Trainers in harness racing are often referred to as the backbone of the industry. As something I am personally working on learning more about, I wanted to get some perspective from the industry, directly from experienced standardbred horse trainers. I know they are the ones who work with the horses all week-long jogging, training and making the decisions for where the horses are to race, but what else lies beneath the surface? This past week I had the chance to interview 5 different trainers and ask them some in depth questions about their personal histories in the industry. Questions like “how long have you been a trainer for?”, and “who taught you the ropes of the industry?” I was most curious to learn what horse of theirs has impressed them the most, and what their biggest challenges they face as a trainer are. Of course we all want to know…. “how do you choose a driver for your horse?”. Lastly, I asked them about how their stable is dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic, something that has impacted the whole world, right down to our stables. Find out below what these talented trainers had to say.
Bob Mcintosh
As a veteran of the sport, Bob was literally born into the industry since his dad Jack Mcintosh stabled 6-7 horses at any given time. Bob was around horses ever since he could walk and every summer he would travel with his dad to different racetracks. Once Bob graduated high school, he went to work for his brother Doug, but it wasn’t long until he got his very own stable in 1977. The horse that Bob has been the impressed with over his career is Western Shooter who unfortunately died at young age. Bob remembers this colt as the fastest horse he ever drew a line over and he almost made $1 million in his 2-year-old season. When this horse died because of an infection it was by far the worse day of Bob’s life as he had unreal talent. Western Shooter could pace a quarter in 26 seconds without trying. Surely this set the bar high for future horses in the Mcintosh stable!
Currently Bob has 42 horses in training and 20 broodmares. He personally doesn’t believe in buying horses from the sales anymore, and all his stock is home bred. Bob feels the biggest challenge as a trainer is that you can have a great looking 2-year-old and than one step they have a broken bone and you’re out of business with that horse. A financial challenge has resulted since the closure of Windsor Raceway. Bob lives in Lasalle, which was literally a few minutes from Windsor Raceway. Now, shipping to Mohawk on a regular basis, the overhead keeps going up with increased fuel costs as well as wear and tear on the truck and trailers. Something that has never been a big challenge for Bob is choosing drivers for his horses. Bob learned how to choose a driver from his dad Jack, who would always hire the top driver at every track, which would give him an edge, which was the beginning of the practice of catch drivers in the 1950s. Bob himself has always gone with the top guys like John Campbell and Bill O’Donnell. Like his father, Bob feels you always give yourself an edge if you go with the top drivers. At this moment Bob’s main driver is Trevor Henry who Bob feels does a great job for him on the track.
During this Covid-19 pandemic Bob feels it is very nerve racking and that it would just be easier if everyone knew when they could go back racing. Its also very stressful for a trainer with a big payroll and not much income coming in now, but to Bob it’s not the end of the world. Last year was a massive year for Bob as he reached $100 million in career earning as a trainer. He is a legend, and it was a pleasure to interview a well-known trainer who has been inducted into the harness racing hall of fame.
Mike Rogers
Another well known trainer in the Windsor area, Mike Rogers has been training horses for over 27 years and has loved every minute of it. He learned the majority of the business from Paul Ruhl and Greg Britton, who taught him the ropes of the industry. When asked to share his thoughts of all the horses he has had over the years, the one that has been the most impressive to Mike is Leafs And Wings, the classy 13 year old son of Rambaran, with a lifetime mark of 1:50.2 at Mohawk and over $520,000 in lifetime earnings. Mike’s stable has downsized recently with just 4 horses currently in the stable, which is a good size during times like these. In good times to make sure his horses are successful, Mike likes using different drivers for different horses because sometimes a horse and driver don’t always get along. Like many trainers in our area, Mike feels the biggest challenge of being a trainer is shipping to race because of his regular job. It’s a balancing act when one is not a trainer full time. A current challenge for all trainers is the Covid-19 pandemic, Mike feels it is tough for everyone just trying to keep their horses tight and ready for when everyone gets the all clear to race again.
Gord McDonnell
Gord has now trained standardbreds for 35 years and has plenty of experience in the business. He got his start in the industry by working for stables like Rod Duford and Greg Wright, which led him to having a stable of his own. Gord currently has a stable of 9 horses in his barn, with Woodmere Wyldstyle being the most impressive to him. You often see this mare in the higher-level classes at Western Fair Raceway, where she also won the award for aged pacing mare of the year at their annual awards banquet.
Gord feels the biggest challenges of being a trainer is finding the right classes to enter your horses in, also trying to keep them sound and healthy on a regular basis. As for entering horses, choosing your driver is very important, Gord chooses them by talent, how they manage his horses in the race and he also must like them as a person.
During Covid-19, Gord finds it more difficult for the people that racehorses, than the horses themselves as they are enjoying some down time. Gord’s horses are still training but get a lot more paddock time. It is also worth mentioning that Gord was the winner of the horseman award at the Wespy (Windsor Essex Sportspersons of the Year) awards on March 10th.
Taylor Spitzig
Shifting gears, I wanted to get some perspective from a different demographic and decided to reach out to Taylor Spitzig. Taylor has been training horses for 8 years now, and her dad Rusty taught her most of what she knows about the industry to this day. She has also learned a lot from other trainers George Little, Bob Young, Travis and Alaina Alexander and Chris Johnston. The horse that has impressed Taylor the most so far is Petty Rapid Dash, who is a 3-year-old filly out of Rocknroll King out of an unraced Intrepid Seelster mare Rapid Riley. This filly has come a long way since she started. Mark Williams broke the filly for Taylor and Rusty, and the filly took some time to get going. It was a long road for the filly to learn how to pace but now she’s got it figured out, she is currently the best filly Taylor has training. Unfortunately, this filly was only a week or two from qualifying before all the tracks shut down due to Covid-19.
Currently, Taylor is going with six 3-year old’s, five of which are Rocknroll kings and an Indiana sired filly out of Bring on the Beach who is a full brother to SomeBeachSomeWhere. Taylor feels the biggest challenge as a trainer is dealing with lame or sick horses, because when they are sick or lame, you miss out on racing which is tough as people in the business rely on their horses racing week in and week out. When you miss out on racing for some time it can be hard to keep your head above water financially.
As for choosing a driver Taylor usually tries to go with drivers that she’s had luck within the past, or a driver that currently has hot hands. Lorne House is usually her go-to driver; he has always given Taylor advice after the race to help for the next week. The thing she likes about using Lorne is that he treats every horse the same and gives them the best shot to be successful. During these tough times, Covid-19 hasn’t really affected Taylor’s stable other than not being able to race, but they are still in business as usual. Their horses are still jogging every day, training twice a week so that they are ready when racing returns.
Danielle St Louis
A rising star in Southern Ontario, Danielle got her trainers licence around 12 years ago. She has worked with many people that have taught her about the industry, but her husband Marc St Louis Jr, has been with her the whole time and taught her the most of what she knows to this day. Danielle has really built up her stable as she currently has a busy barn of 17 horses. The horse that has impressed her the most is Phoos Girl because they claimed this mare for $4,800 and she has turned into a preferred pacer on the Ontario circuit. She is all heart and tries every single week. Choosing a driver for Danielle is no worries as her husband was the leading driver for wins in Canada for 2019. If she had to select a driver, she would definitely opt for an aggressive one.
2019 was a banner year for Danielle as she won the leading trainer title at four different tracks across Southwestern Ontario, including Hiawatha Horse Park, Dresden Raceway, Leamington Raceway and Western Fair Raceway. 2020 was off to another good start at Western Fair Raceway being tied for leading trainer, but that run has been interrupted. During the Covid-19 pandemic Danielle has been dealing with it day by day in her stable. Obviously, she knows it is not ideal but there is nothing else you can do about it and you must keep moving forward. Whatever happens she will be ready when racing returns!
In conclusion I want to thank these trainers for taking the time to answer my questions. Their advice will be very helpful to up and coming trainers in the industry. One thing these trainers for sure have in common is that all of them cannot wait for racing to return and these challenging times to be over. Luckily all horse racing people are strong, and we will get through this together. I hope to see you all soon!
Article by Nathan Bain
Follow me on Twitter @NBainracing
