With the Breeders Crown in the books, major moves have been made and margins have tightened on the 2020 TROT Magazine Fantasy Stable leaderboard.
Placed 10th on the leaderboard last month, James Ling of Springboro, Oh. shot to the top of the rankings, while last month's leader Bernard Dunn of Dunham, Que. dropped into eighth. Strong campaigns by Tall Dark Stranger ($1,428,681), Gimpanzee ($1,172,092), Manchego ($634,921) and Hypnotic AM ($698,178) pumped both stables into the top spots of the leaderboard, but the Breeders Crown and Kindergarten wins by Summa Cum Laude ($540,325) propelled James Ling higher up the leaderboard to claim a narrow lead coming to the tail of the Grand Circuit season. His Luck Of The Irsish stable currently sits with a bankroll of $6,945,661.
Tom Baryluk of Sydney, N.S. sits a close second by less than $50,000. With $6,899,342 banked to his Bristol Aces stable, Baryluk rode his way to the second spot also off the strong season by Tall Dark Stranger, Gimpanzee and Hypnotic AM, but carved a closer path to the lead with thanks to Century Farroh ($807,341) and world-champion Cattlewash ($398,186).
Kenneth Sizer and his Holdemace007 stable currently stands third just $11,000 behind Baryluk's Bristol Aces. Trailing by minor numbers on his horse's earnings, Sizer has recouped the deficit slightly with the season's had by trainers Nancy Takter ($370,237) and Carmen Auciello ($82,930) as well as by driver Bob McClure ($287,360). His $6,878,168 bankroll places him just under $100,000 in front of Bill Smellie and his Billaboogie stable ($6,804,772) as well as about $100,000 in front of first-time Fantasy Stable participant, trainer Nancy Takter ($6,790,241).
The TROT Fantasy Stable Contest is based on total earnings of selected horses and five per cent of the earnings of selected trainers and drivers between June 19 and Dec. 31, 2020.
For the purposes of the fantasy bankroll, the winners (horses only) of the 2020 Breeders Crown Finals each received a $200,000 contest bankroll bonus. In the event of a dead heat in a Breeders Crown Final, the $200,000 is divided among the dead heating horse(s).
At the end of the year, the winner of the contest will receive entry into and travel to the 2021 World Harness Handicapping Championship, a prize valued at (approx.) $1,300.
Click the Fantasy tab near the top right hand side of the Standardbred Canada homepage to follow along with the contest all year long. Contest totals are updated daily at 11:00 a.m. (EST).
The top 10 stables as of Nov. 10, 2020, are featured below. To see the full list of results, click the following link: 2020 TROT Magazine Fantasy Stable Standings.
| Rank | Stable | Name | City, Province/State | Total Earnings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | LUCK OF THE IRSISH | James Ling | Springboro, OH | $6,945,661 |
| 2 | BRISTOL ACES | Tom Baryluk | Sydney, NS | $6,899,342 |
| 3 | HOLDEMACE007 | Kenneth Sizer | Calgary, AB | $6,878,168 |
| 4 | BILLABOOGIE | Bill Smellie | Arthur, ON | $6,804,772 |
| 5 | NANCY TAKTER | Nancy Takter | Allentown, NJ | $6,790,241 |
| 6 | FOUR K STABLES | Grant King | Bedford, NS | $6,774,802 |
| 7 | JC NEWFIEBOUND | Jamie Lefave | Swift Current, SK | $6,773,894 |
| 8 | SYLBERUN INC | Bernard Dunn | Dunham, QC | $6,698,724 |
| 9 | JENN'S JETS | Jenn Jacoby | Charlotte, NC | $6,669,659 |
| 10 | BORTAKSTABLE2020 | Robert Steinke | Windsor, ON | $6,659,512 |