Thirteen is generally regarded as an unlucky number but Rachel Oenema of Burgessville, ON near Woodstock must be wishing she could live forever
in her first year as a teenager.
“I’ve known since I was very young that I would be involved with harness racing due to my Dad, Ted (Sietse) and my older brother Terry,” says Rachel, a grade eight student at North Norwich Public School . “They’re making sure I keep my grades up at 93% and I’m a straight ‘A’ student. But every spare minute I find I’m with the horses” she says.
She’s been a licensed race horse owner since she was just nine years old. Two of her stable members have been on incredible win streaks lately. Five year old trotter On Demand is on a seven-race win streak and four-year-old mare Panastasia goes out next Tuesday at Western Fair in search of her fourth straight win in claiming company but she’ll have to overcome the London track’s toughest outside post to topple the field again.
“On Demand just continues to surprise us and we’re being really careful with how we’re classifying and managing him,” says trainer Terry Oenema. “He was a Mennonite farm horse near Tillsonburg until a friend of mine, Jim McClintock spotted him and suggested we give him a try. We got him over being hot tempered and kicking and that was the big, big hurdle.”
Following a six-race win streak in London, On Demand was shipped up to Hanover on May 30 for the undercard of an Ontario Sires Stakes program. He overcame a very sloppy track and racing alone on the outside to pile up his seventh straight victory.
The remarkable run of good luck has prompted Terry to start a ritual in the recent winners’ circle photographs with On Demand and Panastasia. He points with his right index finger to the sky while holding the horse’s head with his left hand as the picture is snapped.
“I really want to make sure my fellow horse people know that we’re not bragging or running up the score,” Terry says. “My pointing up to the sky is not saying something like we’re number one. It’s just a request that whatever force from up above is guiding us that we be allowed to keep on going for a while longer. I mean we’ve won seven straight with On Demand and when it ends it’ll be a great memory. After all, in this business it’s very, very rare for a trainer to win seven in a row with a single horse, but it sure is easy to lose seven straight.”
Great Series, Great Contest
The coming week brings the second leg action in the City of London Series to Western Fair and the first leg of a handicapping contest focused on the Series. Horses and handicappers are attempting to qualify for the championship finals on June 19. The top ten finishers from the preliminary legs return for a chance at the $500 top prize the same night as the four finals are on track for purses of about $200,000.
The supremely talented but enigmatic Greystone Cash will be the focus of attention on Monday afternoon as the Series second leg turns to the gate in the colt and gelding pace division. The Million Dollar Cam - Speedy Helen three-year-old gelding was poised to sweep the field in the third quarter last week but then made a sudden break. The recent private purchase by London ’s Patrick Ryan from breeders Jean and Jim Caddey is trained by Bruce Goit. Anthony Haughan is hired back to drive.
Through June 30, post time at Western Fair each Monday and Tuesday afternoon is at 3:35 p.m. with Friday evening programs turning to the gate at 7:05 p.m. After the usual hiatus in July, August and September live racing will return to Western Fair on October 2.
(Western Fair Raceway)