(PHOTO - COUNTRY BOY 123 was bought for $7,200 (US) by Dr. Ruth Barbour in 2014 - Laurie Overton Photo)
Ruth Barbour purchased her first Quarter Horse only five years ago, looking to try her hand at preparing a racehorse at the Hillsburgh, ON farm she shares with husband Doug Jackson. As a small-scale Thoroughbred owner and breeder and practicing veterinarian, Barbour had some fun with that first Quarter Horse, Sixes Hero, a three-time winning filly.
It was the success of Sixes Hero that took Barbour to Oklahoma in the fall of 2014 where she bought a large, chocolate brown gelding at the Heritage Place yearling sale for $7,200 (US). Barbour had a feeling the big son of Country Chicks Man, named Country Boy 123, would take some time mastering the racing game because of his size.
She was right; But while Country Boy 123 had just a single top three placing in four starts a 2-year-old, a much more polished appeared on the track in 2016. He won his first race of the season and kicked off a remarkable campaign that ended with a Horse of the Year title.
Country Boy 123 was named Ontario Quarter Horse racing’s top horse and High Point 3-year-old and 3-year-old Gelding at the Quarter Racing Owners of Ontario Inc. dinner and ceremony on Nov. 26 at the Ajax Convention Centre. Over 150 people attended the year-end celebration.
"It has been an amazingly great ride,” said Barbour, who rides the gelding every day at her farm. “It’s kind of shocking actually to have a horse like this, especially since he’s only my fourth Quarter Horse I have owned.”
Country Boy 123, trained by Bryn Robertson, won all but one of his seven races at Ajax Downs in 2016 including three stakes races: the Picov Derby (in which he posted a stunning 107 Speed Index), AQHA Challenge Maiden and the Adequan Derby Challenge. It was his win in the latter which earned a spot in the gate for the $200,000 Adequan Derby final at Los Alamitos racetrack in California.
Barbour gave her prized gelding a chance to compete against the best in North America and was not disappointed when he finished fourth.
The gelding finished the year with six wins in eight races and boosted his career earnings to just over $110,000 (Can.). Country Boy 123 was bred by Carolyn Bay in Michigan.
The Horse of the Year trophy, as voted by the board of directors of the QROOI, came down to Country Boy 123 and First Down the Track, a two-time stakes winner in 2016 for Richard Wincikaby and DK Training Centre.
A stakes winner as a 2 and 3-year-old, the now 6-year-old Utah bred mare won five of seven races in 2016 including the All Canadian Classic and Picov Maturity. Trained by Don Reid, who was the Bruce Lawrence High Point Trainer of the Year, First Down the Track was the High Point Aged Mare over stablemate Sign It Down. First Down the Track is a daughter of Corona Cartel bred by Lance Robinson and Max Anderson.
Wincikaby and Reid (who owns DK Training Centre with Kim Ito) won the trophy for High Point Owners plus other awards for Hope Rambles On, the High Point 3-year-old Mare, and runner-up Seis Zoom as well as High Point 2-year-old gelding runner-up with Hickerson.
“It was an awesome year,” said Wincikaby, who celebrated the evening with his wife Linda, daughter Sarah and son Patrick. “I’m hooked on Quarter Horse racing and hopefully our good luck will continue next year.”
Don Reid was unable to attend the ceremony as he is recovering from a broken pelvis suffered in a trainng accient earlier in the week.
Wincikaby recently added to his stable with numerous purchases of young horses at sales in the U.S.
(PHOTO BELOW - Richard Wincikaby (third from left) celebrates with his family and team members surrounded by a litany of awards for horses he owns with DK Training Centre, trainer Don Reid - photo courtesy of Linda Wincikaby)
Darlene Ballis-Hunderup was High Point Owner/Trainer and Heste Sport, Inc owned by Ballis-Hunderup and husband René Hunderup, was High Point Ontario Breeder.
“We would not even be here if it wasn’t for the people who bought our horses,” said René Hunderup. “Everyone who bought our horses did great work with them and we have them to thank.”
Brian Bell won his third consecutive High Point Jockey trophy with 421 points and 43 wins.
Other winners included Home to Vegas, the High Point Two-Year-Old Colt or Gelding, who won five of six races in 2016 including the Ontario Sires Stakes Futurity. Owned by Marie Broadstock and Brian Samis and trained by Bob Broadstock, Home to Vegas’ only loss in a superb season was when he lost his rider in the Alex Picov Memorial Futurity. Home to Vegas was bred in Ontario by Dr. Gayle Sommer.
Denali Teller Off, a 2-year-old filly owned by Milena Kwiecien of Burlington, ON was High Point Two-Year-Old Filly thanks to her upset win in the Picov Memorial Futurity.
One Famous Glass, the 2013 Horse of the Year, won the Alex Picov Memorial Championship and was High Point Aged Gelding/Stallion for owners Carol and Jaime Robertson and Dr. Charles Hall. Bryn Robertson did a masterful job getting One Famous Glass back to championship form in 2016.
The QROOI also presented the George Edgerton Memorial Award, for service “above and beyond to help the horsepeople”, to Monique McNamara, who works with the horsepeople through her duties at QROOI as well as planning and organizing many track events including the awards banquet.
The Ken Mucklestone Award, given to an individual who “upholds and represents the integrity if the industry” was given to the late Daryl Wells Jr. Wells, who was a host and commentator at Ajax Downs, passed away suddenly in October.
The entire list of awards and honours is below:
George Egerton Memorial Award Monique McNamara
Ken Mucklestone Award Daryl Wells Jr.
Horse of the Year Country Boy 123
Bruce Lawrence -Hi Point Trainer Don Reid
- Runner-Up Trainer Joe Tavares
Hi Point Owner/Trainer Darlene Ballis-Hunderup
- Runner-Up Owner/Trainer Chantelle Bourgeois
Hi-Point Jockey Brian Bell
- Runner-up Jockey Cassandra Jeschke
High Point 2 Yr Old & Colt/Gelding (30) Home to Vegas - Samis, Brian and Broadstock, Marie
- Runner-up 2 yr old Gelding/Colt (20) Hickerson Wincikaby, Richard and DK Training Centre
High Point 2 yr Old & Filly (30) Denali Teller Off Kwiecien, Milena
- Runner-Up 2 yr old Filly (16) One Special Domino Lehtinen, Joyce and Erik
High Point 3 Yr Old & Gelding/Stallion (42) Country Boy 123 Barbour, Ruth F
- Runner-up 3 yr old Gelding/Stallion (37) Alakazaam Full Circle Racing and Cummings Cattle
High Point 3 Yr Old Mare (28) Hope Rambles On Wincikaby, Richard and DK Training Centre
- Runner-Up 3 yr old Mare (25) Seis Zoom Wincikaby, Richard and DK Training Centre
High Point Aged & Mare (45) First Down the Track Wincikaby, Richard and DK Training Centre
- Runner-Up Aged Mare (31) Sign It Down Wincikaby, Richard and DK Training Centre
High Point Gelding/Stallion (38) One Famous Glass Robertson, Carol and Jaime, & Dr C Hall
- Runner-up Aged Gelding/Stallion (32) Fiesty Icon Kennedy, Richard
High Point Owner Richard Wincikaby and DK Training Centre
- Runner Up Heste Sport Inc
Hi Point Ontario Breeder Heste Sport inc
Runner Up Gary McNichol
Stakes Winners
Race Winner Owner
Adequan Derby Challenge. AQHA Challenge enrolled. Country Boy 123 Barbour, Ruth F
Alex Picov Memorial Championship One Famous Glass Robertson, Carol and Jaime, & Dr C Hall
Alex Picov Memorial Futurity. Denali Teller Off Kwiecien, Milena
All Canadian Classic First Down the Track Wincikaby, Richard and DK Training Centre
AQHA Challenge Country Boy 123 Barbour, Ruth F
Bank of America Challenge Championship. AQHA Fast Man Vic Full Circle Racing
John Deere Juvenille Challenge Rpainted Pistol Kwiecien, Milena
Ontario Sire Stakes Derby. 3 yr Old. Ontario Sired. Alakazaam Full Circle Racing and Cummings Cattle
Ontario Sire Stakes Futurity. Home to Vegas Samis, Brian and Broadstock, Marie
Ontario Sire Stakes Maturity. 4 Yr Old Ontario Sired Fiesty Icon Kennedy, Richard
Picov Derby Country Boy 123 Barbour, Ruth F
Picov Maturity First Down the Track Wincikaby, Richard and DK Training e
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