Farewell To A Longtime Friend

Speed and stakes wins are what make stars in harness racing, but those accomplishments matter less beyond the racetrack. Unmatched in racing talent, near millionaire Beach Ray and Caygeon Clay -- winner of a mere $11,839 -- quickly became inseparable in retirement.

Caygeon Clay may have been just an ordinary racehorse, but he was no ordinary companion for longtime barn buddy Beach Ray and his caretaker of 30 years, Sarah Beauchamp.

Unraced at two, the son of Broadcaster B and May Chief C earned just four wins, 10 seconds and 10 thirds in 68 starts competing among the lower condition and claiming ranks on the Ontario B tracks and fairs and at Batavia and Buffalo raceways. He took his mark of 2:05.4 in a qualifier at Windsor Raceway as a six-year-old back in 1985 before being retired.

A true horse lover at heart, Beauchamp met her beloved pacer at the first stable she ever worked for.

“I was raised in Welland on a farm and it was a cattle and pig farm, but we always had horses and ponies and horses were always my passion,” said Beauchamp. “I wanted to get into working with them, whether it was thoroughbreds or standardbreds, it didn’t matter. A gentleman that worked for Duncan Sinclair used to come and buy hay and oats and straw from us. Dad knew him because they had worked together driving buses during the off season and so he asked if he would take me on and that’s how I started with horses and that’s where I got ‘Clay’ from.”

After getting her foot in the door to the racing world with Sinclair, Beauchamp later went on to work for Ted Jacobs for a short time before the John Hayes stable, where she says she gained a wealth of equine knowledge over five years. Beauchamp’s experience there led her to work for the late John Grant for nearly a decade and it was during that time she made a connection with another special horse that would later have a big impact on both her and Caygeon Clay’s life.

Now 21, Beach Ray was among the horses Beauchamp groomed for Grant and the $870,000 career earner was given to her upon his retirement. Beach Ray and Caygeon Clay became close companions as they shared a huge run in stall for the next 12 years.

Beauchamp, who is now a thoroughbred vets clerk with the Ontario Racing Commission, still dabbles in the standardbred industry and paddocked the Kent Baker-trained millionaire trotter Armbro Chronicle, who recently joined her group of stablemates.

“Whatever they need, they get. It’s called quality of life. If it’s fixable, we do it,” said Beauchamp, noting her devotion to providing regular maintenance and care for any health issues arising in all of her retired racehorses. “The way I look at it is they raced for us, they made money for us, they worked hard for us so why not look after them in their retirement? That’s my belief.”

In his retirement years, Caygeon Clay remained active taking part in several standardbred horse shows and fundraiser trail rides for Big Sisters and the Flame Of Hope. With his calm demeanor, he often mentored other horses and riders on the trails.

“He was just an all-around friendly horse, not a mean bone in his body,” said Beauchamp, noting he would even get cozy with chickens, cats and dogs in his stall.

“I actually had a birthday party for ‘Clay’ at 25,” recalled Beauchamp. “I had people come over and we did trail riding and I had cake for him and a cake done up with his picture on it for us. You just don’t expect a horse to go that long.”

A credit to Beauchamp’s thorough care and companionship, Caygeon Clay celebrated his 35th birthday this past spring, but sadly passed away on Thursday, May 22.

“'Clay' went down very peacefully and I left 'Ray' with him,” said Beauchamp. “He tried to get him up once so by leaving 'Ray' with him he got to realize he was not going to get up.”

Despite having Caygeon Clay’s best interests at heart in making the decision to put him down due to age complications, the loss was, of course, a difficult one for Beauchamp and Beach Ray.

“This winter is what really took a toll on him and he had a major issue with feed,” she explained. “The vet and I discussed things and it was his time, he was tired. He showed us in his own way. I didn’t want him to go into a major colic where it was a dreadful ending. But he showed it. That’s what you get when you have a connection with your animals, which I do.

“He was my best friend. He was a horse you could always count on no matter what.”

Please join Standardbred Canada in offering condolences to the connections of Caygeon Clay.