The heartwarming story of the 10 year-old pacer Ramblingamblinman finding his forever home with long time horse owner Don Washburn accurately illustrates why the Ontario Standardbred Adoption Society works tirelessly to find retired harness horses new homes.
Don reached out to OSAS to adopt a horse and asked that his age, a young 73, not be judged against him. And, of course, it wasn’t. He was matched with Ramblingamblinman (who he now calls Beau) a few weeks ago and the pair have bonded quickly.
“Ramblingamblinman has now been here for 10 days, and he made himself at home right away,” Don advises.
“Yesterday I tacked him up and rode an introduction ride with me; he accepted me, never missed a beat. He’s an honest horse, one who wants to be a companion and a riding partner. I have owned over 80 horses over the last 53 years in my trail riding school and my private horses. Ten of them have been Standardbreds and none have disappointed me.
“Beau was a pleasant surprise above the rest. He not only impresses me as a horse but has been a great cure for my grief of losing my Quarter Horse, Ben, to a stroke after having him for 22 years. He has already filled that gap in my life. The picture taken was yesterday after a ride with obstacle courses.”
This is a fresh start for Beau, a son of Lis Mara who enjoyed a successful racing career, with 119 lifetime starts and a summary of 20-20-17 for $234,606 in earnings. His life mark of 1:50.4s came during his seven-year-old season at Hoosier Park. He began his career in 2014 at Pompano Park and ended it in early 2020 at Woodbine under the care of trainer Shayne Barrington.
Bred by Perretti Farms Ramblingamblinman (also a Bob Dylan song title), is from the Artsplace mare Armbro Althea. His sister, McGibson is the dam of $1.4 million winner Boston Red Rocks, a Breeders Crown and Governors Cup winner as a two-year-old. His second dam is the Dexter Nukes daughter Althea Seelster who was an outstanding two-year-old two decades ago, winning more than $200,000 in her debut campaign.
Ramblingamblinman’s new owner is very appreciative to have had the opportunity to adopt a horse of his calibre, commenting: “There are many retired Standardbreds that are broke and trained to ride, looking to start a new career and find a deserved, loving, forever home. These horses have paid their dues, now it's time for us to give back.
“Thank you for finding me my new best friend and companion.”
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