Three local harness drivers hit major career milestones in recent weeks racing at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto.
Mike Saftic, 52, of Campbellville recorded his 5,000th career win on Oct. 20 when he steered trotter Magic Shelley to victory. Saftic has driven the winners of more than $93 million in his career.
Jody Jamieson, 37, of Moffat won his 7,000th career race last Thursday when he drove Frankie Boy to victory. Horses driven by Jamieson have earned more than $107 million combined.
Monday night, Chris Christoforou, 43, of Campbellville hit the 6,000-win plateau when World Away won. Christoforou, who sits second in the nation in earnings, is also closing in rapidly on $100 million in career earnings.
Meanwhile, local drivers continue to dominate the Canadian harness racing scene. The top nine spots in the national earnings rankings are held by drivers based in or around Guelph and just $1 million separates the top five reinsmen.
Two-time defending Canadian driver of the year Sylvain Filion of Milton leads the country with over $5.1 million, followed by Christoforou ($4.9 million) and Jamieson ($4.6 million). Randy Waples of Milton ($4.3 million) is fourth, followed by three drivers from Guelph — James MacDonald ($4.1 million), Doug McNair ($3.4 million) and Paul MacDonell ($3.2 million). The last three spots are held by: Trevor Henry of Arthur ($2.7 million), Mario Baillargeon of Milton ($2.23 million) and U.S.-based Quebec native Yannick Gingras with $2.2 million earned in Canada this year. Counting horses he's driven this year in the U.S., Gingras leads North America with over $14 million in earnings.
Meanwhile, Henry leads Canada in wins by a huge margin with 408 victories compared to MacDonald's 292. Jamieson is third with 255 wins.
The standings for the top trainers in Canada lie in sharp contrast to the drivers. Three of the top five trainers on the list live in the U.S., including New Jersey-based Jimmy Takter, who leads Canada with over $2.64 million in earnings thanks to his success in stakes races here. Takter is followed by two trainers based in Ontario — Richard Moreau ($2.2 million), the reigning Canadian trainer of the year, and Corey Johnson ($2.04 million). U.S. trainers Tony Alagna ($1.94 million) and Ron Burke ($1.88 million) sit in fourth and fifth, respectively.
Gregg McNair of Guelph is sixth ($1.75 million), followed by Peterborough's John Bax ($1.68 million), Windsor's Bob McIntosh ($1.64 million), Stouffville's Carmen Auciello ($1.56 million) and Cambridge's Casie Coleman ($1.48 million).
Both Takter and Burke have had outstanding years in North America.
Burke, who is based near Pittsburgh, is destroying all existing trainer records. Last year, he became the first trainer in harness racing history to record over $20 million in earnings in a single year. He also became the first trainer to exceed 1,000 training wins in a season. This year, he has already shattered his own earnings record with nearly $25 million made. With two months left in the year he also is poised to top 1,000 wins again with 974 victories to date. Burke's massive operation has started in nearly 4,500 races this year, meaning his horses are averaging just under $5,500 per start.
By comparison, horses trained by Takter, who is based in New Jersey, have earned more than $11.5 million in 2014, a personal best. The U.S. Hall of Famer amassed that in just 650 starts, meaning his horses have averaged a whopping $17,812 per start this year.
All of which should make the voting for year-end awards on both sides of the border particularly interesting.
Dave Briggs is the president of the Canadian chapter of the United States Harness Writers Association. He can be reached by email at dbriggs1969@ymail.com
