Lindsey Kerr finally achieves goal as Western Fair’s top trainer
by Matthew Lomon
Topping The Raceway at Western Fair District’s trainer standings had long been on the mind of Lindsey Kerr.
The devoted local conditioner enjoyed several successful seasons at the London, ON oval, coming within striking distance of the summit but never quite reaching it.
Undeterred, a motivated Kerr set course for 2025 with the same goal serving as her compass – and this time, she would not be denied.
On the strength of a career-best 83-win campaign — 60 of which came at Western Fair — Kerr was finally in a league of her own.
“We were pumped,” said a jubilant Kerr. “We have owners, my grooms, and trainers here – it’s definitely been a goal of ours to make it to the top. We’ve been second, we’ve been third, and it was nerve-wracking to say the least, but our horses — I cannot complain about any of them — they’ve been awesome.
“We are very proud of our stable.”
It was by no means an easy ascent to the apex of the leaderboard.
Kerr’s trainees were limited to just 13 starts all of December due to complications caused by
the recent strangles outbreak in the London area.
Contending with the strangles situation while also vying for a trainer title felt overwhelming at times, but Kerr and Co. never yielded.
“It was a very stressful month with all that’s been going on,” she said. “Because of that, I felt like it wasn’t just us, but our horses, too, that deserved recognition with all this strangles stuff happening. It’s taken a toll on all of us, but this was a little light to cheer us up.”
The resolve running through Kerr’s stable ultimately proved the difference in overcoming a difficult late-season hand.
Reaching the final stretch in position to seal the deal was made possible by a deep roster of elite equine competitors, each of whom delivered signature moments during an unforgettable year.
“I can remember every single win that we’ve had, crazy enough as that is,” Kerr said with a laugh.
Among those responsible are Dows Up, a 6-year-old Shadow Play pacer, 5-year-old Betterthancheddar gelding Thejackofdiamonds, and seasoned veterans State Of Play and Mr Mach Jimmy.
Every member of the quartet did it their way.
“Dows Up has always been somewhat of a challenging horse, but he had a few very good wins in London,” Kerr said.
“Thejackofdiamonds, he’s a homebred horse that we’ve been like, ‘Come on, we know you can do it.’ He was kind of slow to get there, but when he did get his first win at Western Fair [April 14, 2025], it was pretty exciting. State of Play, he’s always grinding it out, too. Even Mr Mach Jimmy – I could name 10 of them that were great.”
However, there were two, in particular, that captained Kerr’s contingent in 2025.
The pacing duo of Letjimitakeover and Prestige Seelster made significant waves in their third and eighth professional seasons, respectively, riding their success to the top of the London leaderboards alongside Kerr.
The former will be recognized with the 2025 Claiming Pacer Award while the latter struck gold in the Aged Pacing Horse category.
“Letjimitakeover enjoyed a nice run in the condition claimers,” Kerr said. “He won six of seven at one point and then things got a little tougher for him, but he still was racing as best as he could.
“Prestige Seelster has been racing absolutely tough as nails. We bought him back after selling him on onGait a few years ago. We got him back quite cheap, really, and he owes us nothing. He’s a good boy.”
Letjimitakeover, the junior half of Kerr’s award-clinching pair, stood out in his 4-year-old season with a 9-6-3 line across 30 starts while netting $47,943 in prizes – good for more than half of his career earnings total ($88,166).
Oddly enough, the competition was as much internal as it was external for the Big Jim bay.
“Through the end of December, State Of Play was actually one win away from beating Letjimitakeover for [Pacing] Claimer of the Year so we were kind of like, ‘Oh, well we might win with either horse,’” Kerr said with a laugh. “I didn’t know who it would be but that was also pretty cool to see how it would play out.”
While Kerr didn’t have a definitive answer for Letjimitakeover’s delayed breakout, she did have a hunch – or two.
“Honestly, this was the first time he’s raced for the whole year,” she said. “He had a few little shutdowns here and there, and he really never seemed to do well in the extreme summer months.
“I just think he got with a nice group of horses, and Daryl [Thiessen] always drove him with confidence and gave him the best shot he could. I really have no answer. He just found his right class, his right driver, and everything kind of clicked from there.”
The cause may still be up for debate, but the effect — not only on Kerr — has been undeniable.
“A friend of mine, Rebecca [Masters], and a family friend, Marc Adams, they own Letjimitakeover and it’s nice that they had some good luck,” Kerr said. “They endured some bad luck during the beginning of their adventures, so it was a nice turnaround for them to have a nice horse to watch and cheer on. Rebecca lost her mom, and Jimi offered something of a glimpse of hope and happiness for her too.”
The senior side of Kerr’s trophy toting team, Prestige Seelster, has been a stalwart throughout his two tenures in her barn.
“After getting him back, if he was just a cheaper claiming condition horse, we would have been perfectly fine with that,” Kerr said. “He has been racing so tough against very nice horses.
“Daryl and Austin Sorrie have an equal number of wins with him at Western Fair and they both know the horse wonderfully. They really like him and say how classy he is. He’s a sweetheart to drive, he’s so good with kids, and he’s one of my favorites in the barn.”
The towering 10-year-old Sunshine Beach gelding delivered at every turn in 2025, compiling a 12-9-8 record and $69,550 in prizes from 37 starts.
Heralded for his back class and toughness on the front, Prestige Seelster garnered equal praise for his professional disposition.
“I think his best quality is that he loves his work,” Kerr said. “He was always known to get away well and you kind of knew that you were going to be okay. He’s very tall, so sometimes he struggled around the turns, but as soon as he hits that straight away, it’s always tough to get past him.
“He still gives you goosebumps when you watch him.”
Kerr’s breakthrough 2025, which also drew a top five nod for the O’Brien Award of Horsemanship, was shaped just as much by special people.
Eternally grateful for the contributions of her entire staff, Kerr singled out one person whose presence transcends life in racing, Sally Charlton.
“She has been there for us right from the start,” Kerr said. “Honestly, I call her my second mother. She has done so much for not just us in the barn but also in our personal life as well. She’s just a remarkable lady and we owe a lot of our success to her.”
Charlton’s impact away from the track is beyond measure, and her influence on racing operations remains constant.
“The first horse she ever bought was Got Some Spark and she had a lot of luck with her,” Kerr said. “When she retired from racing, Sally bred her, and she became the mom to Thejackofdiamonds and a few others in our barn now.
“She’s had a lot of nice horses, and she likes to help out at the barn. We couldn’t have been where we are without her.”
On Saturday (Feb. 21), Kerr, along with Letjimitakeover, Prestige Seelster, and all the other prominent performers from Western Fair’s 2025 season will be recognized at the track’s annual Awards Night.
For Kerr, who will be arriving home from Florida the day of, the ceremony is a chance to reflect on a memorable yet difficult year and begin the process of doing it all over again — and then some — in 2026.
“I like to try to set goals,” she said. “It’s a fun challenge for me. We wanted to win the training titles at Western Fair, Hiawatha, and Clinton for 2025, and we got the first two done. I always love racing at Hiawatha. I have a lot of memories from when I was a kid there with my dad [Randy], so that’s always a special racetrack to me.
“For 2026, we’re starting off slow as who knows when we’ll be able to race again, but we’re certainly aiming for Western Fair again. It’s upsetting how it ended with all this, but it was an amazing year overall and definitely our best ever racing-wise.”
