by Victoria Howard

Born in Hamilton, ON, Victoria Stratton grew up in York in Haldimand County on the family farm where her grandfather and mother both trained standardbreds.

“Although I wasn’t allowed to do much with the horses when I was young, it wasn’t until I was 17 that I was properly introduced to the business,” Stratton said. “I learned a lot from the Whalen family — Jim, Judy and Gareth — and loved it so much that I went all in. I married my husband, trainer/driver Cory Stratton during COVID in April 2020 and we began working as a team. We train our horses together.

“Cory and I do a lot of track work, but I mainly run the back end of the business making sure everything is running smoothly.”

Do you drive the horses in a race?

“Occasionally I drive. [I drove Dance Monkey in an amateur race at The Meadowlands on March 8] and a horse named Sports Fan, in an all-women’s race for International Women’s Day, but I am still learning, so right now it’s just for fun. Driving in a race is so much different than training and in the past it has always been a ‘man’ thing. But so many women have stepped up to the plate and showed the world that women can drive, too.

“My focus is on training, but I do enjoy driving as well. I don’t drive enough to pursue a career in it, nor would I want to, but it’s like anything else in life, you improve with experience.

“My husband, Cory, does do some driving, as does his brother, Jordan. I wish my husband would do more driving because when Jordan has other commitments, I think Cory knows our horses better than putting a different driver up every week.”

Where do you stable and race your horses?

“We train at Mark Ford Training Center and race at Yonkers, The Meadowlands and Pocono.”

How many horses do you currently train?

“Presently we have approximately 34 horses total.”

Who is your fastest horse?

“I have been blessed to train and sit behind some pretty fast horses, but I would say Idealsomemagic is the fastest I owned and trained. Last year in Saratoga he tied the track record in a sizzling 1:50 flat.

“Fun story, when we imported ‘Magic’ and began training him down, every time I went to train him something would happen; like he would lose a shoe, etc.

“I told my husband ‘I think I’m a jinx sitting behind him to train,’ and evidently it was Magic’s way of telling us he wasn’t ready to qualify. Horses are very smart and if trainers would listen to them more, they would save a lot of time and trouble.”

Who is your all-time favorite racehorse?

“My favorite is What’s Stanley Got A. He is a sweetheart who is always willing and obliged to do whatever I ask of him. He has been that way ever since the day when he came to us after his quarantine.

“Another was a trotter we bought as a yearling. He was a Trixton colt named Beam Me Up who was quite a looker. Unfortunately, he ended up having complications after he was castrated and we had to put him down. It was one of the hardest things I had to do in my life, so in memory of him I got a tattoo with his face markings.”

Do you prefer trotters or pacers?

“Definitely trotters, for they are more challenging and rewarding. Trotters give you more gray hairs but when you have a good one there is nothing better.”

What has been your most exciting time?

“My most exciting time is when we ship our babies to train and race. There is nothing more satisfying than seeing all of the time and work you put into the babies all winter and seeing them make it to the races.”

Do you have any superstars in the making?

“It really is a bit early to answer that question but we do have a pretty impressive group of babies this year. I’m eager for the summer to get here and see what we got.”

Your husband Cory is making a name for himself.

“Cory is a dedicated, ambitious man who, like his brother, has made a name in the sport. He was born into the sport as his father David and mother Jeanine both worked for Billy Haughton before going on their own.

“Cory has had success with the mare Easy To Please who was victorious in a leg of the Blue Chip Matchmaker and finished third in the final. This was Cory’s first stakes win as a trainer. Easy to Please also finished fourth in her Breeders Crown elimination.”

What women do you look up to the most in harness racing?

“That would be Lauren Tritton. She proves that a woman can compete with the guys on the track and keeps amazing me.”

What do you think we can do to improve our sport?

“I think harness racing needs more younger people to get involved. Sadly, there aren’t many kids today following their family’s tradition like they did years ago. I think we need to make it more enjoyable for families to come and watch the races. Having such late post times doesn’t warrant families to bring younger kids to the races.”

What are your future plans?

“My future plans are just to go with the flow and see what happens. Hopefully find a few amateur trotters this spring to buy and to give the amateur circuit a try. Other than that, hopefully our stable will have a successful year and win some big stake races; and to shift the focus more to racing stake horses and babies, and fewer claimers.”