The name Waples seems synonymous with success in the harness racing industry, especially when it comes to driving horses.
Keith Waples
The gentleman who started the family dynasty of sorts is the legendary Keith Waples who is regarded as one of the best harness racing drivers ever.
“I started watching Keith when I was 13 years old at Richelieu Park in Montreal. He always impressed me with the way he sat in the bike. He had so much patience in a race. He was such a smart driver and such a nice guy too. He was an all around horseman,” praised hall of fame driver Mike Lachance.
The full statistics for Keith Waples’ career will never be known as he was winning races long before they were recorded. Born in 1923 he remembers jogging horses at the family farm in Victoria Harbour, Ontario, at four. He won his first race at 13 and many more before they began keeping track.
“I’ve never been one to get too excited about statistics. They’re a recent development, since 1948 I believe and I won a slew of races before that,” explained Keith.
In 1959 he steered Mighty Dudley to the first two minute mile ever recorded in Canada. In 1962 he won the prestigious Roosevelt International with Tie Silk in front of a crowd of more than 53,000. In 1972 he guided Strike Out in the Little Brown Jug. They won the first heat in 1:56.3, the fastest mile ever on a half-mile track, and came back to easily capture the final heat. It was the first Jug victory for a Canadian owned horse and his connections.
Other memorable performers for Waples included Silver Almahurst, a horse he called the best pacer he ever drove, Bardot Hanover and her sons Alberts Star and General Star, Woodlawn Drummond, Blaze Pick, Zip Tar, Rob Ron Robbie, Rob Ron Tarios, Duke Of Decatur, Right Tie, Choir Boy, Wizard Almahurst, Hi Richard, Ben Boy and the list goes on.
Keith Waples didn’t limit his involvement in harness racing to horses. He was a rare horseman who also excelled in racetrack management, as he was actively involved in establishing three Canadian racetracks: Orangeville Raceway in Ontario and Cloverdale Raceway (Fraser Downs) and Sandown Park in BC.
Keith is a member of the Hall of Fame in both Canada in the US, was named Canada’s Horseman of the Year in 1962 and established records throughout North America both in terms of speed and as a trainer and driver. A measure of Keith Waples’ impact on the sport and his continued relevance to it was his being named the Greatest Canadian Horse Person in a wide ranging poll conducted by The Canadian Sportsman in 2005. Well into his 90s now, Keith is still active in the industry sharing ownership of the good OSS Colt Three Of Clubs.
Ron Waples
One of the brightest and most revered personalities in harness racing, Ron Waples has left few stones unturned in his impressive career. His skill as a horseman and driver has garnered him global respect and top honours across North America. He was inducted into the Hall Of Fame in Canada in 1986 and the US Hall in 1993, and to the Little Brown Jug Wall Of Fame in 2006.
Waples spent his formative years as a groom for his cousin, Keith Waples and in 1971 Ron went out on his own. His first win came at Sunnydale Raceway in North Bay with Ferndale Prince. That foundation paved the way for driving earnings in excess of $75 million and nearly 7,000 career victories.
Considered one of the greatest clutch drivers in the history of the sport, Waples possessed an uncanny ability to read the field and make the optimum move the in the heat of the moment. Waples’ major stakes wins include the Little Brown Jug, Hambletonian, Cane, Messenger, nine Breeders Crowns, Meadowlands Pace, Maple Leaf Trot, Kentucky Futurity, Jugette, Hambletonian Oaks, Woodrow Wilson, Canadian Pacing Derby, Prix d'Éte and the North America Cup.
He is forever connected to horses the likes of Ralph Hanover, No Sex Please, Armbro Dallas, Presidential Ball, Dream Maker, Village Jiffy, Sugarcane Hanover, Park Avenue Joe, Fake Left, Sportsmaster, Oaklea Count, Delphis Lobell and most recently JM Vangogh.
Among his many accomplishments, at the height of his success in 1984, Ron recorded over 300 wins for the eighth year in a row, while his seasonal earnings topped $2 million for the fifth consecutive year.
In addition to this resume of driving and training excellence, Waples has also contributed his time, passion and expertise as the co-owner of both a sales company and a trade show; he’s been a TV commentator and the invited author of a chapter in the newest edition of the sport’s bible, Care & Training Of The Trotter & Pacer. A major advocate for the ‘hands on horses’ approach to marketing horse racing to a new demographic, the Guelph, Ontario, horseman has been active in dozens of promotional initiatives over the past two decades.
Randy Waples
Ron’s son, Randy, has been one of Ontario’s leading harness drivers for many years. Named Canada’s Driver of the Year three times to date, in 1998, 2001 and 2010, Randy has been responsible for the success of many horses racing in this province and beyond.
In 2011 Randy became a member of the elite group of drivers who have won more than $100 million in purses. That came in an Ontario Sires Stakes Gold Final aboard the trotting filly China Pearls.
“It’s just something that I never dreamed of,” Waples said following that milestone victory. “It’s as simple as that. When I got into this business I wanted to win 1,000 races and hopefully make $10 million. What’s happened since then, it’s unbelievable the opportunities I’ve been given.”
Since 1996, Randy Waples had never had a year when he’s earned less than one million dollars in purses. In fact 2014 marked the 18th straight year he’s earned in excess of $2.9 million. His career season in terms of purses won came in 2001 when the horses he guided earned in excess of $10.6 million. His highest number of victories, 550, also came that season.
One of the first premier horses he drove was the outstanding trotter named No Sex Please trained and owned by his brother, Ron Jr. An Ontario sired gelding by Brisco Hanover, No Sex Please would go on to win more than $1.8 million in his career. He was the first Ontario bred trotter to win more than $1 million and to win the Breeders Crown.
No Sex Please, named for the play No Sex Please We’re British, was elected to the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 1993. He was driven in his career primarily by his owner’s father and brother, making the horse’s success a truly family affair. Many people point to Ron Jr.’s horsemanship as the secret to the trotter’s success.
Randy Waples is also noted for having steered the great San Pail throughout most of his career. A winner of $3.1 million, the Ontario sired gelding achieved the rare honour of being named Horse of the Year in both Canada and the US in 2011. Other top performers benefiting from Randy at the lines have included Thinking Out Loud, Liberty Balance, Dreamfair Eternal, Mach Three, Creampuff Macdaddy, Red River Hanover, Text Me, Leading X Ample, etc.
Randy, like his father, has gone out of his way to promote the sport and is one of the most sought after interview subjects as he always provides candid and insightful commentary.
[Photos courtesy of Iron Horse Photo]
More Tips from the Pros