In an issue largely dedicated to the O’Brien Awards, TROT catches up with a former O’Brien Award winning Trainer of the Year and finds out that even though he no longer trains horses, he’s still very much involved in the industry he loves. By John Rallis

 

Being raised Amish, Jonas (Joe) Stutzman was around horses from a very young age, and it didn’t take long for him to realize that he wanted a career that involved working around them - he just needed to figure out exactly what it was that he wanted to do.

Once Stutzman discovered harness racing, and how lucrative a career it had the potential of being, he shifted his focus on horses to learning the ins-and-outs of the sport, where he hoped to intertwine his love for the animal with a profession that would become a successful passion. It turned out to be the right choice.

“I grew up in Gorrie, Ontario, and horses have always been a part of my life,” says Joe. “I loved being around them so much that I would always read books about them and pick peoples’ brains about them. Eventually, I discovered harness racing, and that became where I’d shift my focus.”

At 19, Stutzman started out grooming horses, and while he thought his knowledge of them was thorough enough, given the fact he spent so much time around them, he was humbled very quickly.

“When I came to the track I thought I knew a lot about horses,” admits Joe. “I knew a lot about how to handle horses, but that was basically it. Knowing how to handle horses versus knowing how to deal with a Standardbred racehorse are two different things, and I learned that quickly.

“Within the first week or two working at the track, I realized how little I actually knew. I loved handling horses and I was good with that, so that helped me get my foot in the door, but I didn’t know what it took to train… I learned that pretty quickly.”

Stutzman was working for longtime trainer Gary Kingshott, and his time there not only taught him a lot about the game, but it also allowed him to save up money to become an owner himself.

“Working for Gary Kingshott was so valuable for my career,” recalls Stutzman. “I was grooming for roughly five years, and during that span I was able to save up enough money to own horses with him as well.

“I wasn’t the only one working for Gary,” says Joe. “Cal Campbell, who would become a successful trainer himself, worked for him then as well, and we developed a very strong relationship, which remains to this day. He was equally as instrumental to my success because we both started out the same way together, and were able to build ourselves up, which was cool for me to see, as friends.”

After several years working together, Campbell and Stutzman ended up opening up their own stable together, where they hoped to implement some of Kingshott’s training methods, along with their own spin on things. There was one thing in particular that Joe took away from his time spent with Gary.

“The thing that struck me the most about what I learned from Gary is that you don’t need to train horses hard in order for them to win,” says Joe. “Early on, I was convinced you’d have to get some really good miles under them before race day, but that wasn’t the case. Working there is when Cal and I both realized though, that you don’t need to train horses fast before the race in order for them to win. That stuck with us both, and we applied it when we ventured off on our own. Since then, my philosophy was to not train horses fast. I’d train and jog them longer miles, but nothing too taxing.”

In 1985, Campbell and Stutzman owned and trained horses together, where they enjoyed some success despite being a small stable - at first. What started out as three horses, fairly quickly grew to upwards of twelve.

“When Cal and I left Kingshott’s to train on our own, it was important that we had each other, because we were able to dive into it together. We had enough money to have three race horses, and two years later we had pieces of twelve of our own, with other owners now involved as well.”

Not long after that, Campbell and Stutzman split the stable and went their separate ways.

“Cal and I were having some success, and we both knew after two years we could do it on our own,” says Joe. “And we both showed exactly that. I enjoyed competing against him because we spent a long time together, and we taught each other a lot. Cal and I were close then, and we are still very close now. We helped each other in finding success and it carried out when we trained our own stables as well.”

Stutzman found plenty of success in the claiming game, where he was keen on working with established racehorses. For him, he was always focused on what he could do to improve a horse, something he was exceptionally good at.

“Conditioned and claiming horses were more my forte. Honestly, I wasn’t into buying yearlings and developing them. I just felt that I could make more money with established horses and helping them improve, as opposed to developing yearlings. I found that there was too much risk with yearlings. If you strike gold, it works out well, but I wasn’t willing to take that risk at the time, and since I found success with established racehorses, I stuck with that my entire career.”

Stutzman was pretty good at evaluating what changes were necessary for a horse to improve, and he could identify that just by watching them. It’s a trait that was pivotal in his success.

“Right away I saw what I wanted to change in a horse [that I claimed],” admits Joe. “I basically threw out the equipment card and started fresh when I claimed one. As I mentioned, I was not a developer of horses, I was an improver. I always looked to find what I could do to improve a horse, and in most cases I was able to do just that. I was keen on making them better, which I truly felt like I did a good job at, but I knew that if a horse couldn’t respond with me in its first start in my barn, he likely wasn’t going to figure it out later on either.”

With a long list of training successes, it’s hard to dispute Stutzman’s training ability, and during his successful career he picked up an O'Brien Award, as Canada’s Trainer of the Year, in 2004. It’s something he is still appreciative of to this day.

“I remember Carl Jamieson and I were the ones who were finalists that year [2004]. I’d be very curious to know what the vote was, because I figured it was very, very close.

“I like to analyze everything - including who I think will win [things] - and quite frankly, I had no idea who would win between us. Funny enough, when we got to the awards and my table was closer to the stage than Carl’s, I was feeling a heck of a lot better (laughing).”

Stutzman understands how difficult it is to win an O'Brien Award, which is why he is so proud of the feat to this day. While he knew his numbers stacked up against the best in the industry, he knew that earnings and UTRS, etc. weren’t always the main focus.

“It’s very hard winning an O'Brien, and that’s why winning one meant a lot to me. The awards are typically given out to people who have star young horses - or at least back then they were. Everyone puts a lot of credence in being able to develop a young horse and get them to the races. If they succeed, it holds a lot of merit. Respectfully, I wasn’t in agreement with that. I always  thought it should go to the one who had the best statistical season… with earnings being the weighted the heaviest, especially. This is just my opinion, and we’re starting to see it shift towards that more as of late. It’s very difficult to win one, with all the talented horsemen that exist in the sport, so to have that opportunity meant a lot to me.”

Along with winning an O’Brien Award himself, Stutzman also trained a couple of horses over the years who were worthy of similar: most notably, Ball And Chain (p,1:49; $1,435,390) and Impeccable Image (1:53.4; $1,288,593). And Joe was incredibly proud of both.

“Ball and Chain became the first horse to go sub-1:50 in Canada, and that’s something everyone remembers about him regarding his career,” says Joe. “I mean, he won in :49 flat at The Meadowlands prior to that, so on the right night and the right circumstances I knew he’d go that kind of speed, but that was never something that appealed to me. Speed badges are never something I strived for. I wanted to win races, especially the important ones when I had the opportunity to. The record mile seems to be what people remember most when reflecting on my career regarding that horse, but it’s not what I rank on a personal high of accomplishments. Ball And Chain was a special horse who always showed up,” says Joe proudly. “He was fast, he was tough, and if any of those top horses weren’t on their game, he’d be there to pick up a big piece.”

The son of Albatross did just that for Joe, on a number of occasions, most notably when they captured the 1996 Canadian Pacing Derby at Woodbine, defeating Jennas Beach Boy among others.

As for Impeccable Image, who won back-to-back O’Brien Awards in 1995 and 1996 as Canada’s top older trotter, Joe is appreciative that he got to train a horse of his caliber to this day, and took a lot of pride in being able to unlock the trotter’s potential.

“Pete Degroot developed Impeccable Image as a youngster, and when he was four or five, he came to me and offered to sell me the horse,” recalls Joe. “I really wasn’t familiar with the horse up until that moment, but the fact that Degroot had him, I knew he wasn’t hurt, because he always took care of his horses.

“I bought him for $40,000, and that was top-dollar for a horse that had his racelines, but I bought him because I knew Pete was training him and I knew that he had quality years in front of him… and I turned out to be right.”

Stutzman did get a lot out of his aged trotter, resulting in the two O’Briens, and other trainers around the industry were envious as to how Joe was able to secure him in the first place.

“As soon as the horse was in my program, I had several other trainers call me and ask me how I had the opportunity to buy the horse,” recalls Joe. “Everyone was trying to get their hands on Impeccable Image, and I was able to purchase him despite never inquiring about him in the first place (laughing).

“All those trainers had been trying to buy this horse for a while, it turned out… and I said ‘Well, he approached me and said that he was willing to sell him to me’. A little while later, I asked Peter why he came to me to sell, and he said 'I wanted to sell him to you because I knew that if you improved the horse and he went on to be a star, I knew you wouldn’t rub it in my face.’ I was honoured he said that.”

Being humble is something Stutzman took pride in, something he took from his parents at a very young age.

“Outwardly, I was never vocal about my success. I was raised not to be cocky or egotistical, so I’d never project that towards anyone. Internally, don’t get me wrong, I had a lot of confidence and I knew I could do my job at a very high level. Even if I didn't project it, I had a strong confidence that whatever I set my mind to, I could really do it.

“Truthfully, the horses taught me everything I know. 98% of what I know about horses, they taught me on their own. I tried to analyze what worked for them or what didn’t. Any good trainer will be receptive to what a horse responds or doesn't respond well to, and that’s how I went about my business.”

Part of being successful is having the right people sit behind your stock as well, something Stutzman was very keen on. And he was very fortunate to have a couple of hall of famers leading his stable under the lights, at night.

“Each driver charges 5%, so why not go and get the best?,” reasons Joe. “I had Doug Brown and Chris Christoforou leading the charge, and they were two of the best to do it, despite different driving styles.”

“I remember Doug Brown had stopped driving for Bill Robinson, so I stopped with who I was using regularly and went to him instead. There’s no denying how good Doug was, his numbers and accolades speak for themselves and I was fortunate to have him drive for me. He was one of the best, if not the best.”

As for Christoforou, while Joe didn’t always see eye-to-eye with his driving style, he learned quickly how effective it was.

“Chris liked to come off the pace and I wasn’t always a proponent of that,” says Joe. “Chris’ signature move was a third-over trip back then, and he was so good at capitalizing off that. I would always be so skeptical of being so far back but Chris really sold me that being positioned there was an ideal spot, especially if the fractions were right. He proved to be right. I mean, he’s in the hall of fame for a reason, he knew what he was doing (laughing).”

Despite the success Stutzman had training horses, there came a point when he started looking ahead to see what the next chapter of his career would bring. When the opportunity to purchase Waples’ Training Centre (now, First Line Training Centre) became available in 2008, Stutzman jumped at it.

“After my career years in 2004-2005 (where the stable earned over $8 million in purses combined), I started looking towards the next stage,” admits Joe. “I had accomplished quite a bit on the training side and was looking at what I could do next. The opportunity came up to purchase the training centre from Gord Waples and I gladly did it.”

The plan was for Stutzman to keep training horses, but he knew that might be too tall of a task. Maintaining a training centre took a lot of work, and he wasn’t able to continue training horses at the level he was accustomed to because of it.

“Once I purchased the training centre, I knew I had to shift my focus there, because that’s where all of my money was invested. When push came to shove, I realized I couldn’t focus on both. My intention wasn’t to stop training horses when I got the training centre, but I only wanted to do both if I could still train at a high level, which wasn’t the case. To train horses, it takes all your mental capacity, and that wasn’t there for me. During my two years training while I operated First Line, my horses were getting beat, and not racing as well as I had hoped… I hated it. I couldn’t take getting beat every day, especially since I’m a competitive guy (laughing).”

Joe ended his training career on August 28, 2010, with a win and a 10th place finish (in a 20-horse field) at Georgian Downs, on one of Standardbred Canada’s Xtreme Racing cards. He then shifted his focus into operating First Line Training Centre full-time, where he currently is to this day. While he misses training horses, he’s just grateful to be around them everyday, where he can give others the opportunity to master their craft.

“I miss sitting behind horses all the time,” admits Joe. “There was nothing  like training a horse for the first time, feeling him out and seeing what I could do to help and to try and improve him. I loved the challenge.

“The other thing I miss is winning - it was a drug for me. Winning races is a high like no other, and I miss that. I really loved the competition.”

Another thing Stutzman loves and appreciates is his family and children, even if they aren’t necessarily as obsessed with horses as he is.

“My family doesn’t have any interest in the industry, as far as that goes, but that’s perfectly fine,” says Stutzman. “I’ve always told my kids growing up ‘You gotta do what you love to do, life is too short to be doing something you don’t enjoy’.

“Working with horses is a labour of love, and you learn that quickly. I’m just happy that I still get to be around them on a daily basis. Not only that, but I’m around horsepeople as well. I love seeing people have success being at my training centre. It feels good playing a small part in helping them do what they love, because we all share the same admiration for the sport, and its athletes as well.”

 This feature originally appeared in the January issue of TROT Magazine. Subscribe to TROT today by clicking the banner below.