Darla Gaskin will be at a loss when the time comes for her American Girl to retire to motherhood, but at the rate the 10-year-old pacing mare continues to put up wins and bank money, that time might not come for quite a while yet – and that is perfectly fine with Gaskin.

American Girl, the winner of four of her past five races dating back to mid-November, is on the verge of reaching $1 million in career earnings. The bay mare, purchased for $6,000 as a yearling, will make her first attempt for the million-dollar-mark in Friday’s Fillies and Mares Open Handicap at Miami Valley Raceway. She will start from Post 9, is 9-2 on the morning line, and will have Brady Galliers driving for trainer Tyler George.

“She’s been a good girl,” said Gaskin, who owns American Girl with Stanley Rosenblatt. “Everyone asks when we’re going to breed her. I tell them, she’ll tell us when she’s done. She seems as good as she has ever been. I admire her durability. She just keeps going; I guess she’s a warhorse.

“You have to be careful when they get to her age; do they still want to do it? She seems like she wants to do it. She tries hard; she loves her job. I think her desire to do it is her greatest attribute. We’ll just keep going. As long as she’s good we’ll keep going and see where it takes us.”

American Girl, a daughter of Arts Chip out of L Dees Lourdes, has won 54 of 197 lifetime races and hit the board a total of 139 times. She has earned six figures in each of the past three seasons and has already put $15,500 into her coffer this year.

“People enjoy following her,” Gaskin said. “I get texts after her races, ‘Wow what a girl; she’s got the heart of a champion.’ That’s something you can’t buy. You’ve got to find them.”

American Girl, pictured in victory

Gaskin and her husband, Ernie, found American Girl at the 2010 Hoosier Sale, where her quirkiness might have contributed to her price.

“I loved her, but she would not go in and out of a stall,” Gaskin recalled. “That turned a lot of people off because you didn’t know if she was going to balk or whatever. But she had a kind eye and I told Ernie that I thought she was just scared. She had to step over a pipe to get in the stall and she kept looking at it.

“She was hanging at $5,000 and Ernie looked at me and I told him I wanted her. We were lucky. You dream about getting a horse like that. We’re just fortunate. That’s what you’re looking for. That’s why we all do it. It’s always like a dream to get one like that. It’s once in a lifetime.”

American Girl was trained by Ernie until late in her six-year-old season, when George, who is Gaskin’s nephew, took over. She won the Circle City Stakes at age three and also enjoyed success on the Indiana Sires Stakes circuit at ages two and three, but was unable to win a championship. She finally got an Indiana Sires Stakes title at the age of five.

“I cried in the winner’s circle,” Gaskin said.

In recent years, American Girl’s connections have favoured racing the mare in the winter through spring and given her time off during the summer. The schedule seems to have contributed to American Girl’s longevity, not to mention her win total. Since the start of 2016, she has posted 26 wins, with the majority coming in the winter in Ohio.

“We are enjoying just having her race,” said Gaskin, who also enjoys visiting American Girl on a regular basis and delivering her favourite snack, Pink Lady apples. “During the winter Ernie and I get to go to the tracks, watch her race, play the owner deal, and it’s kind of fun.

“I’ll be sad when she goes to be a broodmare, so I’m just enjoying it while we can. She’s a beautiful mare. She’s dark, she’s got a star, and she’s got that beautiful, happy, smart-looking head. She doesn’t look 10 years old. She’s just a special horse. It’s just been a joy.”

(USTA)