The Somebeachsomewhere Horse of the Year for 2021, Desperate Man came with some story and some major accomplishments.
Desperate Man, the Cinderella story of 2021, was voted the Somebeachsomewhere Horse of the Year and Canada’s top three-year-old pacing colt at the 2021 O'Brien Awards on Sunday, Feb. 6.
Desperate Man’s storybook sophomore season was a family affair. Owned by trainer Kathy Cecchin, her husband John, daughter Nicole and their son-in-law Paul Davies, the Shadow Play gelding recorded eight top three finishes and earned in excess of $767,000. In six Ontario Sires Stakes races, he had two victories including the season finale OSS Super Final. But the highlight of his year was his popular victory in the $1 million Pepsi North America Cup, winning in a lifetime best 1:49.3 with regular driver Trevor Henry in the bike.
A son of Shadow Play out of Dreamlands Latte, Desperate Man was an option when John and Kathy presented Nicole and Paul the choice of two wedding gifts - a down payment on a house or a share of the colt as an unproven $20,000 yearling. Suffice it to say, and even with the real estate market being as strong as it is, Nikki and Paul clearly chose wisely.
"It didn't seem that interesting to us, but it did seem interesting to other people about the wedding gift and that he was owned by the family," said Kathy in a recent interview with Standardbred Canada. Trot Insider recently caught up with the Cecchins and presented the family with their well-deserved O'Brien Award hardware.
According to Cecchin, Desperate Man has returned to training in advance of his four-year-old season as a bigger and stronger individual — an asset along with his intelligence that will serve him well as an older competitor.
"He's never been super good-gaited so we're hoping as a four-year-old he's really going to get his gait together and maybe not be lapped off the gate all the time."
To watch the full interview with Cecchin, which also reveals some of the connections' plans for his four-year-old season, click the play button below.