"Keith was always in the limelight. He was a horseman's horseman, respected by his peers and a role model for young aspiring horsemen."

To honour one of the greatest horsemen in the history of harness racing, the Standardbred Canada website will feature a five-part series on the legendary Keith Waples as he approaches his 90th birthday.

Penned by writer Robert Smith, this is the second of five SC web exclusive web features on one of racing's most revered individuals.

Memories Of Keith Waples

One person who has followed and greatly admired Keith down through the years is the long-time writer, award-winning author and all-around world-class journalist William "Bill" Galvin.

(Keith Waples, complete with a "stogie" is pictured above in this trackside photo taken at Garden City in 1969 along with long time publicity personality Bill Galvin)

Bill has known Keith for more years than he cares to admit. I recently asked him for a few words about this remarkable man, and here is what he had to say:

"Keith Waples, a quiet spoken man with a dry wit, spoke very few words to most of the media, but his driving exploits spoke volumes on the race track. Consistently among the top dash and money winners, Keith was always in the limelight. He was a horseman's horseman, respected by his peers and a role model for young aspiring horsemen. He pursued his craft in a quiet manner, but his lack of conversation with some enquiring writes was very often brief. As a young publicity man who worked the backstretches on a daily basis and talked to trainers, grooms and drivers in search of a good story, I understood why this wily wizard of the reins had little time to answer the queries of some scribes who knew very little about the sport and posed a lot of silly questions."

Bill also added "I am glad you are doing this piece. It is so fitting, particularly at this stage in his life that the entire story be told and for Keith to be in the spotlight again."

Keith Waples enters the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame - 1973

Pictured here are the 1973 Canadian Sports Hall of Fame inductees. From left to right: Levi "Shotty" Rogers (Rowing), Father David Bauer (Hockey), Ray Mitchell (Bowling), Keith Waples (Harness Racing) and Matt Baldwin (Curling) [Waples Family Archives]

In 1973, 50-year old Keith Waples was inducted into the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame. He became just the fourth inductee selected from the sport of harness racing. He followed fellow drivers Joe O'Brien and Herve Filion as well as Col. Dan MacKinnon, who was enshrined in the Builders category.

Waples' selection followed a career that then spanned over 35 years and had already seen him take home virtually every major prize offered in the sport. Additionally he was still performing at an extremely high level. He went on to win more than 3,200 races in his career and undoubtedly many more that were not recorded in the early years.

Previous Features

- A Star Is Born