Jesse Pare can’t turn down the opportunity to learn from her horses

by Chris Lomon

Whenever Jesse Pare needs to put things into perspective, she knows exactly where to turn.

She won’t receive any words of wisdom, sound advice or verbal encouragement of any sort, but it doesn’t mean the young caretaker ever walks away from the interactions disappointed.

In fact, it is quite the opposite whenever she spends time, whether it is short, long or somewhere in between, with the champion bay filly Cant Turn You Down.

“Horses like Cant Turn You Down, also known as Katie, can teach you so much if you let them,” Pare said. “She makes every day a good day, and she never lets the so-called ‘bad days’ get to her. She’s always had a positive outlook on life even if she’s had a million reasons not to. I strive to be more like Katie and I think others should, too.”

Although that is admittedly easier said than done on certain days, Pare, who works in the barn of Ontario-based trainer Zach Carroll, will seek out Cant Turn You Down during tough times.

It is a connection she has never once taken for granted.

Along with her calming influence, Cant Turn You Down, a 3-year-old daughter of Cattlewash out of the Big Jim mare Amulet Seelster, also has the profound ability to generate unlimited excitement within those closest to her.

Unraced at 2, the filly, trained, bred, and co-owned by Carroll, has been a sophomore sensation in the Ontario Sires Stakes (OSS) ranks.

Sporting a mark of 10-1-0 from 12 starts, Cant Turn You Down’s most recent success came in the $350,000 OSS Gold Super Final for 3-year-old filly pacers on Oct. 10 at Woodbine Mohawk Park.

It was her ninth consecutive win.

“Cant Turn You Down is my greatest accomplishment and is one horse I will never forget,” Pare said. “Her journey has been the most testing but rewarding experience for me. I’m incredibly proud of her and I am proud of myself for keeping her sharp and happy all season.”

She also brings out a different side of Pare on occasion.

Whenever Cant Turn You Down goes postward, her doting caretaker transforms from mild and muted observer to an animated and lively super fan.

“I like to watch races alone by a quiet TV,” Pare said. “I’m typically pretty calm. Cant Turn You Down has certainly had me shed a lot of happy tears and had me screaming at the TV, which typically isn’t like me.”

Pare also points out another pair of pacers, 6-year-old gelding Reign Supreme and 6-year-old mare Lady Terra, as other horses in the Carroll barn she has connected with.

“They are both classy racehorses who have been very good to me,” she said.

Having a strong bond with horses is by no means a recent thing for Pare.

Growing up on her grandparents’ (Brian and Debbie Eckentein) standardbred farm, she gravitated towards horses at an early age.

When she was 15, she got her first job working as a groom for John Petland.

“That’s where I learned all the basics, from harnessing for the first time to paddocking on my own,” Pare said. “I met Zach Carroll at the right place and at the right time. I was looking for a change of scenery, and he was going out on his own to start his own stable.”

It has been a perfect match for Pare, an opportunity that she is grateful to have.

Despite the plethora of pluses, she finds in her role, there are, admittedly, difficult moments that require an equal measure of strength and resiliency.

While there are times when she might second-guess herself, Pare views it as a valuable learning experience.

“The toughest part of the job is when you are pouring your heart and soul into a horse and you are still feeling like you’ve failed them,” she said. “That’s something I felt with Cant Turn You Down early in her career and then getting her to where she is now.

“But that’s what makes grooms want to be better and try harder for their horses.”

As for the most rewarding part of her job, Pare circles back to the kinship she has forged with those horses under her care.

Whether they happen to be Gold Super Final champions, overnight regulars or grinding out in the claiming ranks, is of no matter to her.

That they are cared for and understood is the barometer by which she measures her own contentment and fulfillment.

“The best part of the job is having a connection with the horses and being their person – knowing that I know them better than anyone else,” she said.

With the 2026 racing season having already started to wind down, Pare has found time to rest her body and mind, a welcome opportunity to re-energize and recharge after a jam-packed summer.

“Racing this year has definitely consumed a lot of my time,” she said. “I’m enjoying the down time catching up on sleep. But I wouldn’t change it and I hope next summer will be just as busy.”

A summer that will see Pare continue to look to her horses for inspiration and incentive.

“Harness racing has given me so much confidence and purpose in life,” she said. “I’m just so grateful for that.”