THE HAMBLETONIAN - hoofbeatsmagazine.com · Jimmy Takter Stable. “There are even certain types of bugs—like ants—that make him sick.” As a 2-year-old Capetown Hall began to

80 HOOF BEATS • SEPTEMBER 2006

THE HAMBLETONIAN

HOOF BEATS • SEPTEMBER 2006 81

t was the fall of 2005, but inLexington, Blair Burgess was feelingsummer-like heat.

Burgess’ colt Glidemaster, whileheading to the start of the Inter-national Stallion Stake on Oct. 6,had caused a recall by running intoanother horse.

That, however, was the least ofBurgess’ problems.

After the recall lights flashed, the gatewings were folded as the starting carpulled over to the outside of the trackwhile the field regrouped. That leftGlidemaster on the trot and looking onan open stretch. Burgess looked at hiswife, Karin, the colt’s caretaker, and saidsimply, “We’re airborne.”

The son of Yankee Glide put his headdown as far as the overcheck allowed,and left driver Trevor Ritchie a mere pas-

THE HAMBLETONIAN


Hard at work: Above, Blair Burgess closely supervised Glidemaster in the days before theHambletonian. Below, from left, Bob Burgess, Blair Burgess and Myron Bell all believed inGlidemaster from his earliest races. I

senger as he trotted out of control for themile length of the track—and then some.Dirt flew hither and yon, the gatheredcrowd murmured in disbelief, and theBurgesses stood by powerless andanguished.

The colt, figuring he had done his rac-ing bit, then pulled himself up.

Heartsick at the display, Burgess nowfaced a choice. The colt had potential,there was no doubt. He also had anotherstakes engagement—the Valley VictoryTrot—for which he really needed thisprep. So despite a struggle with his con-science, Burgess sent Glidemaster back toface the starter and hoped the colt wouldbe better behaved.

He wasn’t. Glidemaster shot straight off the gate

and was again out of control, taking aneight-length lead around the first quarterin 28.1 and the half in 57.1—beforestarting to go backwards. He ended uplast in the field of six, 51 lengths behindwinner Global Glide.

It was his last appearance on the trackthat year, and many wondered if thepromising colt would ever race again.

Fast forward 10 months, and Burgesswas again feeling the heat with Glide-master.

The colt had made it back to theraces—all the way back. He had wontwo of his first five 3-year-old starts andtaken a 1:53.1 mark on July 21. A weeklater, Burgess and his partners—wifeKarin and father Bob, as well as MarshaCohen and Brittany Farms—had writtenthe entry fee check and seen the coltdraw post two in his Hambletonian elim-ination against favored Mr Pine Chip.

On the Wednesday before the elim,however, Karin Olsson-Burgess foundthe colt barefoot on his right front hoof,the shoe buried in shavings of the stall. Aday later, Glidemaster was three-leggedlame from the shoe nail penetrating hisfoot, and it seemed, despite all hisprogress from that fated Lexington day,that trotting’s biggest race would have togo on without him.

But the Burgesses had come too farwith Glidemaster to give up now.

So began round-the-clock care of thestrapping trotter—soaking, poulticingand bandaging his foot. So began hoursat the blacksmith shop, where shoe aftershoe was created to ease the hoof pres-sure yet maintain the colt’s delicate trot-ting balance. So began the tension-filledanticipation that they could get Glide-

IT WAS CHRISTMAS of 2004 when agroom in the Blair Burgess stable quit,and the trainer turned to the best care-taker he knew to pick up the sparehorses in the barn—his wife, KarinOlsson-Burgess.

Olsson-Burgess had proved her care-taking skills as groom for the great RealDesire, whom she considered her fourthchild. She had, however, left barn dutieswhen the 2002 Horse of the Yearretired, and watched from the sidelinesas an excited co-owner when AmigoHall won the Hambletonian in 2003.

Now the stable called again.“I had a few choice words for Blair,

but then I went out to do it,” said thegolden-haired Olsson-Burgess with alaugh.

A native of Sweden, Olsson-Burgesscame to the United States in 1985 to

work for Skip Lewis inFlorida, and BlairBurgess admitted hespent a lot of time jog-ging on the track nearthe Lewis barn afterOlsson-Burgessarrived. When she pre-pared to go home toSweden, Burgess per-suaded her to insteadcome to Canada withhim. They married in1988, and have three children.

Olsson-Burgess had been back inthe barn three months when Burgessasked her to take over a young trot-ting colt who had proven too much ofa handful for his groom. That wasOlsson-Burgess’ introduction toGlidemaster, who she soon nicknamed“Glidemonster.”

“He’s special, and he was hard tohandle in the barn as a 2-year-old,”said Burgess. “He was getting hard tomanage in the barn. He is a big horseand studdy. The girl looking after himhad trouble hooking him. So, becausehe was a good horse and he was hardto handle, I put Karin in charge ofhim.”

Glidemaster moved into the con-

verted pig barn where Olsson-Burgesshas three stalls of her own. Thoughthe colt initially proved “a bit uncon-trollable,” Olsson-Burgess, with helpfrom stable handyman GhyslainGagne, was able to calm Glidemasterand teach him manners.

“He’s not an easy horse to bearound,” said Olsson-Burgess, hervoice still bathed in a slight Swedishaccent. “But he’s smart. He knowswhat he is supposed to do.”

Anyone who doubts thatGlidemaster has already becomeanother of Olsson-Burgess’ “children”need only watch as the colt respondsto her voice and touch.

The colt’s newfound calmness wasevidenced by his impeccable paddockbehavior on Hambletonian day—goingso far as to let Olsson-Burgess place a

“Glidemaster” monogrammedHambletonian hat on the colt’s head anhour before the race. In the pasture, itis Olsson-Burgess’ voice to which hecomes running, and it was she whospent days upon nights providing thecare that healed his injured foot.

Olsson-Burgess also manages tocare for $300,000 winner ArmbroDeuce, a 3-year-old Western Ideal coltshe owns with Robert Burgess, NealCooper and Richard Kostoff. And herhard work benefits the entire Burgessbarn, as all the grooms split a 11/2 per-cent bonus on the stable’s earnings.

There is no doubt, however, towhom Glidemaster belongs.

“He’s Karin’s baby,” said Burgess. —NICOLE KRAFT

‘Karin’s Baby’

Water therapy: KarinOlsson-Burgess cools offGlidemaster amid thesummer New Jersey heat.


master sound to go postward, for theyrespected their horse too much to racehim at anything short of 100 percent.

Living Thomas Edison’s words thatgenius is 1 percent inspiration and 99percent perspiration, the Burgesses’ hardwork got Glidemaster back on track—and the colt did the rest. He and driverJohn Campbell parlayed a second-placeelim finish into one of racing’s mostexciting Hambletonians, beating Choco-latier to the wire by more than a lengthin the $1.5 million final. Glidemaster’stime of 1:51.1 was a track record and thefastest Hambletonian ever recorded.

It was the stuff of history. Campbellmade an unprecedented sixth trip to theHambletonian winner’s circle. Burgessbecame the first trainer to send out justtwo Hambletonian starters and bringhome trophies with both. Brittany Farmsbecame the first breeder to produce boththe winners of the Hambletonian andHambletonian Oaks—won by Passion-ate Glide—in the same year. (See page100.)

But the real star of the story wasGlidemaster, part of racing lore last yearbecause of his uncontrolled display ofspeed, now a legend in the game becauseof his dominance in defeating the best ofhis class in the 81st Hambletonian.

“I am just supremely excited,”Burgess said. “He won the race and

proved he was the best. It has nothing todo with what he did 10 months earlier,or what he overcame before the elim. Itjust showed what kind of horse he is.”

Gliding into viewGlidemaster has a knack for making abig entrance.

When he made his racing debut, theStandardbred Canada Web site pro-claimed, “You never have a secondchance to make a first impression, andfew who witnessed his performance atMohawk Racetrack last night will everforget the name Glidemaster.”

The colt was in an allowance racewith Burgess, and came home in 28.4 towin by more than three lengths in 1:56.2over older horses—just three-fifths of a


Trading spaces: Above, Burgess, with wife,Karin (hidden) and helper Deb O’Brien-Moran, kept Glidemaster in a quiet spot ofThe Meadowlands’ back paddock. Right, inthe front paddock, Olsson-Burgess had hercolt well in hand.

Allergic ReactionCAPETOWN HALL may have endedup ninth in the Hambletonian, butjust making it to the races is anaccomplishment for the son ofGarland Lobell. A winner of morethan $330,000, Capetown Hall isallergic to grass, oats and wheat—allcustomary staples of a racehorse’s life.

“He’s allergic to everything,” saidcaretaker Pernilla Engblom of theJimmy Takter Stable. “There areeven certain types of bugs—likeants—that make him sick.”

As a 2-year-old Capetown Hallbegan to suffer unusual swelling inhis legs that couldn’t be attributed toinjury or ailment. The colt was final-ly diagnosed with extreme allergiesin the winter of 2006.

While most horses treasure theirpasture time, Capetown Hall isallowed only on dry sand for his

health. Despite aplethora of aller-

gy shots, he isfed onlyprocessedhay cubesand a spe-cial blend ofsweet feed

that does notcontain oats.

Dietaryissues aren’t the

only headacheEngblom has with the colt. The for-mer caretaker for 2002 Trotter of theYear Kadabra has also suffered hershare of kicks and bruises fromCapetown Hall.

“He bit me last week,” saidEngblom, showing off the four-inchsquare black bruise on her upperarm. “I must have done somethinghe didn’t like. He also kicked me inthe knee after the eliminations.

“It has to be his way, or he kicksand bites. He gets really aggravated.”

Engblom has been working withCapetown Hall since he was a year-ling, and she is still the only personthat can enter his stall without himspinning around and kicking—andsometimes he doesn’t even afford herthat luxury.

“He’s not joking around,” saidEngblom. “He’s a difficult horse, butI really love him.”

—GRETCHEN SPRINGER

THE HAMBLETONIAN

second off of Ken Warkentin’s track andCanadian record. Sent off at 45-1, hepaid $92.10 to win.

As a youngster, Glidemaster wasknown to walk on his two hind legs whenleaving the track, and Olsson-Burgesswas not afraid to ask for help getting himto and from the pasture, when his enthu-siasm overwhelmed his good sense.

Truth be told, the only place the coltwasn’t the center of attention was as ayearling at Brittany Farms and when he

went through the sales ring at Tattersalls,selling to the silver-haired Burgess for amere $10,000.

“He was always a gangly, growthycolt,” recalled Brittany manager ArtZubrod. “He had a lot of leg on him. Hewas a really good individual, and he hada real good video. But when it came timeto be a sale horse, he was still kind ofgawky and immature. He presented him-self well, but he was not one of my super-star yearlings.

“If I had thought he was a top year-ling, he would have been a horse I wouldhave promoted to more buyers. As itwas, people asked to see what yearlings Iliked, and I didn’t bring this horse out.”

One horseman who did appreciate thecolt, though, was Burgess.

“Blair really liked him,” said Zubrod.“He sees through things. He can pickthrough horses as they mature—he wasalways very good at that. And Blair likesbuying horses from Brittany. He’s had


The real star of the story was Glidemaster, part of racing lorelast year because of his uncontrolled display of speed, now alegend in the game because of his dominance in defeating thebest of his class in the 81st Hambletonian.

Gliding: Glidemasterwarmed up strongly forJohn Campbell.

tremendous success buying horses fromBrittany.”

“I saw him once at the farm and acouple of times at the sale,” Burgessrecalled. “I didn’t think he was a greathorse. I can’t say I had any premonitionsabout his greatness. I just liked the horse.His pedigree was nondescript to me atthe time. But since then I have come to

know good things about the pedigree. Itwas more an opportunity than a masterplan. I was in the right place at the righttime.”

It was only after he had the final bidand went to visit his new charge around11 p.m. the night of the sale that Burgesswas truly impressed.

“I called Karin and said, ‘I just boughta really nice trotter,’” he recalled. “Icouldn’t understand what was wrongwith him that he didn’t bring more.”

Burgess turned Glidemaster’s earlyhandling over to second trainer BillRapson who, along with JimmyCarmichael, breaks the stable’s yearlings.The colt was a little tougher than somein the Burgess barn, and by late winter,

Burgess considered him “a real goof-ball.”

“He never would settle down and trotor pay attention,” Burgess said. “Oneday I got a little aggravated and chasedhim along, so he had a harder trainingsession than usual, and he really sur-prised me. I had to check my watch whenhe finally settled down. He was a good-training colt from that day forward.”

Burgess made another change toGlidemaster’s routine, in that he entrust-ed his everyday care to Karin, who hadrubbed her share of good horses. Beforeleaving the barn to spend more time withtheir kids, Karin had groomed 2002Horse of the Year Real Desire, whom she

THE HAMBLETONIAN


Gate speed: Berto Primo left quickly frompost seven, while Glidemaster (8) andChocolatier (10) sought to find a clean pathfrom their outside posts.

Sound advice: D.R. Ackerman, right, pilotof Chocolatier, got some pre-race advicefrom last year’s winner Roger Hammer.

also co-owned, and had her own three-stall converted pig barn where hercharges were kept.

Both Burgesses recognized quicklythey had something special in Glidemas-ter.

“He shocked me quite often with thespeed he had,” said Blair. “Training in2:30, 2:20 or 2:10, he was often six orseven seconds ahead of the rest of thehorses.

“He was not what I call a hot horse.He never jogged hot in his life, and henever was a puller in a training mile. Hegot a little bully if I argued with him. If Iwhapped him on the bum, he’d put hishead down and take off on the trot, buthe was never bad.”

Full of trotGlidemaster proved he had speed fromhis first start, qualifying in 1:59.4 at

Mohawk, and following with a 2:00.2qualifier three weeks later. Two weeksafter his eye-popping pari-mutuel debut,he trotted to a 1:55.3 world record atMohawk against older horses—a raceBurgess still second-guesses.

“Maybe we stretched him earlier thanwe should have,” said the conditioner.“He won quite handily, but that can be

deceptive. It was still very fast and theMohawk track is hard. That may haveaggravated his feet a bit.”

A week later in the Champlain Stake,Glidemaster had the lead in the stretch,but being headed by Majestic Son andsuffering stinging feet prompted him tomake a break at the wire and finish sec-ond. A week later he captured his elim


RON GURFEIN is at home at theHambletonian. The 65-year-old train-er, and newest inductee to the HarnessRacing Hall of Fame, has won trot-ting’s grand event three times with SelfPossessed, Continentalvictory andVictory Dream and finished second ontwo occasions.

This year, Gurfein was in theuncharacteristic position of beingwithout a starter in the race. That did-n’t keep him from feeling at home,though.

Gurfein, known as “The Guru,”was a guest analyst on CBS’ livebroadcast of the Hambletonian. Forthose who know Gurfein, they recog-nize that he is as comfortable in frontof a microphone as he is sitting behinda Hambo favorite.

“I’m certainly not shy,” Gurfeinsaid with a laugh, shortly after con-cluding the broadcast. “I’ve done tele-vision so much in my life [that] it justcomes natural to me. I find it very easyto do.”

Gurfein joined hosts Gary Seibeland Caton Bredar, plus analyst JayPrivman and Meadowlands announcer

Ken Warkentin for the broadcast. Hewatched as John Campbell andGlidemaster came from the back of thepack to win the race in 1:51.1, better-ing the stakes record of 1:51.3 set byhis own Self Possessed in 1999.

“My prognostications were horri-ble, because I said it was a speed-favoring track, like Keeneland,”Gurfein commented. “That was for allthe Thoroughbred people who tune into watch the race—to give them somekind of equation to work out. Ithought the three outside horses[Glidemaster, Race Fan andChocolatier] would leave, and none ofthem left and three inside horses left,so I ended up being pretty wrong.”

As for the order of finish, Gurfeinhad selected Chocolatier, Glidemasterand favorite Mr Pine Chip, who wentoff-stride in the stretch and was placedlast.

“I don’t care about being wrong. Ijust hope I did a good job and thatthey would want me back again, that’sall,” Gurfein said. “The experience waswonderful. I really enjoyed doing it.”

—KEN WEINGARTNER

The TV Guru

Gift of gab: Ron Gurfein may nothave had a Hambletonian starter, buthis expertise was put to good use onMeadowlands and CBS television.

NIC

OLE

KRA

FT

for the William Wellwood Memorial in1:55.4, but was scratched from the finalafter warming up “terribly.”

“He wasn’t sick, but he was notright,” said Burgess. “He seemed quitestressed. Maybe he was sick and I could-n’t tell. He was just very unlike himself.We decided he was too nice a horse torisk hurting him.”

Burgess, instead, headed for Lexing-ton, where the International StallionStake was to serve as a prep for theValley Victory back at Woodbine. Thisbest-laid plan, however, clearly wentawry.

Glidemaster seemed healthy butaggressive when warming up, saidBurgess, adding that the colt “wasresentful of a lot of things I was doingthat day.”

“He was healthy, but attitude-wise, hewas not perfect,” said Burgess.

As soon as the recall lights came on,Burgess could see Ritchie was in troublebehind Glidemaster. All he could thinkwas “If only...”

If only the starting gate wings hadstayed open until all the horses had cometo a stop.

If only the colt had been rigged differ-ently for better control.

If only the outrider hadn’t givenchase, those thundering hooves spurringGlidemaster to trot faster and farther.

In the end, Glidemaster had trottedabout 11/4 miles. It was clear to most thatthe colt would be scratched. Burgess,however, was thinking differently.

“I talked to my father. I talked toTrevor and the vet. Ultimately, the callwas mine, and I thought the race wasimportant, so I sent him out again,” saidBurgess. “I thought he was fit and sound,and if Trevor could get him in a hole, hewould race all right. But the horsedragged Trevor out and went to thefront, and I knew he wouldn’t race well.

“I knew a lot of people were second-guessing me, criticizing me. I was self-critical enough—I didn’t need to hearfrom anyone else. It’s one of those daysin racing you want to crawl in a hole.

THE HAMBLETONIAN


On the OtherFootEMMA JOHANNSON, caretakerfor sixth-place finisher Here ComesHerbie, was in rare form on Hamble-tonian Day. She was wearing shoes.

“I don’t really wear shoes,” saidJohannson. “It’s too hot.”

New Jersey’s temperatures didrepeatedly soar to 100-plus degrees inthe weeks before the Hambletonian,but going shoeless in a horse barnstill seems an unconventional way to

deal with the heat.Johannson, howev-er, is not alone inher lack offootwear. She saidshe is one of manycaretakers in TrondSmedshammer’s

American Viking Racing Stable whogo barefoot while grooming, harness-ing and bathing horses.

“Most of the girls don’t wearshoes unless we are cleaning stalls, orthere is a horse we should be nervousaround,” said Johannson. “Trondhas nice horses. Most of them arevery calm.”

On Hambletonian Day, Johannsonwas sporting a black polo with“American Viking” scrawled acrossthe back, rolled-up jeans and a pairof sneakers as required in the pad-dock. Here Comes Herbie shiftedback and forth on his front feet whileJohannson braided his foretop andbridled him before his first warm-up.

Johannson is no stranger to bigracing days. She was the caretaker for2004 Hambletonian winnerWindsong’s Legacy, who went on tobecome the first trotting Triple Crownwinner in 32 years. He is now a stal-lion at Perretti Farms in New Jersey.

“No horse can compare toWindsong’s Legacy,” said Johannson.

—GRETCHEN SPRINGER

Footloose:EmmaJohannson likesher toes in thegrass when shegrazes HereComes Herbie.

Karin was so down. It was horrendous.”“It was an unfortunate situation—one

of those things that you see happeningand you can’t believe it,” added Camp-bell, who watched the race from the side-lines.

The Burgesses, however, appeared tofeel worse than Glidemaster. He rearedup on his way back to the barn, his man-hood showing, and appeared no moretired than a horse who had trotted astrong mile on a hot day.

Regardless, Burgess knew to keepgoing with the colt was to risk catastro-phe. After a few jog sessions to confirmhis soundness, Glidemaster went downthe road to Brittany Farms for a rest.

Back in businessGlidemaster arrived Dec. 1, 2005, at the

Burgesses’ Milton, Ontario, farm, andjogged until midway through the month.He had two weeks off at GlasfordEquine, west of Hamilton—the samefarm that rested Amigo Hall before hisHambletonian triumph—before gettingdown to serious business in January.

For the first month, Glidemaster hadwhat Burgess called “a goofy day here orthere,” but by March he had started tomove forward with focus. To make himmore manageable, Burgess outfitted himwith a figure-eight caveson to keep hismouth closed and opened up his bridlefrom a Kant-See-Bak. He also pluggedGlidemaster’s ears and included a mini-bit behind his snaffle and straight over-check.

He qualified twice at Mohawk forBurgess—the fastest in 2:00.2—before

the lines were handed for the first time toCampbell for the June 10 Goodtimeselims.

“I got a call from Blair when I wasgoing up for the North America Cup ask-ing me to drive Glidemaster,” saidCampbell. “Blair said he wasn’t surewhat he had, but he had spent a lot oftime in the winter working with him andhe thought he had gotten him over theproblems he had in Lexington.”

As Campbell post-paraded the colt,he could feel the aggressiveness that hadgotten Glidemaster into trouble earlier inhis career. Despite a break at the start,Campbell realized as the colt got back onstride the professionalism instilled byBurgess. And as Glidemaster movedthrough the field from last to finish sec-ond in a 1:56.1 mile, the driver experi-


Turn and burn: Blue Mac Lad took thefield into the first turn, while, from right,Chocolatier, Race Fan, Glidemaster andMr Pine Chip were content to sit out thespeedy early pace.

“I thought it would take a Herculean effort for my horse towin,” said Burgess, “and it did. He broke the track and stakesrecord. He was trotting faster at the wire than he was at the start.”

enced the colt’s genetic gift of speed. Glidemaster was second with

Campbell to Majestic Son in the$252,540 Goodtimes final, and a weeklater Burgess raced him to a second-place, 1:54.3 effort in conditioned com-pany at Mohawk. After Glidemaster beata similar class in 1:54 a week later,Burgess knew it was time to head southfor The Meadowlands.

At Campbell’s suggestion, the coltwas equipped with Swedish drop-downKant-See-Baks and sent postward in a 3-year-old open trot, winning by fivewidening lengths in 1:53.1. Burgess wasconfident when he dropped Glidemasterin the Hambletonian box that he had areal contender on his hands.

His confidence did not falter until thecolt left his stall dead lame two daysbefore the race due to a nail hole in hisfoot.

“We found the shoe in the stall, and Ithink my big mistake was we turned himout without the shoe,” said Burgess. “Ishould have fixed him first. I tacked theshoe back on early in the afternoon, andhe jogged normal. That evening he couldnot walk out of his stall properly, and hejust got worse. We yanked the shoe offfirst thing. It was so obviously his foot.”

The realization was not reassuring,but it did give the Burgesses a clear direc-tion. With Karin virtually moving intothe stall with her colt, Glidemaster wassoaked and poulticed repeatedly in thehopes he would come around quickly. At2 a.m. Friday, Blair Burgess dug into thefoot and found a pus pocket to drain,though the colt was lame enough to indi-cate the laminae may have been damagedas well.

“It was not one of thosegreat, glorious pus pocketswhere they become soundright away,” he said. “He stilltook another 12 to 15 hours tocome in the right direction. Hedidn’t start coming sound untilFriday evening.

“I was 75 percent not racing byFriday. I wouldn’t have raced him if hewasn’t right. I have too much respect forhim.”

Farrier Stan Withkowski put a thera-py shoe on the colt Friday with some rimpads to relieve the pressure. Glidemasterjogged soundly Saturday morning—withsecurity watching due to detention rules.A security guard then accompanied himfor two hours to Withkowski’s shop


Celebration: Above, GeorgeForeman, left, seemed as happypresenting the Hambletoniantrophy as those receiving it, fromright, Art Zubrod and LeahCheverie of Brittany Farms, JohnCampbell, co-owner MarshaCohen, Burgess and Myron Bell.Left, Burgess and Campbell havewon eight Hambletoniansbetween them, but this was theirfirst together.

THE HAMBLETONIAN

where front shoes were constructed tokeep pressure off the lateral right part ofthe hoof and still maintain the colt’sproper weight and balance.

“We even made a couple of back-upshoes in case the ones on him didn’twork and we had to change them afterwarming up,” Burgess said with a softchuckle.

Glidemaster proved worth the effort.Leaving from post two, he moved steadi-ly through the field from fourth, took thelead in the stretch, and ended up secondto favored Mr Pine Chip in 1:54. Thecolt was strong and sounder, but not per-fect.

“Two things were wrong in the race,”said Burgess. “At the wire my horse wasnot trotting well. Partly it was his feetcatching up with him, and also I hadmore weight up front than he was usedto. The bulk of the front shoes and thesoreness caught up with him. But withevery day he improved.

“It was not the kind of prep race Iwas looking for. I would have liked to seehim get more of a confidence builder.”

Glidemaster—and the other Hamboentrants—also had to contend withrecord temperatures in the New Jerseyarea. The area suffered through 100-degree days and suffocating humiditythrough much of the first week inAugust, prompting Burgess to decreasethe colt’s exercise, leave him out in a

grassy paddock for half the day, andincrease his electrolyte intake.

Indeed, Glidemaster looked as goodas he could be at 12:10 p.m. Saturdaywhen he, the Burgesses, and assistantDeb O’Brien-Moran made the walk fromThe Meadowlands detention barn intothe back paddock. Following a Burgesstradition, Glidemaster was not housedwith the other starters, but insteadmoved across the paddock to a pair ofextra wooden stalls near the test barn.

“Real Desire was in there, too,” saidBurgess. “Glidemaster used to be a littletough to handle. The walls are higher onthose stalls, and I hoped he wouldn’t getdistracted.”

Glidemaster remained calm for hiswalk to the front paddock and took tothe track at 2:30, warming up effortless-ly, his ears pricked, eyes alert. At odds of6-1, he was a solid third choice behindeven-money favorite Mr Pine Chip—partof Trond Smedshammer’s three-horseentry and undefeated in 2006—andBrian Sears, and the D.R. Ackerman-driven Chocolatier at 4-1. Like a soundwave, the crowd of nearly 30,000 movedfrom a murmur to a roar as the gatecame down the stretch at 2:45, and the81st Hambletonian field was off.

Berto Primo and Cat Manzi wentstraight for the lead, followed by BlueMac Lad, Capetown Hall and HereComes Herbie. By the quarter in 26.4,Here Comes Herbie and Smedshammerhad the lead, followed by stablemateBlue Mac Lad and George Brennan,while Glidemaster sat eighth behind thecover of Mr Pine Chip. Here ComesHerbie maintained his lead through thehalf in 54.3 and the three-quarters in1:23.3, while Berto Primo provided out-side cover to Mr Pine Chip, who was fol-lowed by Glidemaster and Chocolatier.

As the field entered the stretch, Searstook Mr Pine Chip three-wide, withGlidemaster in hot pursuit—and it wasall over from there.

“A big move for Glidemaster,” yelledannouncer Ken Warkentin, “who ex-plodes for John Campbell!”

Though Mr Pine Chip made a breakin the stretch, he was clearly a beatenhorse. Glidemaster blew past the fieldwith a 26.4 final quarter and tripped thetimer in 1:51.1. Chocolatier, cominghome in 26.3, was 11/4 lengths back insecond, while Blue Mac Lad was third.

“I thought it would take a Herculeaneffort for my horse to win,” said Burgess,


Not This YearTROND SMEDSHAMMER hadthree horses from his barn in the 10-horse Hambletonian field, but hisbest finish was third with Blue MacLad, who enjoyed a pocket trip fordriver George Brennan.

Here Comes Herbie, who cut muchof the mile with Smedshammer driv-ing, bore out in the stretch and fin-ished sixth. Heavy favorite Mr PineChip, who was undefeated in six 2006starts—including a win in the StanleyDancer Memorial—made a break inthe stretch and was eighth-placed-10th.

Mr Pine Chip was not himself onHambletonian day, and his trainerattributed the break in stride to thefact that the son of SJ’s Caviar wastired.

“He was off,” he said. “We thinkhe got exposed to something. Hespiked a temperature on Thursday.Same thing happened with [Power ToCharm] three years ago. When theyspike a temperature, they do it for areason. He didn’t get sick, but it wasenough to knock him off his game.”

Despite his desire for a differentoutcome, Smedshammer was unwill-ing to express disappointment.

“I was second in the Oaks [withEmantee], third in the Hambo and Iwon the Nat Ray [with Sand Vic],”he said. “A lot of people would behappy with that. ”

Smedshammer’s Hambletonianexperience, however, got no betterafter the race. On Aug. 21, he wasassessed a 30-day full suspension—meaning he is not allowed on anygrounds—by the New Jersey RacingCommission for his drive behindHere Comes Herbie. The commissionruled Smedshammer moved off thepylons while leading in the stretch toallow Blue Mac Lad clearance.

Smedshammer’s suspension wasscheduled to run from Aug. 28through Sept. 26, but was subject toappeal.

—NICOLE KRAFT

Trotter treats: With victory carrots in hand,Burgess hauled the colt’s equipment back tothe barn.

Smeds-hammer

with HereComes Herbie

“and it did. He broke thetrack and stakes record. He

was trotting faster at the wirethan he was at the start.

“At the five-eighths, I was contentfrom where we were sitting. I thoughthe’d get a good check. Maybe he would-n’t win—it was too far to come—but hewould be right there. Then just after thehead of the stretch, I started thinking hecould win.”

Burgess, in fact, started screaming atthe eighth pole that Glidemaster was awinner—until he saw Chocolatier clos-

ing quickly. “Then I shut up,” he said,laughing.

Pandemonium reigned in the winner’scircle, as multiple presentations to driver,trainer and owners included everyonefrom 1981 Hambo winner Ray Remmento three-time winner Howard Beissinger,to retired heavyweight boxing championGeorge Foreman, now a Standardbredowner. Burgess, who normally jogs hishorses a lap after their race miles, wascaptured by CBS and various othermedia members, leaving Karin to walkthe colt so long for the cameras that


THE HAMBLETONIAN

How Good is He?BLAIR BURGESS may just be theluckiest—and most successful—per-centage trainer ever in top-moneyraces.

Burgess has won the Hambleton-ian twice with his only two starters—Amigo Hall in 2003 for a $1 millionpurse and Glidemaster in 2006 for a$1.5 million purse. He has also wonthe Meadowlands Pace twice—withFrugal Gourmet (1987, $902,500purse) and Real Desire (2001,$1,009,500 purse).

Of his three remaining Meadow-lands Pace final starters, all have fin-ished in the money: Amity Chef, third(1986); Driven By Design, second(1992); and Armbro Deuce, third(2006).

“The Hambo success was a freak-ish thing,” said Burgess. “As far asthe Meadowlands Pace, I raced hors-es in elims that didn’t qualify. I’vedone horrible in some other big races.My record in the North America Cupand at the Little Brown Jug is terri-ble. In the Hambletonian, it was real-ly, really good luck.”

What’s NextGLIDEMASTER is being pointedtoward three more primary goals in2006, according to trainer BlairBurgess—the CanadianTrotting Classic, theKentucky Futurity andthe Breeders Crown.

Burgess plans togive the colt amonth off follow-ing hisHambletonian win,while the trainer andhis family enjoy a briefMaine vacation on theirway home to Canada. Thoughhe recognizes that the Yonkers Trotand World Trotting Derby covetGlidemaster’s attendance, Burgesssaid his dislike of racing big horseson half-mile tracks and unwilling-ness to send his horse to too manyheat races likely means those eventswill go without the Hambo winner.

Rarin’ to go: Karin Olsson-Burgess captured this image ofGlidemaster romping in thefield four days after his biggesttriumph. The Canadian TrottingClassic, Kentucky Futurity andBreeders Crown are all on thecolt’s 2006 schedule.

Glidemaster had blown out by the timehe made it back to the test barn.

The couple were not reunited until anhour after the race, where they had timefor a hug and kiss, and a tender momentwith their new champion, before Blairtook Glidemaster to an empty stall to eatsome victory carrots and Karin got pacerArmbro Deuce ready for his appearancein race 14, a division of the OliverWendell Holmes. He finished second.

While the owners went dining to toasttheir winner, and the Campbell familyrejoiced in John’s sixth Hambletonian

victory, the Burgesses had to decline allinvitations. Instead, they and O’Brien-Moran shipped their two racers home inthe twilight of another steamy Augustday and turned them out in the grassyfields of the southern New Jersey farmthey call home while in the Garden State.

As Armbro Deuce and Glidemasterstreaked across their respective paddocksat a full gallop and then settled down to

eat grass, the Burgess team cleaned theirstalls and washed their equipment, bag-ging it up for the on-track challenges stillto come. The weary but jubilant couplethen headed to a local diner for dinner,and found their way to bed by 3 a.m.

“All I can say is it feels pretty good,”said Burgess. “I don’t want to say I’m vin-dicated by this, but we believed in him—and he showed us he was worthy.” HB

HARNESS RACING recently wel-comed a real heavyweight to its own-ership ranks in the form of formerheavyweight boxing champion of theworld George Foreman.

Foreman now owns several horseswith trainer George Teague, including$200,000 winner Future Destiny. Heattended the Hambletonian Day raceswith two of his sons, George IV andGeorge V—presenting the Hamble-tonian trophy to Glidemaster’s connec-tions—and stopped in to the Meadow-lands press box for this dialogue withreporters.

Question: How did you get con-nected to George Teague?

Foreman: A friend of mine told meabout a good trainer he knew—trainerof the year who had a horse of theyear [Rainbow Blue]. I sent the horsesout before I even met him. He had agood reputation, George Teague. Sofar so good.

Question: Do you train the horsesyourself?

Foreman: Oh, I’ve done some driv-ing myself out on the track by myself.It’s a lot easier in the rings, youknow—the guy is saying, “Ease up onthe punches,” and the horse is saying,“Go use that grill and get off myback.” But I’m having fun. This isabsolutely all about fun.

Question: Can you tell us aboutyour personal experience with harnessracing at Roosevelt Raceway whenyou were training [as a fighter]?

Foreman: I was fighting Joe Frazier,and a trainer there in 1976...allowedme to use the racetrack to run. I start-ed calling myself a horse. I enjoyed it.I got in good shape. As a matter offact, I met some of the trainers, sawthe horses.

They really behaved like athletes—get up early in the morning, just like

us. They’re hard to get along with inthe morning, but they get it over with,get their little bath and going abouttheir business. That’s the way boxersare. So we had a lot in common—box-ing and horses.

I’m happy to be here—this is a realhonor. I hope that next season I’ll havemy own horse here. It’d be interesting.

Question: Have you ever been toThe Meadowlands?

Foreman: This is my first trip toThe Meadowlands, and it’s wonderful.

Question: Who do you see as thelikely winner today?

Foreman: You got Glidemaster. Yougot the trainer and you got...the driverCampbell. He’s a Hall of Famer, so if Iwere you, I’m not going to run awayfrom Glidemaster. I’m not going to runaway from that trainer.

For me, when I get in the ring mysecond time around, it wasn’t aboutwho the fighters were. I had a fightwith Muhammad Ali in Zaire. He’d lethis guard down, but his trainersyelled, “Muhammad, don’t play withthat sucker!” Trainers are important.


Heavyweight Visitor

IF SOMEONE tries to tell you that onlyquality race mares produce quality race-horses, suggest that they take a look atthe pedigree of 2006 Hambletonianwinner Glidemaster.

Collectively, his first four damsearned $1,048. That wouldn’t evenhave been the opening bid when Glide-master waltzed into the sale ring atTattersalls in 2004, selling ultimately

for $10,000.The mystery of genetics always

throws us curveballs, and Glidemasterwas gifted with extraordinary speed.

One glance at the pedigree ofGlidemaster reinforces the importanceof Speedy Scot and his son SpeedyCrown in modern trotting pedigrees.Speedy Scot shows up four times in thefirst five generations of Glidemaster’s

pedigree—three of them throughSpeedy Crown and one through SpeedyScot’s virtual clone, Arnie Almahurst.

Glidemaster is a son of Yankee Glidefrom the Mr Lavec mare CressidaHanover. Yankee Glide is a great-great-great grandson of Speedy Scot throughhis paternal line. Yankee Glide is also agreat-grandson of Speedy Scot throughhis dam’s paternal line. CressidaHanover is a great-great granddaughterof Speedy Scot through her paternalline. She is also a great-great grand-daughter of Speedy Scot through herdam’s paternal line.

To make this pedigree more intrigu-ing, the 1957 mare Candid, the thirddam of Glidemaster, is a three-quartersister to the great sire Speedster. AndSpeedster’s greatest son is—who else?—Speedy Scot.

Before we delve into the maternalside of the pedigree, let’s tip our hats toYankee Glide, who also sired PassionateGlide, winner of the Hambo Oaks.

Hall of Fame horseman BerndtLindstedt said in the early summer of1997 that Yankee Glide was the best 2-year-old he’d ever driven. He was look-ing forward to a shot at theHambletonian that year with the talent-ed son of Valley Victory.

“Maybe it’s my last chance at win-ning the Hambletonian,” said Lind-stedt, then nearing his 61st birthday.

Yankee Glide won his Hambo elimi-nation, but in the week prior to thefinal, problems with quarter cracksflared up, and patch-and-repair expertswere summoned. Yankee Glide wentinto the Hambo with what appeared tobe largely a man-made front hoof, butthe efforts were all to no avail—hebroke stride in the final.

Retired to stud at the end of that sea-son, Yankee Glide was outstandingfrom the start, siring the 2001 MerrieAnnabelle winner Fluttering Wings andthe Peter Haughton runner-up CRExcalibur.

Since then, he’s continued to sireextraordinary females like PassionateGlide, Mystical Sunshine, Stroke Play,Solveig and Silver Springs.

His most gifted son was the 2004Dan Patch Award winner Ken Warken-tin, who came into last year’s Hamble-tonian as one of the favorites, but brokestride driving for the lead in his elim.

Glidemaster’s dam, Cressida Han-

Glidemaster’s cryptic pedigreeshows hidden speed BY DEAN A. HOFFMAN


A GeneticCurveball

THE HAMBLETONIAN

In the name of the father: A break byYankee Glide ended any chances he had inthe 1997 Hambletonian, but he has comeon strong as the sire of the 2006 Hamboand Oaks winners.

ED K

EYS

over, was purchased by Brittany Farmsas a yearling and trained for two sea-sons by Ron Gurfein, but earned only$936. She has, however, quicklyredeemed herself as a broodmare, asGlidemaster is her first foal.

Cressida Hanover’s second foal is aBerndt Hanover 2-year-old, but sheturned up barren when bred to SelfPossessed in 2004. On Feb. 22 of thisyear, she had a brown colt from the firstcrop by Cantab Hall.

Glidemaster’s recordHambletonian triumphhas breathed new life intoa maternal family that hasbeen quiescent for a longtime, though at one time itwas very much in vogue.Courtney Hanover, a half-brother to the second damof Glidemaster, was thehighest-priced yearlingsold in 1975. In 1982,Dance Spell—from abranch of this family—won the HambletonianOaks. It’s a solid trottingfamily, but it just hasn’thit many home runs inrecent years.

The second dam ofGlidemaster is Cristi Han-over. She had eight livingfoals, but six of themfailed to get records. Herfinal foal at Hanover ShoeFarms was the Dancer’sVictory filly CroissantHanover, who sold for amere $3,500 in 2001. Thebloom was off this familyby then.

By far the best of CristiHanover’s foals was Cy-nara Hanover, a daughterof Super Bowl, who tooka 3,1:57.2 mark and earned $103,628.She won her first stakes start at Poconoin 1:58.3 and dropped that mark to1:57.2 winning in straight heats overGrand Circuit fillies at Springfield.Later in the season she started againstcolts in the open division of theKentucky Futurity and earned a checkbut not the trophy.

Cynara Hanover has produced thefast Donerail gelding HR’s Miller Gold4,1:54.1 and has a yearling filly byLindy Lane selling at the Standardbred

Horse Sale Company’s Harrisburg salethis fall.

You have to go back to CrystalRodney, a 1962 filly, before you get intosolid production. She is the third dam ofGlidemaster.

Crystal Rodney was a stalwart in theHanover Shoe Farms broodmare bandfor two decades. Her first foal wasCrain Hanover 2:00.2f ($323,156), andhe was a top-notch trotter, finishing sec-ond in the Dexter Cup as a sophomore.

The fourth dam of Glidemaster isCandid, an unraced daughter of LustySong foaled in 1957. She had one goodfoal, a sister to Crystal Rodney namedCandid Rodney.

It isn’t until you get to the fifth andsixth dams of Glidemaster that youencounter mares who won a race. MimiHanover, his fifth dam, was a foal of1945 by Dean Hanover.

Mimi Hanover, who took a 2:09hmark and earned $8,959, produced twooutstanding sons, Speedster and Speedy

Rodney. They were apples and oranges:Speedster was a beautiful horse with agait so pure he didn’t wear any shin pro-tection—virtually unknown in trotters ahalf-century ago—and Speedy Rodneywas a rough-gaited horse with extremespeed. He became the fastest trotter everon a half-mile track when he won in1:58.3 40 years ago.

Both brothers started in the Hambo,but failed to win. Both, however, siredHambo winners.

Speedy Rodney’s sonGreen Speed won inrecord time in 1977.Speedster’s two Hamble-tonian winners were asdifferent as Speedster wasfrom his brother. SpeedyScot was a coarse, robust,powerful horse, while hiskid brother Speedy Streakwas an eye-catchingbeauty. Speedy Scot wonthe Hambo and every-thing in sight in ’63,while Speedy Streak wonthe Hambo and not muchelse in ’67.

Mimi Hanover wasout of Hanover Maid,the mare trotting masterHarry Pownall called“truly a great mare.”

Gene Pownall, Harry’syoung brother, was thegroom for Hanover Maid,and he recalled her well.

“She tried to kick myhead off many times,”said Gene with a laugh.“She sure had a meanstreak to her.”

The Pownall boys tol-erated her behavior be-cause a trainer couldn’tafford to turn away hors-

es during the Depression. As a 4-year-old in 1934, Hanover Maid’s 2:021/4 vic-tory was one of the fastest trotting milesof the season.

Hanover Maid won 30 of 55 careerstarts, earning $3,734. That was realmoney during the Depression. After all,she’d sold as a yearling for only $95.

From Hanover Maid to Glidemaster,there is a span of more than sevendecades, but both proved that you don’thave to spend a lot of money to buy anoutstanding trotter.


GLIDEMASTERSpeedy Somolli

Baltic SpeedSugar Frosting

Valley VictoryBonefish

Valley VictoriaVictorious Lou

Yankee GlideSpeedy Scot

Speedy CrownMissile Toe

Gratis YankeeHickory Pride

Yankee FlightYankee DuchessSpeedy Crown

Speedy SomolliSomolli

Mr LavecAllen Hanover

Kramer SambaKramer Spin

Cressida HanoverArnie Almahurst

Florida ProPromissory

Cristi HanoverRodney

Crystal RodneyCandid

Dam fine:HanoverMaid, thesixth dam ofGlidemaster,was called byher connec-tions, “Trulya greatmare.”

UST

A A

RCH

IVES

The Complete FinishBY PAUL RAMLOW (with contributions from Kara Romagnino and the Meadowlands staff)

Glidemaster was the winner of theHambletonian, but Hoof Beatsnow offers this look at the rest of

the 10-horse field, how the raceunfolded for each of them, andwhere they finished.


The 2005 Dan Patch champion entered theHambletonian with a couple of big questionmarks. Would he be able to avoid the break-ing problems that plagued him in hisGoodtimes elimination and the StanleyDancer Memorial final, and could he over-come post position 10? The answer was aresounding yes on both counts.

Driver D.R. Ackerman guided Chocolatiercarefully out of the starting gate and he fol-lowed the cover of Glidemaster throughout themile, sitting 10th on the outside at the quarter,ninth at the half, and tipping three-wide while

still ninth at the three-quarter pole. Chocola-tier was sixth at the top of the stretch and wasfull of trot in the lane, posting the fastest final-quarter time in the race—26.3—in finishing11/4 lengths behind the winner.

“I thought my colt was great today,” saidAckerman. “I thought in the last turn that hewas in a very good spot. In the last eighththe other horse sprinted away from me. Ididn’t leave with him, because I didn’t feel Ihad enough speed off the gate, but I followedGlidemaster the whole way, and I couldn’thave gotten a better trip.”

One of two horses in the Hambletoniantrained by Jimmy Takter, Global Glide bankedmore than $270,000 as a 2-year-old. He hadyet to return to form as a 3-year-old, with just$41,350 in seven 2006 starts.

Starting from post five with Hall of FamerRon Pierce, Global Glide got away in the mid-dle of the pack and lost ground during themiddle portion of the race. After sitting sixth

at the opening quarter, he was shuffled to sev-enth at the half, eighth at the three-quarters,and ninth at the top of the stretch. Pierce wasable to find racing room in the lane and hepassed five horses on his way to a fourth-placefinish, 51/2 lengths off the winner.

“I was especially happy with Global Glide;I think the horse did tremendous,” said Takter.“I was really excited about how he raced.”

The most unheralded of trainer TrondSmedshammer’s trio had the advantage ofstarting from post two. The son of MusclesYankee was a legitimate threat, havingpicked up the place check in the $375,000Stanley Dancer Memorial final.

Driver George Brennan got Blue Mac Ladaway second behind Here Comes Herbie, and

he benefited from a pocket trip throughout themile. He passed the tiring leader in the stretch,but could not hold off the fast-charging Glide-master and Chocolatier, and had to settle forthe third-place check, 13/4 lengths back.

“He was a perfect two-hole behind HereComes Herbie,” said Brennan. “He got outlate, but I’m happy with his performance.”

2ND PLACEChocolatier

3RD PLACEBlue Mac Lad

5TH PLACEAlgiers Hall

The John Stark Jr. owned/trained/driven sonof Conway Hall entered the Hambletonianwith four wins in nine starts, including animpressive victory over Glidemaster in theirGoodtimes elimination at Woodbine. Feelingthat the horse hadn’t been himself lately,Stark changed his shoes and trained him dif-ferently the week of the Hambletonian.

Leaving from the rail, Algiers Hall wasfourth at the quarter, fifth at the half and sev-

enth at the three-quarter pole. He was able topass Here Comes Herbie and Berto Primo inthe stretch and secured the fifth-place check,trailing Glidemaster by 71/2 lengths.

“I thought he was really good,” saidStark. “I didn’t have a really good trip—gotshuffled back. Then when I got Algiers loose,I had a lot of trot with really nowhere to go.I thought that was the best race he threw ona big track.”

4TH PLACEGlobal Glide

THE HAMBLETONIAN


Here Comes Herbie was the winner of thefastest Hambletonian elimination, trottingto a lifetime-best 1:52 effort for trainer/driver Trond Smedshammer, and looked tobe entering the final in peak form.

The world-champion son of CreditWinner drew the four-hole and left strong-ly, being parked out to the lead by stable-mate Blue Mac Lad in an opening panel of26.4. He put in a quick second panel of27.4 to reach the half in 54.3, and then got

a third-quarter breather of 29 to reach thepole in 1:23.3. Still on top at the head ofthe stretch, the colt began to bear out andtired badly, fading to sixth, 73/4 lengthsback of Glidemaster.

“The fractions were probably a little hot-ter than I’d like them to be for Here ComesHerbie,” said Smedshammer. “He has shownbefore that he doesn’t like to race back-to-back within seven days. He definitely likes tohave two to three weeks between races.”

Race Fan was seeking to improve on hissixth-place finish in the Dancer Memorialfinal, but started from the nine-hole.Trainer Karen Garland and driver/co-ownerSteve Smith opted to train him lightly theweek of the race and hoped he would over-come his tendency to be overanxious.

Unfortunately, not a whole lot went rightfor Race Fan. He got away ninth, but spentthe majority of the mile sitting 10th. He

passed three horses in the stretch and endedup seventh, 91/4 lengths behind the winner.

“I think he raced good,” said Smith.“He got home good, he wasn’t out of trot,and he was looking for room for a place togo. We got all jammed up at the middle ofthe stretch with Mr Pine Chip. So, he was-n’t going backwards. I was pleased with hisperformance. I just wasn’t pleased with theoutcome, but it wasn’t his fault.”

Berto Primo was a solid third in hisHambletonian elimination, maneuveringthree-wide around the final turn to finishbehind Here Comes Herbie and Chocola-tier. Co-owned and trained by KevinThomas, the bay son of Garland Lobellscored his only lifetime win two weeksbefore the Hambletonian eliminations, in anovernight at The Meadowlands in 1:54.2.

With Cat Manzi in the sulky, BertoPrimo started from the seven-hole and gotaway fifth at the opening quarter. He thenbegan an overland journey after the leader

and was first-over in fourth at the half andthird at the three-quarters. Still third at thetop of the stretch, 11/2 lengths behind HereComes Herbie, Berto Primo began to showthe effects of his tough trip and he faded toninth, 101/2 lengths behind Glidemaster. Hewas placed up to eighth when Mr PineChip was disqualified and set back to tenth.

“He performed well,” said Thomas.“He...had a very, very rough trip. But hedid his best. I was happy with his perform-ance. I wanted to get some money, but thiswas good.”

The second of Takter’s Hambletonianstarters was also looking to regain thefreshman form that saw him bank$283,868 in earnings. Although winless infive tries in ’06, he did pick up fourth-placemoney in the Dancer final, and was alsofourth in the Hambletonian eliminationwon by Here Comes Herbie.

With David Miller at the controls, the sonof Garland Lobell defended the three-hole by

getting away third behind Here ComesHerbie and Blue Mac Lad, a position he heldfor the first half of the mile. Capetown Hallwas back to fourth by the three-quarter poleand eighth at the top of the stretch. Hewound up 10th, 131/2 lengths behindGlidemaster, but was placed up to ninth.

“He had a pus pocket that broke out thenight before and it was stinging him,” saidTakter. “He really didn’t have a fair shot.”

6TH PLACEHere Comes

Herbie

7TH PLACERace Fan

8TH PLACEBerto Primo

9TH PLACECapetown Hall

10TH PLACEMr Pine Chip

Mr Pine Chip was the overwhelmingfavorite coming into the race, having wonall six of his ’06 starts for Smedshammer,including a lifetime best 1:52 in the Dancerfinal. He nipped Glidemaster by three-quar-ters of a length in their Hambo elimination.

Starting from post six with Brian Sears inthe sulky, he got away seventh on the outsideat the opening quarter, improved to sixth andgained the cover of Berto Primo at the half,then tipped three-wide while moving up to

fifth at the three-quarter pole. He was in thehunt in fourth place at the top of the stretch,but went off-stride and failed to get back ongait in crossing the finish line eighth, 10lengths behind Glidemaster. He was eventual-ly placed 10th for violating the breaking rule.

“They told me he didn’t have the best ofweeks this week, that maybe he was a littlesick, and it was just bad timing,” said Sears.“He’s maybe not as strong today. He’s not abig horse, and that takes its toll on him.”

THERE WAS a time when no big racewent postward without John Campbellin a racebike—and he was, more oftenthan not, steering the favorite and find-ing the winner’s circle.

He had won five Hambletonians,three Little Brown Jugs, 41 BreedersCrowns, five Kentucky Futurities, sixNorth America Cups and six Meadow-lands Paces, just to name a few of hisconquests.

Then came March 23, 2003.

That was the day Campbell suffereda fractured right elbow in a racing acci-dent, requiring three hours of surgeryand the implantation of pins and ametal plate. Though he returned to thetrack three months later, he reinjuredthe elbow in December and was out foranother three months.

In 2005, his first full season backfrom the injury, Campbell won just 137races—his lowest full-year total since1978, the first year he came to The

Meadowlands. His $4.7 million in purs-es was the lowest amount since 1982,and his UDRS average was a paltry.199.

There were those who said Camp-bell’s days at the top were over. Hewould go the way of other greats whohad lost a step—maybe driving a fewhere or there, but no longer dominatingthe stakes, and maybe not even racing atThe Meadowlands.

Campbell heard the comments, butafter Hambo week of 2006—when hewon the Hambletonian, Merrie Anna-belle and a division of the U.S. PacingChampionship—the Hall of Fame driv-er had just one comment: “I didn’t goanywhere.”

“I don’t make a point to listen towhat people say,” said Campbell afterhis masterful handling of Glidemasterresulted in a perfect second-over tripand the driver’s sixth win in trotting’sgreatest race. “There is not much I cando about what other people think orsay. I never waste any time or energy onthings I can’t control.”

Campbell had long controlled hisown destiny in racing. He broke ontothe Meadowlands scene in 1978 andwon his first million-dollar race—theMeadowlands Pace with Hilarion—in1982. By 1987 he had his first Hamble-tonian trophy, capturing a two-heat vic-tory with the Chuck Sylvester-trainedMack Lobell, a two-time Horse of theYear whom Campbell still considers thegreatest horse he ever drove.

His first pairing with a top BlairBurgess horse was 1986, when they fin-ished third in the Meadowlands Pacewith Amity Chef. They teamed mostrecently and recognizably on 2002Horse of the Year Real Desire.

“I told him the other day, ‘I only callyou when I’ve got a really good horse,’”said Burgess. “John takes a lot of thepressure off. He also has a special knack[at The Meadowlands]—an affinitywith this place.”

Campbell was traveling to Canadafor the North America Cup whenBurgess asked him to drive Glidemasterthe first time, though Campbell remem-bered the colt from his escapades eightmonths earlier at The Red Mile.

“It was worse for the peopleinvolved,” acknowledged Campbell. “Itwas nobody’s fault—just an unfortunateincident. When you are dealing with


RecrowningCampbell BY NICOLE KRAFT

THE HAMBLETONIANTHE HAMBLETONIAN

horses, anything can happen.”Glidemaster, however, impressed

Campbell in their first start togetherwhen the pair finished second after abreak at the start. And the driver con-tinued to like the trotter in every subse-quent start.

“He has a tremendous amount ofability,” said Campbell. “He is great-gaited, and a big, strong horse. He isvery nice to drive.”

But Campbell wasn’t even sure hewould be driving Glidemaster in theHambletonian after a call from Burgesson the Thursday before the elimina-tions revealed the colt was as lame aslame could be from stepping on a shoe-ing nail. Burgess worked his magic toget the colt to the elimination race, butit took Campbell’s skill to get himhome second.

“If you see him coming to the wire,John had to hold him together, becausemy horse got a little funky,” saidBurgess. “John couldn’t do battle with

Mr Pine Chip without the chance of[Glidemaster] making a break.”

Glidemaster, however, improved allweek leading up to the $1.5 millionfinal, and by race day Burgess andCampbell were both convinced theyhad as much shot as any horse in thefinal.

“He seemed good, and I was veryconfident when I stepped on the trackwith him,” said Campbell. “Physically,he was where I wanted him to be, andBlair was not concerned at all, and thatgave me a lot of confidence. Blair has atendency to worry, and not be as opti-mistic if things are bothering the horse.He had a lot of confidence in thehorse.”

Campbell admitted that Berto Primoleaving the gate first was key to hispost-time strategy for Glidemaster.

“If he doesn’t, I have to leave,” saidCampbell. “Since he did, I was able toget on Mr Pine Chip’s back. I knewBrian would have his horse forwardlyplaced, and that would be a good spotfor me. I knew I wouldn’t be second-over, because Brian would fish forcover—and get some—but I’d be track-ing the outside and have live cover. If Iwould have had to get out of the gateand get ahead of Mr Pine Chip, thatwould have changed the whole com-plexion of the race.

“If I could have drawn the scenarioas it turned out, I would have been tick-led. [Glidemaster] was parked out, buthe was still going along, drafting upthere, and you don’t have to use yourhorse to get close to the leaders.”

It wasn’t until they came around thelast turn and Campbell pulled off Sears’back that he realized Mr Pine Chip was

struggling, while Glide-master “hit another gear.”

“Once we made thefront, my horse was stilltrotting strong,” saidCampbell. “I knew no onewould get him.”

Campbell, who hasnow earned $237.8 million in purses,admitted the win was especially gratify-ing for him and his family after thestruggles of the past three years, but hesaved all his praise for the couple whobrought Glidemaster back from thebrink to the Hambo winner’s circle.

“I am so happy for Blair andKarin,” he said. “I have some historywith both of them. What the horsewent through from last fall to the weekof the elim, and all the work they putinto him, it is so gratifying to be a smallpart of that with them. They did all thework to get him manageable and race-able, and then to overcome the footthing. That is what made this race sospecial.”


Back on top: Far left, JohnCampbell hoists his sixthHambletonian trophy. Left,the Campbell family, includ-ing wife, Paula, left, neverstopped believing in John.

All Hail HolbornTHE HAMBLETONIAN DAY under-card included such great performancesas Sand Vic in the Nat Ray, MarnieHall in the Golden Girls, ArmbroDancer in the Mistletoe Shalee, andArtistic Fella and Took Hanover inthe Oliver Wendell Holmes. But noneshocked racing more than HolbornHanover in his $195,000 division ofthe U.S. Pacing Championship.

The gelded son of Cam’s CardShark took the lead past the quarterand won by nearly two lengths, trip-ping the timer in 1:46.4 to becomethe fastest racing pacer of all time.

“I saw the three-quarter split andI gave him his head then and heresponded,” said driver GeorgeBrennan. “Normally I don’t drive theclock, but I took a shot, and I wasgoing for a record.”

Holborn Hanover eclipsed Prime-time Bobcat’s 1:47.2 world record seton May 13, 2006, and shattered theMeadowlands track record of 1:47.3,shared by Jenna’s Beach Boy (June22, 1996) and Lis Mara (July 29,2006). The only horse to pace fasterwas Cambest in his 1:46.1 Springfieldtime trial on Aug. 16, 1993.

Bred by Hanover Shoe Farms,Holborn Hanover first gainedacclaim in 2004 when he won theMeadowlands Pace for trainer MarkHarder in 1:49. He moved to theBrett Robinson barn in June of 2006and finished second in the BreedersCrown after winning an elimination.

Holborn Hanover has won 18 of77 career starts and banked$1,635,909 for owners John Fieldingand Canamerica Capital Corp (AlbertImbrogno and Douglas Hyatt).

The other U.S. Pacing Champion-ship division was captured by Ponderin 1:48.1.

—NICOLE KRAFT

WITH THE strong wind of six stakesvictories at her back, bettors on theHambletonian Oaks thought the racewould be a breeze for Passionate Glideand bet her down to 40 cents on thedollar. Her trainer, Jimmy Takter, wasnot so confident. In fact, he wasn’t surethe daughter of Yankee Glide wouldrace, let alone win, as she was battling asore right hind hamstring in the weeksleading up to the race.

But Passionate Glide proved she wasa true champion, taking the lead by thehalf and turning back all challengers towin the Oaks trophy for owner-breederBrittany Farms. Her win, coupled withGlidemaster’s Hambletonian victory,made Brittany the only farm to breedthe winner of the Oaks and Hambleton-ian in the same year.

“I trained her going into the DelvinMiller [eliminations on July 8] and she

was wonderful,” recalled Takter.“Something must have happenedbetween training and the race. She racedin the Delvin Miller elim; she wasabsolutely not herself. We worked onher with acupuncture and cooled itdown; she raced [and won] in theDelvin Miller final [July 14] and shewas better, actually pretty decent. Afterthat she went down[hill] pretty badly.We didn’t know it was a hamstring mus-cle problem. I suspected it when I sawher in the [Miller] final.”

With eliminations for the Oaks onJuly 29, Takter had only a little timeand some ancient remedies to helpPassionate Glide. Acupuncture sessionswith Dr. Charles Moore and Dr. KathyLackey followed, then caretaker KennetGlaas took over.

“We did 20 minutes, five times a daywith an ice pack about the size of a

hand,” recalled the native of Skara,Sweden. “I got a bucket, sat on it andheld the ice pack on the hamstring. Sheliked that. Then we would ultrasoundonce a day. She falls asleep for that.”

Glaas added that Passionate Glide’swilling demeanor came in handy.

“You can work on her how we want-ed,” he said. “If she wanted to fight theicing, it’s much harder to do a good jobwith it.”

By Oaks day, the swelling was gone,but Takter was less sure of her fitnessthan driver Ron Pierce, who assured thepress she only needed to be at 50 per-cent capacity to win the race.

“It was really a borderline case, ahard judgment,” said Takter. “I didn’tput the harness on her all week [prior tothe Oaks final], just jogged her lightlythe day before. It wasn’t guaranteedshe’d race right up to post time. She

Winning Passion


Passionate Glide wins theHambletonian Oaks BY ELLEN HARVEY

Intense emotion: Ahamstring injurycouldn’t stopPassionate Glide inthe Oaks. Below, thefilly’s connectionsrejoice in the win-ner’s circle.

THE HAMBLETONIAN


warmed up pretty good, though. Sheseemed OK.”

Glaas didn’t watch the race untilPassionate Glide was secure on the frontend.

Pierce and Passionate Glide led the

way home in 1:54.3, with a 27.3 lastquarter, prompting a big sigh of relieffrom her connections.

Takter’s first words in the post-raceinterview in front of nearly 30,000 fanswere of thanks to his staff for their hard

work in giving Passionate Glide thechance to shine. But in the end, hemused, it came down to a matter ofheart.

“If she’d been a wimp,” he declared,“she never would have won this race.”

Best of Brittany BY NICOLE KRAFT

MYRON BELL is always on the look-out for a good horse for George Segalof Brittany Farms, and in the summerof 2005 he had found a Hambletonianhopeful of great interest.

That colt’s name was Chocolatier,and he suggested Segal call the Acker-man family to see if a deal could bestruck.

Days later, Bell called Segal again.“Did you call the Ackermans?” Bell

asked.When Segal said, “No,” Bell

replied, “Don’t bother. Call BlairBurgess instead.”

On Sept. 6, 2005, Brittany joinedthe ownership fold of Glidemaster,along with Marsha Cohen, RobertBurgess and Karin Olsson-Burgess. Andon Aug. 5, 2006, the farm became onlythe second owner in history to possessthe winner of the Hambletonian andHambletonian Oaks in the same year.

Even more significant, Brittany isthe only farm in history to ever breedboth winners in one year, having beenresponsible for both Glidemaster andPassionate Glide.

“Among all our great days, this isright on top,” said Segal. “When youown a piece of both and breed both,it’s just tremendous. That’s why I dothis—to win the Hambo and Oaks. Towin the two premier races in trotting,and the same day—it’s unbelievable.”

Brittany Farms manager Art Zubrodadmitted that Glidemaster was not oneof his most promising yearlings, con-sidering the colt was a bit gawky andimmature. Though the $10,000 saleprice was disappointing, Zubrod said itwas not surprising, considering thatbuyers were not real high on theYankee Glides that year.

But when the opportunity came tobuy into Glidemaster, Zubrod said hewas all for it.

“We knew he had shown a tremen-

dous amount of talent, and we knowthat if a horse is raised here, they haveevery advantage to be a top horse,” hesaid.

Brittany initially bought 10 percentof Glidemaster, but has since optionedanother 10 percent. It will also guidethe trotter’s breeding career.

Passionate Glide was also not theflashiest yearling, said Zubrod.

“She was an ordinary filly with anextraordinary pedigree. Her granddamis Keystone Profile, who I loved fromthe first day I saw her at Hempt Farms.Her dam, Miss Marita, was a very tal-ented filly with a broken bone in her

foot who never could overcome that.”What Miss Marita lacked on the

track, she has more than made up foras a broodmare. She is also the dam of$300,000 winner Mr Vic and 2000Hambletonian Oaks winner Marita’sVictory. She is, however, not the mostfertile of mares, and those breedingproblems prompted Brittany to retainher third daughter, Passionate Glide.

“We had not had many foals fromMiss Marita, and we needed to keepthat blood in our broodmare band,”said Zubrod.

Segal watched both horses racefrom the Terraces Restaurant at The

Meadowlands, which provides a track-side view of the racing activities.Though he may visit his horses in thepaddock, he avoids “bothering” histrainers and drivers and refuses towatch a race from ground level.

“I’m superstitious,” Segal admittedwith a soft chuckle. “I always thoughtit was a little presumptuous to watchthe race from the winner’s circle. That’sjust where you go when you win.”

Passionate Glide had suffered ahamstring injury in the weeks leadingup to the Oaks, but after Segal sawdriver Ron Pierce make a strong movefor the lead coming out of the firstturn, he knew she was on her game.

Segal wasn’t quite as confident inGlidemaster, going so far as to tellZubrod at the five-eighths-pole,“Campbell’s in trouble.”

“I don’t think so,” replied Zubrod.“John has a ton of horse!”

Though the entire Brittany familyheaded to the winner’s circle afterGlidemaster’s triumph, the heat, excite-ment and chaos of the momentprompted Segal to quickly seek refugeinside. That left Zubrod and his wife,Leah Cheverie, to pose with GeorgeForeman in the trophy presentations.

The group reunited for a celebratoryGreek dinner in New York before head-ing home—Segal to the ChicagoMercantile trading floor, and Zubrod toBrittany to prepare the farm’s 60 year-lings for the Kentucky yearling sale.

“It’s such a busy time of year; youhave to go home and turn the page,”said Zubrod. “But that day has to beright up there with our best. I said toLeah later that day, ‘I don’t know if anyof our grandchildren or great-grandchil-dren will be in the business, but if theyread the history of harness racing, theywill see their grandmother and grandfa-ther were part of one of the best days inracing.’”

Twice as nice: George Segal, right, withJohn Campbell, bred and owns the Hamboand Oaks winners.

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