Sixth straight Kaltenbach titles for top Ohio horsemen

Grove City, OH – For the sixth straight year, driver Chris Page and trainer Ron Burke captured Ohio’s Kaltenbach harness racing titles.

The Jerry Kaltenbach Memorial Trophies were established in 1988 and are awarded annually to the driver and trainer who have earned the most dollars competing in Ohio Sires Stakes (OSS) events in a single season.

Page claims the most Kaltenbach awards amongst drivers, notching his ninth title this year. Page started in 71 OSS events, winning 27 races, finishing second nine times, and adding five third-place finishes to earn $1,431,350.

Brett Miller finished second with 13 wins, 12 second-place finishes, and four third-place finishes in 58 starts. Miller’s earnings topped $1,190,850.  Aaron Merriman finished third having a record of 10-13-11 in 78 races and $978,750 in earnings.

A total of 58 drivers participated in the 2024 OSS events with 45 garnering at least one purse check.  Fifteen had earnings over $100,000 or more, with nine amassing earnings over $300,000.

The Kaltenbach title was the seventh for Burke who had 111 starts in the 2024 Ohio Sires Stakes legs, championships, and consolations.  His total money earned from these OSS events was $1,979,700.

Burke finished with 34 wins, 11 second-place finishes, and nine third-place finishes.

Virgil Morgan, Jr. finished second with $1,267,100 in earnings and a 12-12-3 record from 51 starts.  Chris Beaver finished third. He had earnings of $634,050 with a record of 3-12-10 in 47 starts.

A total of 95 trainers participated in 2024 OSS events with 19 earning over $100,000.

In the 36 years the Kaltenbach trophies have been awarded, Page leads all drivers with nine trophies followed by David Miller with seven.  David Hawk and Brett Miller have three each.  On the training side, Burke has captured the title seven times, Morgan six, and Jim Dailey won the award four times.  Only two horsemen have won the Kaltenbach in both the training and driving categories—Sam “Chip” Noble, III and Dave Rankin.

Page and Burke will be honored at the Ohio Harness Horsemen’s Association Annual Awards Banquet on January 18, 2025, at the Marriott Columbus Airport in Columbus, Ohio. Seats are sold out.

by Ashley Dailey, for the OHHA