Our Kiwis come to Canada

Harnesslink’s John Curtin and Brad Reid touched down in Toronto on Jan. 25 to kick off a month-long harness racing business trip – and they immediately got a real taste of the Great White North.

While Curtin had already been to Canada, it was the first time for fellow New Zealander Reid, who remarked that it was the first time he had seen snow in January. Before setting off for Seelster Farms in Lucan, Ont., he was treated to an archetypal Canadian experience – scraping ice and snow off the car windshield.

And off the Kiwis – and myself, Nicholas Barnsdale – went to one of Ontario’s most storied breeding farms. We did pull off in the town of St. Marys for a bite to eat, where both men from Down Under ate their first Reuben sandwiches, and Reid raved about his first diner experience. Then we completed our journey to Seelster Farms.

Ann Straatman, Seelster’s Reproduction Manager, graciously guided us through the grounds – accompanied by very friendly Black Labradors – while discussing breeding, the farm’s operations, and racing in general. Straatman first got them up close and personal with Bulldog Hanover and Big Jim.

Reid’s fandom shone through with the fastest horse in history in the crossties in front of him, and he greeted the legend happily. The stud’s groom demonstrated the horse’s fondness for sweets and how Big Jim enjoys having his tongue held. The group then toured the broodmare barns – each of us marveled at the sliding partitions designed for easy cleaning – and withdrew to the boardroom for discussion.

Reid was thrilled with the visit.

“It was pretty surreal to be honest, to be standing in elite company like that,” he said. “It was also just really cool to see a farm like Seelster Farms. It must be really exciting for people out in this area in Ontario, and the sires stakes program here, to have a world champion and the world’s fastest horse standing in the province.”

He also admired the people behind the operation.

“It was really cool to see a third generation of a family business and someone (Straatman) who’s got a passion for it, having grown up in the industry and seeing everything come and go with the farm, from Camluck to some stallions in between,” he said. “You could just see the twinkle in her eye when Bulldog came out, and the excitement that having that horse is going to generate. It was really cool to see a family-owned farm like that and just a really neat-working farm in how they’ve developed it and are continuing to grow.”

The trip then continued south to London, Ont. to see The Raceway at the Western Fair District. Director of Equine Programming Greg Blanchard and track announcer Shannon “Sugar” Doyle met us in the lobby, where the simulcast center had been converted into a vaccination clinic.

Blanchard and Doyle happily immersed the visitors in the track’s history, aided by its Hall of Fame and a photo gallery on the back wall of the Top of the Fair Restaurant. Reid, seeing a photo of the track on Camluck Classic night, expressed a desire to return for the historic race. After reliving glory days, discussing features of the track and surrounding city, and some of the features of racing in Ontario, the track’s representatives gave an inside look into some of Western Fair’s technical achievements.

Blanchard and Doyle eagerly showcased The Raceway’s relatively new remote joystick camera setups in the TV control room. We then navigated the catwalk on the roof of the grandstand, where Reid was nailed with his first snowball, to visit the announcer’s quarters – everyone took a turn donning the headset – and the judges’ room.

Blanchard explained ways the track was looking to grow and some of its recent successes, presenting a positive outlook for the future. It was then back to the ground floor and through an area of the building devoted to a burgeoning local snack business and other agriculture – and a farewell before heading back to Highway 401.

“We had a couple of very lovely hosts in Greg and Sugar, both made us feel very welcome,” Reid said. “It’s just a really unique track – a half-mile track, and a very unique vantage point being taken up to the calling box and seeing how Sugar does it. It was really exciting seeing all the different avenues and areas that they’re growing the business, and it sounds like they’ve got some really good ideas as well. Really good people.

“It was wonderful to go to a racetrack with so much history as Western Fair. It was awesome to see a racetrack using its initiative and looking at other ventures and avenues of ways to generate revenue for the sport and for the racetrack. They’re clearly in good hands there with Greg and Sugar, and I doubt you’ll find anyone more passionate than the pair of those two. They’re very passionate and very enthusiastic about their brand and their track, and that’s really encouraging to see two people – obviously as part of a larger team – really making sure harness racing has its place in London.”

The trip home was uneventful, reaching Toronto in about two hours before setting our destination for the next day – Tara Hills Stud. We left in the morning and headed east to Tara Hills, where we stopped in the driveway to admire – and photograph – the snow-blanketed pastures. There were frequent comments on the beauty of the property.

David Heffering, the farm’s owner and general manager, met us on the driveway and led us to the stallion barn, where he explained intricacies about the structure, like its waste disposal system, and talked about each of the farm’s strong stallions. Reid, displaying a similar passion to that displayed at Seelster, made his acquaintance with Sportswriter, Muscle Mass, Alarm Detector, Cattlewash, and Control The Moment.

There we also met their skillful caretaker, Stallion Manager Marissa Tinney, who has maintained a sunny disposition in each horse and kept them in stunning condition. We also visited the auxiliary stallion and broodmare barn, where Curtin happily united with King Of The North, with whom he is personally involved.

Finally, the group saw the farm’s hall of fame, where each sire that had stood there is memorialized. The group, along with Farm Manager Matt Harrison, had a spirited discussion about all things breeding in North America and New Zealand, including the latter’s use of sires long past via artificial insemination.

We then had a brief meeting in the office, basking in the glory of the farm’s immense trophy case and meeting Nora Heffering, David’s wife, before jetting off to a local restaurant for lunch and some final conversation. We then said goodbye, thanked Heffering for his hospitality, and received some routing instructions for our departure, which proved golden.

Reid felt the rendez-vous was very fruitful and enjoyable.

“It’s a stud with a lot of history, and it was really exciting to go and visit somewhere like that,” he said. “I had bred a foal by Sportswriter, one of the great Ontario stallions, he’s done a great job and had great longevity – it was really exciting to meet a horse like that – and Muscle Mass as well, who’s done a phenomenal job in my own country and had a massive impact with limited numbers from frozen semen.

“It was just a pleasure to see the farm in all its glory. Obviously, there wasn’t any greenery around, and I can imagine how impressive it would be in the Spring. But that didn’t detract from anything, with just an unbelievable backdrop of snow and just the most gorgeous place you could imagine. […] It was definitely a bucket list item to go and see Tara Hills.”

He was also impressed with the people of the farm and appreciative for the tour.

“I’ve just got to really thank Dave and his team for making us feel so welcome there,” he said.

Reid and Curtin bid their farewells as we returned to Toronto and made their way to the harness racing hub of Ohio. A few days later, in New York, Reid got to see his beloved New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden – another highlight of a trip kicked off in Canada.

by Nicholas Barnsdale, for Harnesslink