When John Bax was young, his father sold their dairy farm, and bought a farm that included 40 Standardbreds. Safe to say that the quality of that stock wasn’t quite world class, but it was the beginning of a period of learning for John, his brother and their dad. Now, years later, and after developing a list of top trotters too long to mention, what gives the new HOF’er the most joy, is being surrounded by his family at the beautiful farm he built from a career in the sport he loves. By John Rallis.
Every time John Bax stares out the window at his farm in Campbellville, Ontario, it serves as a reminder as to just how fortunate he is to have carved out a successful career doing something he loves. From having a devoted family, quality horses and loyal partners, the native of Peterborough couldn’t have asked for a stronger foundation when it came to the day-to-day responsibilities that were required to be a quality horseman. And that foundation, along with an abundance of patience, allowed Bax to become famous for his development of young trotters. Like with anything, there were some early struggles, but those were eventually followed with plenty of ‘good times’. Now, with a career that saw his pupils earn 925 trips to various winners circles, while amassing more than $26.8 million in earnings in the process, the devoted trainer and family man can now proudly add ‘Hall of Famer’ to his resume.
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‘Learn from your mistakes’ is an idiom we often hear growing up, and for John Bax, it proved especially true early on in his career in harness racing. Valuable lessons were definitely learned, ones that would eventually shape his future in the sport.
“Growing up, my dad had a dairy farm, so I was surrounded by cattle,” shares John. “I became familiar with livestock early on, but I realized quickly that working with Standardbreds was a whole different world.
“By the time I finished high school, my dad sold the dairy farm and purchased a farm in Peterborough, which included fourty Standardbreds… That’s pretty much where it all changed for me.”
While John was unfamiliar with Standardbreds at the time, his dad was no stranger to the breed. Having worked with horses while growing up in the Netherlands, he knew exactly what was required.
Managing a stable of that size, however, was a major challenge - one that quickly became a family effort - through necessity.
“My father knew horses from his time in the Netherlands, so this wasn’t anything new to him. Of course, when you’re suddenly dealing with a stable of fourty [horses], things become a little hectic… that’s where my brother, Carl and I stepped in.
“My father had been around animals his entire life, so he was an exceptional mentor to my brother and me when it came to working with them. He was also a conformation expert, and I’m confident in saying he passed that trait down to me as well.”
With a large stable and little experience, mistakes were inevitable when it came to handling Standardbreds for John, but with each misstep became a lesson, helping him not only refine his skills, but grow more confident in his abilities.
“There were a lot of mistakes at the beginning,” he recalls. “and I always remembered the mistakes - especially the ones that cost us money (laughing).
“I remember we had one trotting filly, that wasn’t very fast anyway, but it took us a long time to figure out that she just couldn’t trot with a check. Once we removed it, she would stay to task, and looking back at it, I have no idea how I didn’t figure that out sooner (laughing).
Just like the intricacies of training, it took some time for John and his family to recognize what made a good horse, but once they had developed a knack for what that was, things became much clearer from that point on.
“Part of why we made so many mistakes was because we never really had a measuring stick for what we thought was a good horse,” he admits. “A lot of that changed courtesy of a certain filly that I eventually worked with though.
“My father-in-law had horses with a gentleman by the name of Doug Aruthr, and they started to breed to some mares. As a result, one that he came away with was a Storm Damage filly by the name of Klassy Kathy [$109,231].
“She was a big, growthy, sloppy thing, and she wasn’t going to make it as a two-year-old,” recalls John. “She barely had the strength to stand up, so my father-in-law asked me if I would try her. I threw her out in the field for three to four months, and she ended up pacing. Yes, believe it or not, she was a pacer (laughing).
“It was the smartest thing we ever did, because she eventually just came into her own, and it was the first horse of ours to really show speed as well. She ended up pacing in [1]:56, and setting a track record as a three-year-old at Kawartha Downs, which she held for a little while. That’s when we said, ‘Okay, now we have something to build off.’”
John started to feel better about his direction after every passing day, but he knew he still had plenty to learn.
“I still didn’t know all the ins-and-outs [at that point],” he admits. “Without growing up around the horse game from the very beginning, like some other families at that time, it didn’t make things easy.
“Truthfully, my family and I were still pretty naive in the game, when it pertained to a lot of things and how it all worked. We luckily came across a lot of people who gave us some good advice, but there was also some bad advice too (laughing).”
The learning curve for John was steep. For quite some time, he lacked quality stock, but that didn’t deter him from advancing his career, and eventually his patience paid off.
“In about 1990, I had my first good, two-year-old trotting filly. Her name was Island Ferry [$111,864] and she was the first one [for me] who stood out in the Ontario Sires Stakes program.
“She was my first, real good horse, and she really helped kickstart things for me,” he smiles. “She competed at multiple racetracks across Ontario and had plenty of success. That filly really kickstarted it all for me.”
Just as he never stopped working, John never stopped learning. He continued to hone his knowledge of pedigrees and conformation, knowing that as long as he kept elevating himself in those areas - along with his training regimen - it would pay off in spades.
“Between the three of us [John, his brother Carl, and his father], we continued to preach the importance of conformation. We always read books and all that we could to continue to pick up as much knowledge as possible.
“Out of the three of us, Carl was the breeding expert, but he was also a shoeing expert. He was so talented in so many facets… Unfortunately, in the early ‘90s, he was required to be in a wheelchair. He didn’t let it hinder him though. It wasn’t conventional, but he was actually still able to shoe a horse right from his wheelchair.
“Carl also studied bloodlines in-depth, and he became really refined when it came to that. We both looked at a horse through dad’s eyes, and then you learn to tweak a bit as you go along.”
The sharp eye and pedigree that the Bax family took pride in, showed up in a big way for John, Carl and their father, most notably in 1992, when they were at the Canadian Classic Yearling Sale in the Woodbine Racetrack backstretch. Just like a lot of things in life, timing, that day, was everything.
“There were a couple of Balanced Image colts that we were interested in that year,” shares John. “We had pretty good luck with that offspring [including Island Ferry], and we felt that we had a formula.
“A lot of Balanced Image offspring had one crooked leg… Some had two, and some even had three. We learned to know what we could live with as far as imperfections, and we were able to build off of that.
“Out of the two colts we were looking at, I was more of a fan of one in particular, while my dad and Carl were more interested in the other. I was outnumbered in the vote, and the one they happened to like more was entering the [sales] ring first anyway, so it was decided upon then and there.
“We didn’t have a very big budget, so it was either one or the other. We weren’t getting both”
Out came HIP #110, and for $19,000, the trotter that the Bax family took home that afternoon went by the name of Goodtimes. On that particular day, the stars aligned.
“It’s kind of crazy when I look back and think of it,” he states. “I mean, the trotter I was interested in sold for nineteen [thousand dollars] as well, and he made ten [thousand dollars] lifetime. Had he entered the ring first, we might’ve not ended up with Goodtimes. They aren’t kidding when they say timing is everything (laughing).”
Goodtimes (1:53.2s -’99; $2,243,416) didn’t show the type of speed early on that gave John an indication he’d be a star; what he did show him however, was the desire to want to do it, which was usually enough for one to be a racehorse at least.
“Dave Wall drove him at two, and I honestly think he did a fantastic job,” shares John. “You have to remember, he was taking on a really tough group of rookie trotters… that was a heck of a class [that year].
Bax wasn’t joking, as Goodtimes, racing as a freshman in 1993, was regularly up against the likes of Glorys Comet ($2,057,695), Mr Lavec ($947,321), Armbro Marshall ($947,288), Hornby Duke ($668,010), Oaklea Count ($636,122) and Woodman ($426,854), just to name a few!
“Goodtimes couldn’t beat those horses off the gate, but Dave just raced him with an eye. He would stick him in, follow along, and make whatever money we could… and towards the end of his three-year-old campaign, we won the Canadian Breeders, in large part because he was the freshest horse in the bunch. It was a highlight, but little did we know we were in store for more.”
After a one-win rookie campaign saw him earn $54,736, Goodtimes hit six-figure purse totals over his next five seasons, and had amassed more than $1.2 million earnings by the end of his seven-year-old year. He had become one of the most prominent trotters in Canada, and his feats earned him an invitation to Sweden, to compete in their premier, trotting event: the Elitlopp. It was an experience the Ontario horseman from humble beginnings would’ve never envisioned, even in his wildest of dreams.
“To be honest, you don’t have time to dream about what could be, simply because, when it comes to this game, you’re living day-to-day, week-to-week, month-to-month,” states John. “Of course, Goodtimes changed so much for me, and the experience of racing him in an event like the Elitlopp, was definitely one of those things.
“That experience was incredible for so many reasons, and not just because he made over $100,000 while he was there either,” John says with a chuckle. “Being over there was a life changer for me, because it really opened my eyes to learning many different ways of doing things.”
Goodtimes spent over six weeks in Europe on that memorable trip, racing twice in Norway and once in Finland before heading to Sweden for their premier event. Despite not winning any of his five starts, the son of Balanced Image - Goodtime Kathy represented Canada well, finishing either second, third or fifth in each race.
“We got beat by a nose in the [Elitlopp] elimination, and that loss was crucial. If he wins, he would’ve had the first or second pick as far as choosing post-positions, and we ended up picking fourth.
“We ended up getting the rail [in the Elitlopp final] and Dave [Wall] and Goodtimes had to deal with some traffic trouble. A horse made a break in front of us at the top of the lane too, and we had trouble getting out… We ended up getting nipped by Moni Maker for second [and finished third]. He really put forth a great showing.”
Historically, North American horses that participate in Sweden’s signature event, don’t always come back the sharpest. That was never in the back of John Bax’s mind when making the decision to go, but even if it had been, his star pupil dispelled that notion anyway.
“I didn’t think about how he’d fare coming back [from Europe], maybe in part because I was a little naive,” admits John. “Of course, to travel that far and compete in a race like that, it’s never easy, but his first start back [from Sweden], he was lights out.
“One month after competing in the Elitlopp, Goodtimes competed in the Frank Ryan [Memorial] at Rideau Carleton, and he set a World Record, winning in 1:53.2 in the process. There was a lot of chatter as to how he’d come back [from Sweden], but I think he shut down the chatter awfully quickly.
That eight-year-old season, when they made the trip to Europe, would prove to be the richest ever in the career of Goodtimes, when he earned $552,803 and earned his sole O’Brien Award as Canada’s top aged trotter.
He also hit six-digits in purse money at ages 9, 10 and 11, running his streak in that area to nine years in a row, but like any athlete, Father Time eventually catches up. That’s when John decided he wanted to make sure he ended things on a high note.
“His feet really started to bother him towards the end, and I knew that it was time to call it quits. I also knew he was sitting on 49 career wins, and I thought if I could win his 50th with him at Kawartha, it would be pretty cool.”
On October 21, 2003, John Bax and Goodtimes returned to Kawartha Downs for one final time - the very place where their journey began a decade earlier - and the pair teamed up for a 1 ¼ length victory in 1:59.2, fulfilling the milestone feat of 50 wins. It was a full circle moment for the esteemed trotter and his dedicated trainer, who drove him one final time that evening.
“To end it the way we did, now that was special,” recalls John. “Goodtimes meant so much to us… He had been with us for such a long time… my kids grew up with him as well. He’ll always hold a special place in my heart.”
While a horse like Goodtimes is basically irreplaceable, John and his operation continued to pick out and develop quality talent year-after-year, with stars like Duke Of York ($925,921), Define The World ($1,740,839), Duly Resolved ($994,128), Riveting Rosie ($973,336), Stubborn Belle ($692,116) and Righteous Resolve ($1,021,218) - to name a few - leading the way.
In 2022, he enjoyed a career year for earnings, when the stable totaled $1,936,494 in purses, and just like Goodtimes, John decided to end on a high note.
“I felt like it was time [to retire]. 2022 was such a great year, and while that motivated me to keep going, I felt good about where I was leaving my son Matt [Bax]. He had a good foundation to work with, and I felt he was ready to take over the day-to-day operations that are required to be a trainer.
“All four of my kids helped out at the farm, but Matt showed the strongest interest in terms of wanting to be involved [long-term]. I got to learn doing it with my dad, and now he got to learn by doing it with me. Of course, my goal as a father is to try and put him in a better position to succeed, and I think I did exactly that by leaving him with a good group of horses.”
Family dynamic was imperative for John, when he began his involvement with horses, and that component has been the biggest recipe for success when summing up what he can now call a Hall of Fame career.
“I couldn’t do it without my family, and I definitely could not have accomplished any of this without my wife, Vicky,” he states. “Without her support, none of this was possible. She always gave me a kick in the ass whenever I needed it… And she made sure my ego didn’t get too big when I was on a roll as well. Training horses is a big responsibility, but for me, doing it all with family is a way of life.”
John no longer has to deal with the day-to-day responsibilities that comes with being a trainer full-time, but his involvement with horses will never stop, and he wouldn’t want it another way.
“I’m kind of like the groundskeeper now,” he jokes. “I help out with a few things here and there, and I’m always catching up with Matt on a daily basis, going back-and-forth on ideas, but the heavy lifting is over.
“Whether it be watching horses jog around the track or just eat grass, or even watching my grandchildren run around and have fun, being able to see all that outside my window might be the most satisfying thing at all. That, to me, is what I consider a Hall of
Fame life.”
This feature originally appeared in the June issue of TROT Magazine. Subscribe to TROT today by clicking the banner below.
