.

“Dave always wanted to win this race. It had been bothering him,” says Coleman.

Necessity dictates that Coleman must keep a watchful eye on her star pupil at all times. And when she can’t be there, she entrusts her staff to keep Betting Line in running order.

“I’ve been through a number of different caretakers with this horse. He’s a stud. He’s not mean, but he’s really hard to handle and he likes to be the boss,” says Coleman.

With Drury’s recommendation, Paige was a natural fit for the frisky fellow.

“I knew she was pretty much born and raised in the business and has worked with horses her whole life. She knows what she’s doing and I knew that she’d be good for the job,” says Coleman.

And so, on race night, you’ll find Paige, extremely focused, keeping close watch of her star pupil.

“He knows when it’s race night and gets revved up. He’s a little bit tougher to look after on race nights because he’s ready to go,” she said, noting that harnessing the big horse up can be something of a chore. “He’s a bit of a pill and kicks a bit, but nothing I can’t handle.”

Working with Betting Line has brought back some good memories for the young caretaker.

“Fool Me Once and Betting Line are quite similar,” she admitted. “Fool Me Once always wanted to nip and play as well. Both are very classy. They both have a very long stride that reaches out well past their nose. They can cover a lot of ground.”

And Paige has covered a lot of ground over the past two years as well. In September she’ll start up at Conestoga College in pursuit of a degree in nursing.

“I like horses but I want to go to school and get what some would call a real job,” she laughed. “It’ll be hard, but I can go to the barn on weekends and race nights. And with Jonathan driving, I’ll still be here all the time.”

It seems that Betting Line and his caretaker have both done a lot of growing up over the summer. Paige, rightfully so, is proud of how far her family has come.

Hey eyes brighten at the thought of telling her father about leading out a North America Cup champion.

“I think dad would be really proud. I’ve come a long way from back them and my mom and sister have come a long way too,” she says. “My mom is very tough. She’s turned our farm into a turn-out facility and has a bunch horses there. We’ve all come a long way.”

And so has her star horse, the mischievous menace, ‘B-Line’.