Outlawguns N Roses did it all last year paving a relatively easy path to being named last year’s Horse of the Year at Saturday’s Alberta Standardbred Horse Association’s awards dinner in Calgary.
Owned by Clauzette Byckal and trainer Rod Starkewski, Outlawguns N Roses, who was also a runaway choice as Champion Three-Year-Old Filly, only lost twice in 13 starts last year. She her 2024 season with six straight wins including the November 2 $80,000 Super Finals at Edmonton’s Century Mile and a 1:51 3/5 eight-length track record victory in the August 10 $122,000 Gord and Illa Rumpel stakes at Balzac’s Century Downs. The record time was two-fifths of a second quicker than the boys raced in the Ralph Klein the same day.
“An incredible mile,” regular driver Dave Kelly said afterwards.
“Shocked and overwhelmed,” concurred Starkewski.
Prone to drifting out in the stretch - much to the consternation of the betting public - but so good that it didn’t make a difference, Outlawguns N Roses banked $285,270 last year to bring her career earnings to a fat $380,810. Able to win on the lead or come from off the pace, Outlawguns N Roses - bred by Connie Kolthammer’s Outlaw Stable and out of her prodigious unraced mare Gunslingin Gal - also won the October 12 $131,720 Century Casino stake, the August 31 $53,900 Princess - when she paced her last half in :54 4/5 - and the May 25 $56,900 Diamond - by 10 gaping lengths.
Simply sensational and almost unbeatable, Outlawguns N Roses’ two losses came when she broke stride at the start of the July 13 Marquis and before that - by a length - in the June 15 $118,000 Shirley McClellan in a scintillating stretch drive at the hands of ByBy Baby ByBy, who got the pocket trip.
“She’s a pretty incredible filly,” Starkewski told Horse Racing Alberta’s thehorses.com website last year.
“She’s a happy horse. She’s on a different wave.”
“I’ve never driven anything like her,” Kelly was also quoted as saying.“She likes going fast and she’s got a big idle that allows her to carry her speed really well. She’s a lot of fun to drive.”
In other awards, Shark Week was the obvious choice as Aged Horse of the Year.
“He’s a freak of nature,” trainer Rod Hennessy said of the now seven-year-old monster he co-owns with Lorne Duffield. At one point in his career Shark Week won 17 straight races. Two years ago he paced in 1:49 2/5 at Century Downs to become the first standardbred to go in under 1:50 in either Alberta or B.C.
Last year the 2023 Horse of the Year won nine of a limited 10 starts.
Another superstar feted Saturday night was Grey Horizon as Champion Three-Year-Old colt. A winner of nine of his 14 outings Grey Horizon took all the ‘biggies’ winning Alberta’s most prestigious sophomore harness race - the October 12 $107,000 Western Canada Pacing Derby at Century Mile - the November 2 $80,000 Super Finals for his seventh consecutive triumph - and the August 10 $105,570 Ralph Klein at Century Downs despite having his left hobble hanger come loose at the start and then throwing in some bad steps exiting the final turn.
“I thought I was going to lose him,” trainer/driver Brandon Campbell said at the time. “He just lost his footing. I wasn’t sure if I could keep him on stride. It was 50-50. I almost lost him.”
Grey Horizon’s portfolio last year also included the August 31 $54,500 Plainsman when he left out of the trailing position and had to come from far back before winning going away.
On June 15 he won the $90,000 Moore’s Mile by nine lengths.
Grey Horizon was sold for an undisclosed price to Kellogg Racing Stables out of New York last November following the Super Final. Kellogg Racing also bought 50-race winner Virtual Horizon from the Campbell barn in 2023.
Before being sold Grey Horizon, who was 2023’s Champion Two-Year-Old, won $340,725 for his previous owners Jodi Loftus, Raymond Henry and George Rogers.
Elsewhere, undefeated Custard Dolce - perfect in eight starts - was named Alberta’s Champion Two-Year-Old Filly for owner/trainer Jamie Gray; Jackson Wittup, Max Gibb and Derek Wilson.
Outlawminutbyminut was the champion Open Two-Year-Old Colt while Moma’s Work of Art was the champion Alberta-bred champion Two-Year-Old Colt.
Outlawminutbyminut won four of his eight starts - all stakes - for owners Logan Gillis and Todd Teolis; Moma’s Work of Art was out of the top three just once in his eight starts with victories that included the $27,000 Rising Star for owner/trainer Shelly Arsenault, Don Monkman Jr. and, once again, Wittup.
Stash The Cookies is 2024’s champion Aged Mare; Cheese Whiz emerged as Champion filly and mare Claimer of the Year and Came A Cavalier is Champion male Claimer of the Year.
Stash The Cookies won 11 of her 17 outings for trainer John Chappell and owner Derek Gilbert.
Cheese Whiz had 10 wins and 10 seconds for trainer/owner Nathan Sobey, Glenn Pinel and Glenda Winkleman moving from $7,000 claiming ranks to Preferred Company; and Came A Cavalier had nine wins and 14 seconds for owner/trainer Kelly Hoerdt and Fred Gilbert also moving all the way from $7,000 claiming races to Preferred company.
In individual awards Travis Ellis was named Trainer of the Year; Chris Lancaster was trainer of the Year with less than 200 starts; Mike Hennessy is Driver of the Year while Thomas Miller was top Driver with less than 200 starts; Starkewski and Byckal were Owners of the Year; Outlaw Stable was named Breeder of the Year; Amber Campbell was chosen as Caretaker of the Year; Rummy’s Command is the Champion Broodmare of 2024 and Jamie Gray was awarded the coveted and newly named Keith Clark Horsemanship trophy.
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Author: The Turcottes: The Remarkable Story of a Horse Racing Dynasty