The incomparable Somebeachsomewhere headlined a group of eight inductees into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame as part of the induction ceremony that took place Thursday night
at the Mississauga Convention Centre in Mississauga, Ont.
The other two standardbred inductees were driver/trainer Keith Clark and the outstanding broodmare Rich N Elegant. The thoroughbred class of 2009 saw Gustav Schickedanz, one of North America’s leading breeders the past 10 years, Canadian thoroughbred Triple Crown winner Peteski and three champion fillies – Alywow, La Voyageuse and Maryfield all inducted. The eight inductees were elected by the standardbred and thoroughbred 20-person election committees.
North America’s Horse of the Year in 2008 and Canada’s champion for 2007 and 2008, Somebeachsomewhere renewed a lot of people’s passion for the industry with his awesome performances on the racetrack and the great story of how his owners, The Schooner Stable from Bible Hill, Nova Scotia, came together to purchase and race a horse of world champion stature. In rewriting the record book, the son of Mach Three captured almost every award possible during his two-year reign at tracks in North America.
MacGrath, on behalf of the connections, "With great pride I'm here tonight. I felt both humbled and honoured to be connected to such a horse. It's a bittersweet induction as three days after the NA cup win my dad passed. When I was younger I remember a sense of excitement seeing horses of yesteryear, and my involvement with the industry - that's thanks to him.
"Paul and Beach - what a team. Your successes have been many. You're a great friend and a great driver. To the owners, this group of people never wavered from keeping the horse first. Josh and Rhonda. What a ride. It's a time we will all treasure. Thanks to Hanover Shoe Farms for getting Beach the best group of mares in history.
"I'm often asked for a defining moment in Beach's career. I now realize it was everything. He was the whole show as Paul put it. To the fans. Beach was the horse of a lifetime and the support was tremendous."
Trainer-driver Keith Clark, 56, of DeWinton, Alta., is one of the most recognizable names in Western Canadian harness racing. Clark has driven 5,598 winners and horses to in excess of $27.8 million while training 3,292 winners and horses with earnings of over $20 million. He was honoured with the O’Brien Award of Horsemanship in 2004 and in 2008 won more than 100 races for the 29th time in the past 30 years. Clark’s most memorable horse was the Abercrombie pacing colt As Promised, a winner of 71 races and over $669,000 who was inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 2006.
Clark noted that he "can't say how much of an honour and thrill this is. I have to thank the voting committee. Racing has given me a lot of thrills and exciting moments. I wouldn't be here without so many great owners, help and great horses. Rons Girl, Thatll Be Me, As Promised. My mom Helen bet two bucks on me every time I went to the gate. Thanks to my family and my girlfriend Shawna who keeps me grounded. Congrats to the other inductees and it's an honour to be here with you."
Rich N Elegant is the female standardbred horse elected to the Hall of Fame. In 1990, Rich N Elegant started her career as a top ranked broodmare. Bred by Armstrong Bros. of Inglewood, Ont., she earned $96,244 and took a lifetime mark of 1:56.4 during her racing career. She was then purchased by Hanover Shoe Farms and retired to the breeding shed. To date, Rich N Elegant has produced winners of over $8.3 million. She has foaled 12 horses including 8 starters with average earnings per starter of $1,038,759. Three of her offspring have earned over a million dollars, with the top money earner, Rocknroll Hanover, a past O’Brien Award winner, at $3,069.093.
Speaking of behalf of Hanover Shoe Farms, President Jim Simpson said "it's only fitting that Rich N Elegant was foaled in Ontario but is producing horses racing across North America, building a bridge between our two countries."
The 80-year-old Gustav Schickedanz, who won the Queen’s Plate in 1999 with Woodcarver and in 2003 with Triple Crown champion Wando, sprung into prominence when he bred a mare to one of Northern Dancer’s great sons, Danzig, a mating that produced Langfuhr, a multiple winner of the major sprint races in the United States and one of North America’s leading sires. His offspring included Wando, Mobil, Lawyer Ron, Jambalaya, Kimchi and Marlang. Schickedanz also bred Kentucky Oaks winner Gal in a Ruckus and has a relatively small breeding operation in Nobleton, Ont.
Laurie Kenny (farm manager) spoke.
"Gus still is very active - he rides every morning - helps with the hay. Gus has been master of the hunt for thirty years. To be succesful you need to be very lucky.
"Gus has passed on his love of horses to his children. He has had 298 foals - earnings of 31 million.
Thank you to Mike Keogh - our trainer. Hopefully we're only halfway there. Gus has a farm in South Carolina where his horses are allowed to retire in dignity. Gus says we have to give back to these horses."
The horse with the meteoric career, Peteski, dominated horse racing locally in 1993 as he swept to victories in the Triple Crown event and then won the Molson Export Million on the grass at Woodbine over Kentucky Derby winner Sea Hero and Belmont Stakes winner Colonial Affair. Bred by Barry Schwartz of Montreal and trained by Roger Attfield, Peteski was owned by Earle I. Mack of New York, a trustee of the NYRA and former ambassador to Finland. Peteski, trained by Roger Attfield, had earnings of only $714 when he began his impressive three-year-old season.
Trainer Roger Attfield accepted on behalf of the owner, and remarked that he was "very honoured with the induction, and that Peteski great horse to train."
Elected in the Veterans category, La Voyageuse maintained her championship form over a three-year period – 1978 to 1980 – for owner Jean-Louis Levesque and trainer Yonnie Starr. Of classic breeding, by Tentam out of the champion Northern Dancer mare Fanfreluche, La Voyageuse won on the dirt and grass and at distances from six furlongs to a mile and an eighth. She often carried top weight during her three Sovereign Award winning seasons.
Pierre-Louis Levesque spoke on bebalf of the connections.
"Like to thank the Hall Of Fame, been good memories. The licence plate of Quebec is je me souviens and I'd like to thank you all for remebering her."
Alywow was the female sensation of 1994. The first daughter of Triple Wow, she was a triple wow on Sovereign Awards’ night when she was voted Canada’s Horse of the Year, champion three-year-old filly and leading performer on the turf. This award was to be expected after her gallant second-place finish to Raintrap and the males in the Gr. 1 Rothmans International. Owned and bred by Kinghaven Farms, Alywow was trained by Roger Attfield.
Ian Black for the connections, "On behalf of Kinghaven Farms, great to see her going into the Hall. She was a great mare for us."
Maryfield was bred in Ontario by Mike Carroll and John C. Harvey Jr., and was owned initially by Alice and Jim Sapara of Edmonton, Alta. She raced ten times at Woodbine for trainer Josie Carroll before being claimed by Doug O’Neill for $50,000 in her first start as a three-year-old at Santa Anita. She became a stakes winner for her new owners and was campaigned throughout the U.S., winning stakes races at Santa Anita and Churchill Downs in 2006. In 2007 she won the Gr. 1 Ballerina at Saratoga and Gr. 2 Distaff Breeders’ Cup at Aqueduct before her triumph in the inaugural running of the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint championship at Monmouth Park, N.J. That victory earned her an Eclipse Award. Maryfield was retired and sold for $1.25 million at the 2007 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky November select mixed sales and was bred to A.P. Indy. She foaled a bay colt in February of 2009.
"Maryfield overcame her imperect breeding to become a Hall of Famer in 2009," said owner Nick Mestrandrea, crediting her tremendous heart - the true mark of a champion. " We accept this honour with a great debt of gratitude."