by Matthew Lomon

On its own, the story of a rookie pacer who became the first horse in history to win both the Ontario Sires Stakes (OSS) Grassroots championship and OSS Gold Super Final in the same season is nothing short of remarkable.

But it’s the rigorous journey to reach undocumented heights that makes the tale of Crack Shot truly one of a kind.

Hopes have always been high for the 2-year-old bay colt, who was purchased for $205,000 (USD) by veteran trainer/co-owner Gregg McNair at the 2023 Lexington Sale.

Alongside McNair, Crack Shot’s ownership group consists of partners Dale Hunter (the coach of the OHL’s London Knights), George Kerr, and Frank Brundle.

The latter owns and operates a successful family-built tire distribution business based out of Orangeville, ON, Tire Discounter Group.

Brundle is also a lifelong harness racing fan.

“I love racing,” Brundle said. “It’s a huge passion of mine. That was my first ever Grassroots trophy and it was the first Super Finals I’ve ever been in, and we won it.

“It was an amazing night.”

Getting to that point, however, was anything but a smooth ride.

“We had him geared up to race in the Battle of Waterloo and the Metro Pace,” Brundle said. “He raced in the Battle of Waterloo, but he was just off, he wasn’t pacing right.

“Then we thought about taking him to the Metro, but something seemed off. So, we tried him in an overnight [race] about one month later, and he was still out of sorts.”

Eager to find the root of Crack Shot’s troubles, Brundle and Co. opted to have their promising freshman evaluated by a veterinarian in the United States.

The doctor identified a small pressure point that was bothering the youngster and administered a treatment to alleviate any discomfort.

Crack Shot responded well, and after a brief down period, was deemed ready for a return to action.

Competing in a qualifier at Lexington, the son of Bettors Delight—Beautyonthebeach looked like the horse that led gate-to-wire to capture a pair of Grassroots legs in July.

“He qualified quite well,” Brundle said. “The week after we brought him back up here to try him in another overnight.

“He went in :52 that night and we thought, ‘Hey, we got something good here. Let’s try the Grassroots.’”

With Crack Shot’s health concerns in the rearview, Brundle’s team knew their prized pacer was well-positioned leading into the Grassroots Championship.

“Going in, we believed we had one of the best horses in the race,” Brundle said.

And right they were.

Crack Shot flew around Woodbine Mohawk Park’s oval in 1:52.1 to claim the top spot over even-money favorite Sauble Wilson for his most impressive triumph to date – a distinction that would be usurped just two weeks later.

Thanks to a brand-new feature in the OSS program stipulating that a Grassroots Series champion could enter the Super Final if the division didn’t fill with top point-earners from the Gold Series, the door was ajar for Crack Shot to forever stamp his place in OSS lore.

All the resilient racer needed was a stroke of luck.

“Chris Matthews, a good friend of mine phoned me up and said ‘Frank, you’re a lucky bugger,’” Brundle said, adding with a laugh, “I said, ‘Of course,’ jokingly.

“Then I asked what he meant, and he said we drew into the final. We got a decent post, but we didn’t know what to expect. There were some good horses in there, but I knew we had a chance.”

Besides the inherent faith that any owner has in one of their own, Brundle’s optimism was further bolstered by what he viewed as favorable circumstances going into the race.

“We came in fresh and ready to go, and a lot of the other horses I think we’re just a little bit worn down,” he said. “Also, the times in the Grassroots and Golds were only a couple seconds different, if at all.

“It wasn’t like the Golds were going in :49 or :50 every week. They were going :52 or :53 like the Grassroots.”

Once again, Brundle’s intuition proved proper.

Crack Shot delivered a career-best mark of 1:51.3, rewriting the OSS history books along the way.

“It was an amazing night and really a dream come true to race in two Super Finals with the same horse in the same year and win both,” Brundle said.

The owner out of East Garafraxa, ON, credited the McNairs and their team for having Crack Shot in peak condition for the Gold final.

As for what lies ahead for the rookie sensation, Crack Shot will be spending his winter like many other Canadians – in Florida.

“Gregg has a farm in Lake Okeechobee,” Brundle said. “Crack Shot will go down there and hopefully be turned out for the rest of November and December, let him be a horse, run around, go a little bit, or kick and buck.

“Then he’ll probably start training in mid-January, February and March. Then we can think about shipping him back up here for April.”

Now fully embracing snowbird status, Crack Shot closes the book on a maiden campaign that saw him compile a 5-1-0 record through eight starts and some $238,825 in purse earnings.

In a year characterized by luck, both good and bad, Crack Shot fought tirelessly to carve out a pristine position atop Ontario’s sire stakes program.

No doubt encouraged by what he’s seen, the high hopes that Brundle held for Hip #297 when he was first purchased have been raised even higher.

And why not?

“My goal is to win the Little Brown Jug with him,” he said. “This guy is a small, stocky little horse. He went :51 across Mohawk and he looked really impressive. Getting him to win the Little Brown Jug would be a dream come true for me.

“My daughter Camille, who helps look after the horses, wants to win the North America Cup. I just hope Crack Shot comes back fully healthy and stays strong. I’m looking forward to him having a career next year.”