Chosen Voyageur had always been a good trotter, but he hit the skids late last season. His four legs had suspensory ligament problems and his previous owners had summoned an Amishman to sell Chosen Voyageur as a buggy horse.
Although, the $5,000 asking price was too much for a horse to pull an Amish wagon, so Stephen Petershein tried to peddle the trotter with his stops at various racetracks.
A stop at Monticello Raceway in mid-January proved fruitful.
Petersheim told trainer Gary Messenger that he had a horse aboard his truck that he thought could possibly make it back to the races.
“He (Petersheim) told me Chosen Voyageur stood in the stall for three months," Messenger said. "I checked him out and saw he had four bad suspensories that had been pin-fired, but they seemed tight. So I hooked him up and jogged him. He seemed pretty good and I asked him what he had to get for the horse.”
Petersheim had told Messenger the owners wanted $5,000 for Chosen Voyageur. Messenger said he’d take him, but Petersheim had a stipulation which was that he wanted to purchase half of the horse.
Since Chosen Voyageur had won $71,000 during 2010 and took a 1:53.3 record at Dover Downs that season, Messenger agreed to go partners with Petersheim.
After a lengthy period getting the trotter ready to return to the races, Messenger finally put him in a qualifying race at Monticello Raceway in late March. Chosen Voyageur won the qualifier in 2:06.4 with Shane Taggart aboard.
On April 6, Messenger entered the trotter in an overnight event with a $20,000 claiming tag. With Zeke Parker aboard, Chosen Voyageur won the trot by a neck in 2:01.4. After five more starts --- one at Tioga Downs where he finished second in 1:56.3 and one at Yonkers Raceway where he finished fourth --- Chosen Voyageur returned to the 'Mighty M' and began his racing season in earnest.
By the first of October, Chosen Voyageur had won nine races --- eight faster than 1:59.3 on the Monticello half mile oval --- and had five seconds from 19 starts. His fastest trotting victory was a 1:58 clocking on May 25.
“He leaves like a pacer and loves to be on the lead,” said Parker, who has been Chosen Voyageur’s regular driver. “All of his wins this year have on the front-end.”
The gelded eight-year-old son of Balanced Image made his 20th seasonal start at the Mighty M on October 5, which resulted in a wire-to-wire, four-length win in 1:58.1.
“Racing horses is a gamble, but the one we took when we bought Chosen Voyageur was one of the best gambles I ever took,” Messenger said. "I’d like to buy a horse like him for $5,000 every day of the week.”
(Monticello)