Odds On Racing - Harness Racing

Odds On Driver of the Month: July 2004

Tim Tetrick

Tim Tetrick is one of the main drivers for the Odds On Racing team, headed by trainer Robin Schadt.

In just four years on the Chicago circuit he has reined the winners of $8 million and on June 27 at Balmoral Park, steered Odds On Dion to victory—the young reinsman’s 1,000th career win.

The 22-year-old, Flora, Illinois native was raised in nearby Geff, Illinois by his father, trainer Tom Tetrick, and his mother, Maryalice Tetrick.

Driver TimTetrick in the Balmoral Park winner's circle with members of the Odds On Racing team after scoring his 1,000 victory with Odds On Dion on June 27, 2004. Photo by Onsite Photographic.

"Dad was racing at Fairmount Park and myself and my two brothers (Tom Jr., 24 and Trace, 17) would go out there on the weekends to visit him," Tim remembered. "We’ve always been a family operation and racing horses has just been a cooperative effort. Catch-driving was always a dream of mine—to compete on a nightly basis is something I just always wanted to do."

Tim has been pursing that dream with many of the Odds On Racing horses, and says that two of the Odds On mares are among his favorite horses to drive.

"Odds On Charmaine and Odds On Michelle are both really nice fillies to drive," Tim said. "Each one has their little quirks. For instance Charmaine is more high-strung than Michelle. Both have very high speed, but Charmaine is really hard on herself, because she is such a nervous horse. Michelle, on the other hand, is a little lazy, and maybe just a tad faster, but she doesn’t ever get excited. She’s all racehorse and will probably outlast Charmaine, just for the simple fact that she’s pretty relaxed most of the time. Charmaine can be her own worst enemy when she doesn’t want to settle down. She’s got raw talent and very high speed—the key is to be able to channel that into a productive performance."

"Dream Lavec is a great, classy trotter who can just fly home," Tim noted. "The only time you have to watch him a little is when you pull off of a guy’s back. You can just jerk him around the guy…you kind of have to get him in gear to make that kind of move, but once he’s clear, he’s straight and solid. Art’s Challenge—he’s a super horse when he’s right, and is just a gutsy racehorse. I also enjoy Universal Dream. He’s another one that, when he’s at the top of his game, he can go with the best of them."

Tim began his driving career in 1998 at age 16, guiding his father’s horses around the Illinois county fair circuit ovals. He recorded his first win with Travel ‘N Legacy on July 20 of that year at the Paris county fair, and would make 20 trips postward that season, recording a 1-6-6 record with $5,032 in earnings.

The following year Tim doubled his starts, competing mainly at downstate Fairmount Park with his father’s stock. He won 11 races in 1999, with his mounts earning a total of $17,211. The youngster also graduated from Fairfield High School that year, and made the decision to try his hand as a catch-driver, despite winning a agriculture business scholarship from Wabash Junior College in nearby Mt. Carmel, Illinois.

"My parents wanted me to go to school," Tim said. "I was one of just six kids in the state who received this scholarship, but all I wanted to do was drive horses. In the end, I was able to fulfill my dream."

That decision saw the then 18-year-old Tim begin to drive his father’s horses over the Chicago ovals in late January of 2000. From there he ventured to Lexington and later drove a host of horses when the Illinois fairs began. In the fall he picked up drives at Blue Grass Downs in Kentucky and then packed his colors and headed to Colonial Downs with his father. That year he piloted 255 horses who earned $134,174 from 44 wins, 54 seconds and 40 thirds, earning him a .342 UDRS.

When Hoosier Park opened its doors in mid-February of 2001, Tim and his brother Tom left their home, taking more than a dozen of their father’s horses with them.

"We had 15 horses at Hoosier together," Tim said. "I was driving for my Dad, and was able to pick up drives from other trainers like Ed Morgan, Clint Binkley and David Perry. That gave me a lot of exposure and when Hoosier closed, I came to Chicago that fall."

By then the word was out that Tetrick was the one of the top reinsmen at the Indiana facility, and he quickly immersed himself in the seven-day a week Chicago circuit schedule.

"My family had always raced in Chicago so it made it a little easier for me to break into the ranks there," Tetrick noted. "Pretty much everybody knew my parents already, so it did help my cause somewhat. I think that to do well in Chicago you have to perform well on a nightly basis—you’ve got to stay sharp and healthy, and you’ve got to give other people respect and try to be nice to everyone."

That attitude certainly seemed to suit Tetrick, who wrapped up the 2001 season with $1.3 million in purse earnings, and 194 wins, 193 seconds and 195 thirds in 1,583 drives. 2002 would prove to be even more prolific for Tetrick as he drove the winners of over $2.5 million, entering the winner’s circle 273 times from 2,378 starts, with 309 seconds and 278 thirds to his credit as well.

"I admire a lot of drivers out there," Tim said. "It’s hard to say that this guy is better at this or that, as a lot of guys have been around for a long time and are always competitive. Of course, you have your standouts, like Dave Magee—he’s simply one of the best in the world. John Campbell is respected as a driver and a person both on and off the track. On a half-mile, there’s no one better than Tony Morgan. And Dale Hiteman—he’s been one of the top ten drivers for the last 20 years in Chicago."

In 2003 Tim piloted 300 winners to the tune of $2.8 million, and says that driving with the same people and horses on a nightly basis makes his job a lot easier.

"It helps when you know the horses, and know what you can expect from them," Tim said. "I study the program before I hit the track, but I also know that as a driver you’ve got to be ready to make a split second decision at any time during a race. Everything can change quickly once you get behind that starting gate."

"I think my strong suit is being patient," the young driver continued. "And also, off the track I try to be nice to everyone. As a young catch-driver you have to be willing to work hard, and that means showing up on time and respecting other people. When you’re nice, even if you screw up on the track, people are a lot more forgiving then if you’ve got a sour attitude. A simple ‘hello’ goes a long way."

In mid-summer of 2002 Tim was kicked by a horse in a post parade during the Hawthorne meeting, which caused him to miss five weeks of racing. His left lower tibia was shattered when he had his leg dangling down.

"Being hurt made me appreciate my work all the more," Tim said. "The doctors told me that I’d be out for 16 weeks, but I was back in five. For the first two weeks I was in a solid cast with crutches. Even when I went back to driving I had a set of plastic braces that I wore for a while. To increase my healing I used a horse laser on my leg and wore the ‘Gold Boot’ for about 12 hours a day."

Tim says his only other "setback" in the business to date occurred this fall when he piloted trainer Robin Schadt’s Odds On Charmaine to victory in the Jugette in 1:54 at Deleware, and then was taken down and placed fifth.

"In the first heat we finished third," Tim recalled. "In the Final I drew the nine-hole and my mare was really fired-up and I think it was the first time she had ever left out of the second tier. She was awful rank and I had a hard time holding her, but ended up winning the race, and then got called in by the judges. It was a judgmental call and I was very disappointed that it happened, but that’s racing. It was their call and I had to live by it. But it was very disappointed, as that was the first time I had ever been to Delaware."

Tim also has had his share of upbeat moments in his short career. Like when he guided Plesac to victory in the 2002 American National Aged Trot at Balmoral.

"He was one of the best trotters in the country at the time," Tim said. "And he was a pleasure to drive, and I had just come back from being hurt."

Or when he steered Peruvian Hanover to win the American National Aged Pace in 1:49.2 in summer 2003, besting McArdle, among others.

"He’s just a great horse," Tim said. "And the weird thing was, that I had driven him as a three-year-old at Blue Grass Downs and won an elimination of a Kentucky Sires Stakes with him in September 2000. He just ran off in that race and won by open lengths in 1:51.1 and then, I didn’t get to drive him in the final. So it was kind of sweet for me to drive him again, and win with him again, after not having sat behind him for three years."

Tim says he hopes to continue driving and winning, and to someday be competing on a regular basis at the Meadowlands.

"That’s everyone’s dream, I think, to be able to drive at the Meadowlands all the time. Right now Chicago is the second best market," Tim said. "I just want to keep working hard and to build on what I’ve accomplished already. My goals are high—I just want to keep winning races."

Tim appears to be well on his way to another winning season in 2004. Through July 1, he has piloted 178 winners from 1032 starters in 2004, and has accumulated $1 million in purse earnings. He is one of the leading drivers on the Chicago circuit, and retains a UDRS (universal driving rating system) of .288.

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