Odds On Racing - Harness Racing

Odds On Racing's

Personalitiy of the Month
for October 2007

Carter Duer

Lifelong horseman Carter Duer has been around Standardbreds for as long as he can remember, and has been associated with some of the greatest horses ever to grace a sulky or walk through a breeding shed.

This veteran horseman first arrived at the historic Castleton Farm in the early 1960s, and was there for over two decades before pursuing his dream of owning and operating his own farm.

Duer's vision of green pastures came to fruition in 1990, when Carter began his Peninsula Farms of Kentucky and later Pennsylvania.

Carter Duer

The name “Peninsula” comes from Duer’s home at the Delmarva Peninsula of Virginia, where Carter grew up and spent his early days learning the ropes of the harness racing industry--from the breeding to the racing end. But it was always the breeding end of the game that carried the most weight in Carter's eyes.

This veteran horseman--known for his no-nonsense approache to both people and horses--and one of the most sought-after breeders in the industry when it comes to pedigrees and expert, overall horse knowledge, has also made Peninsula Farms a true family affair, including wife Helen, their daughters and son in the mix as well.

The Duer family celebrates Carter's (third from left) induction into the Kentucky Harness Racing Hall of Fame on Sept. 27, 2007 at the Red Mile.

Besides tending to his 120 broodmares in Kentucky, Carter also oversees a 60+broodmare band at their Pennsylvania facility, and is one of the top consignors of yearlings for all of the major North American Standardbred sales.

"Prepping yearlings is more of an art than a science," Carter was quoted as saying in a June 21, 2007 issue of The Canadian Sportsman. "The main thing is consistency and elbow grease. There's no automated way of doing it, there's no easy way of doing it. Shortcuts are easier on us, but they are no help to a horse. I raise yearlings the same way I did 40 or 50 yeas ago with the same attention to details.

"A horse is still a horse, and you still have to know what you're doing and put the work in to get the results you want. Whatever changes happen in this industry you still need a healthy foal to get a healthy yearling, and to get a healthy foal you have to get it done right, from day one," Carter noted in The Canadian Sportsman.

Check out the Peninsula Farm website at www.peninsulafarm.com