On this day in 2001, 15 years ago, one of the greatest performers in Canadian harness racing was born at Stonebridge Farm in Arva, Ont.
Plucked from the 2002 Forest City Yearling Sale in London, Ont. for $30,000 by trainer Dave Tingley of Guelph, Ont. and Joe Myers of Virginia, Peaceful Way -- originally called Stonebridge Phebe -- was renamed for the road on which Myers lives in the Peaceful Beach Estates.
“I came up from Virginia to look at her and I first thought, ‘Oh my God, she’s so small. Maybe I should rethink this purchase.’ But I didn’t. I made up my mind I was buying her and that was it,” Myers said.
Blessed with blazing speed, the daughter of Ontario stallion Angus Hall out of Royal Bait gained worldwide attention at two in 2003 when she dominated the Grand Circuit, winning nearly $1 million and Canada’s freshman trotting filly of the year award.
At three, Peaceful Way was nearly flawless, winning all five of her Ontario Sires Stakes events, including the $300,000 Super Final. Though she did break stride in both the Hambletonian Oaks and the Breeders Crown, she dominated the Delvin Miller Memorial at the Meadowlands Racetrack in New Jersey, obliterating the field by six lengths in a new lifetime best of 1:52.3. She ended her sophomore campaign with 11 wins and earnings of almost $700,000.
In 2005, she won all but one of her 10 four-year-old starts, including the Classic Oaks, the Armbro Flight, the Classic distaff, Breeders Crown and American-National against the male trotters in Chicago. The one start she failed to win was the Maple Leaf Trot against the boys at Mohawk Racetrack. She took home her third consecutive national divisional title at the O’Brien Awards, this time as her country’s unanimous choice.
The connections of Peaceful Way receive the O'Brien Award for Older Trotting Mare in 2005 (SC File Photo)
The highlight of Peaceful Way’s career came in 2006 when she surpassed $3 million in lifetime earnings with a stirring triumph against the sport’s best older male trotters in the 55th edition of the Maple Leaf Trot.
“The Maple Leaf Trot definitely was her greatest win. It’s fantastic to have owned such a horse as her, who I regard, and Dave (Tingley) does, too, as probably the fastest trotting mare that ever lived,” Myers said.
That year, she also won the Armbro Flight, the Allerage and the Matchmaker stakes races en route to yet another O’Brien Award as Canada’s older trotting mare of the year.
Peaceful Way set her lifetime mark of 1:51.4 at age four at the Meadowlands and was twice honoured as the best trotting mare in her class in the United States.
Owned at the end of her racing career by Myers, Tingley, breeder Angie Stiller and the Toronto-based trio of breeders Al Libfeld, Marv Katz and Sam Goldband, Peaceful Way was retired in 2007 in a trackside presentation at Mohawk on Maple Leaf Trot night. The Woodbine Entertainment Group has renamed the Oakville Trot the Peaceful Way Stakes in her honour.
(with files from the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame)
I've heard many many times
I've heard many many times Peaceful being referred to as a "freak". Granted she might not have possessed a pure trotting stride nor was she the ideal conformation that most are looking for, but she without question possessed blazing speed and the heart and determination of a champion. Happy birthday Peaceful
How well we remember that day
How well we remember that day 15 years ago.
It was a crisp wintery morning and I had to go out of town. Luki, our wonderful staff member, was cleaning Royal Bait's stall and turned her out in the paddock next to her stall. Royal Bait was due but had showed no signs of imminent parturition and so Luki had no concerned thought to giving her an hour in the bright sunshine.
Suddenly Luki was calling for Angie who rushed to the paddock where Royal Bait was standing over this tiny filly who was lying shivering and wet in a soft snow bank. Angie and Luki quickly picked her up and with Royal Bait following them carried her into her fresh stall. They dried her with towels and tried to warm her. She was fiercely independent even then and was soon standing feeding from mom. Angie jumped in the car and went to the pet store to buy a dog coat as there was no foal blanket small enough for her.
She was always fast and independent. I must admit that I did not have much if any optimism about her racing career as did Bart Glass, but Angie was determined that she would race.
How many wonderful days that filly/mare gave us as we lived from week to week anticipating her next feat. No distance was too great for her to make up as she turned for home, it seemed. She truly had pacing speed when she turned on the burners.
We still have a full sister and a Donato Hanover sister to Peaceful Way - hoping that lightning strikes again.
Thanks everybody for the memories.
Just a freak. She always
Just a freak.
She always looked like a hoppled pacer. One of the all time top 10 for sure.
In my opinion "Mr Cool" Ritchie and her should have gone to The Hall at the same time!