by Matthew Lomon

Part 1 is here.

Part 2 is here.

Part 3 is here.

Over the past three weeks, All Over Ontario has made stops, well, all over Ontario, spotlighting the leading owners at the province’s grassroots tracks in 2024.

The inaugural edition of the four-part series heralded the clubhouse leaders from Hanover Raceway (Robert Jenkins, Jr., William Burgess, and Jeffrey Kelly), Dresden Raceway (Cameron McQueen), and Georgian Downs (A1Stable).

Part 2 covered the title-holders at Kawartha Downs (Amanda Riley), Flamboro Downs (Triple S Equine/Carl Kuepfer), and Clinton Raceway (Larry Lane).

The celebration continued in Part 3 with the chart-topping trio at Western Fair (Colonel Schneider, Jr.), Hiawatha Horse Park (also Schneider, Jr.), and Leamington Raceway (Michael Stamp and Janet Larcombe).

Rounding out the star-studded cast in the final leg of our four-part production are the prize-winning owners at Grand River Raceway (Gino Toscani) and Rideau Carleton Raceway (٩٠٩٦ ٩٢٠٥ Quebec Inc./Stephane Pouliot).

Toscani and Pouliot will join their series predecessors at the 36th annual O’Brien Awards on Feb. 8, where they will be honored in a special presentation alongside the best and brightest in Canadian harness racing.

Each ownership awardee (24 total) will receive a custom plaque and a complimentary ticket to the ceremony, as part of the Owner Recognition Program.

Toscani punched his ticket to Saturday’s ceremony after pacing the ownership standings at Grand River with 20 winners.

Across 111 starts altogether, the horses competing under the 35-plus year racing veteran added nine seconds and 15 thirds for an earnings total of $125,633.

“It’s nice to be the leading owner,” said Toscani. “I do run a lot of horses, but Grand River’s a fun place to race. It’s a good track.”

By his count, the Mount Hope, ON-based horseman currently has about 55 horses stabled in Ontario and another 23 in Florida.

Having a deep roster has long been part of the strategy for Toscani.

“I buy a lot of babies, so a lot of them become racehorses,” he said. “Some of them I decide to keep, some of them I decide to sell. You end up with quite a few horses when you keep some and buy babies every year.

“As long as they’re making a little bit of money, I’m happy with that.”

Razzin Jazz and Betthebeachyankee were two, in particular, that more than delivered on their quotas this past season at Grand River.

The former, a daughter of Racing Hill—Jazz Sensation, was nearly perfect at the Elora, ON oval, recording trips to the winner’s circle in five of six starts (5-1-0) for $22,625 in winnings.

Razzin Jazz’s Grand River racing mate, Betthebeachyankee, scored in three of his starts at the recently expanded five-eighths-mile oval (3-0-1), banking $15,506 along the way.

The 4-year-old out of Betting Line—A Beach Cowgirl turned in his finest performance of the meet in his fifth and final outing on Sept. 27.

Working alongside driver Austin Sorrie, Betthebeachyankee led every step of the way to cross the finish line in 1:50.3 as the second-longest shot on the board (11-1; paid $25.40).

“He surprised me,” said Toscani in praise of his determined pacer. “But most of my horses race pretty well there. They like the track.”

The veteran horseman has crossed paths with several standout standardbreds, both past and present, over his nearly four decades in the business.

Cam Terrific, who Toscani conditioned and piloted throughout the 1990s, amassed a 22-24-24 line across 167 lifetime starts for $592,594.

In more recent years, and still to this day, 7-year-old pacer Whichwaytothebeach has been a consistent source of success for Toscani.

The son of the legendary Somebeachsomewhere has proven well worthy of his regal lineage, banking nearly $1 million across 101 contests (25-16-12; $964,373).

Toscani has yet to occupy the race bike behind Whichwaytothebeach, but as he pointed out, there’s been no reason to deviate from the plan.

“I always like to drive some of my own,” he said. “But I always say, ‘if somebody can do better, I still benefit.’”

Before we close the curtain on our month-long tour of the Ontario B-track circuit, we have one more destination to visit.

Rideau Carleton Raceway concluded its 2024 meet on Dec. 15 after racing two nights per week for 10 months.

At the final bell, it was 9096 9205 Quebec Inc. walking tall as the five-eighths-mile course’s leading owner with 30 wins.

Overall, the outfit reeled in 34 seconds, 37 thirds, and $219,962.

The man behind the numerals, driver/trainer/owner Stephane Pouliot, is proud of what his modest stable of pacers and trotters were able to accomplish.

“For 15 or 16 horses, I’m definitely happy with the wins and money I collected at Rideau,” Pouliot said.

Rooted in Gloucester, ON, the very township where Rideau resides, Pouliot said he enjoys spending much of his calendar year racing at 4837 Albion Road.

“I like to race at Rideau because it’s not a huge track,” he said. “I can go for the summer and race all my horses over two days. After the week, you have time to enjoy other hobbies and parts of your life.”

That dynamic, he added, better aligns with his goals of a work-life balance.

“I tried racing in Toronto for about six months a few years ago and I’d be racing 15 horses six or seven nights a week; you don’t have much of a life outside racing,” said Pouliot, adding with a laugh, “For that reason, I’m drawn to Rideau. Two days a week and my week is done.”

The accomplished horseman put forth a strong 2024 campaign, netting a combined 92-113-121 record between 794 driving and training starts for $689,877.

A key figure throughout Pouliot’s success was 9-year-old pacer Sunny Bo.

Claimed six different times during his racing career, the resilient son of Sunshine Beach—O See My Bo made 22 starts at Rideau last season, crossing the finish line first in exactly half (11).

With four more seconds and a third on his Rideau resume, Sunny Bo cemented himself as the MVP of Pouliot’s close-knit ensemble.

“He’s an older, classy horse,” Pouliot said. “He has a big heart, and he loves to race. He’s good for me.”