Odds On Racing - Harness Racing

Odds On Racing

Trainer of the Month
for January 2010

John Stark, Jr.

John Stark, Jr. comes from a harness racing
family. His father, John, who was killed in a car
train collision in 1979, was a successful trainer
and driver at Vernon Downs.

Not surprisingly, John has been working with
horses all of his life. Stark was only 4 years old when his father bought a $1,500 pacer named Mr. Jerry. Stark’s father let him do everything around the stable, and in 1977, John began his driving career. To date he's piloted 4,027 winners to $20,058,711 in career earnings.

John W. Stark, Jr.

Stark was one of the top drivers and trainers at Vernon Downs in the mid ‘80s. He swept the
championships in four major categories of horsemanship in both 1987 and 1988 at the New York oval. He edged out the competition for the UDR title, had the most driving wins at the meet, maintained his lead in training percentage, and led the meet in two minute drives. Stark won four consecutive dash championships at Vernon from 1985 to 1988.

Stark raced at several tracks after leaving Vernon following the 1988 season and was equally successful wherever he went. He captured a dash title at Muskegon and both dash and earnings titles at Fairmount Park and Saratoga Raceway.

Stark achieved his greatest success in the sport training and driving a remarkable pacing lass
named Bunny Lake. She enjoyed an outstanding freshman campaign in 2000 with eight wins, two seconds, and two thirds in 12 trips to the post and a bankroll of $281,255. The daughter of
Precious Bunny was flawless in NYSS action, capturing four legs and then going wire-to-wire
in 1:58.3 in the $150,000 final. She also won the $78,000 La Paloma Final at Yonkers.

BunnyLake

    John Stark, Jr. piloting his star filly, Bunny Lake to a Breeders Crown victory

But that was only a glimmer of what was to come, for during her 3-year-old campaign Bunny
Lake rose to the head of the class. After winning her sophomore debut at Vernon, Bunny Lake
turned in second place finishes in an elimination and the $100,000 final of the Rose Red at Hazel Park. She never tasted defeat again, running off 18 consecutive victories and earning $1,146,219, the most money (at the time) ever banked by a pacing female in a single season. Stark piloted her to victories in the $812,292 Breeders Crown Final, the $150,000 New York Sire Stakes Final, and a $105,000 Glen Garnsey Memorial division.

She also won the $400,000 Mistletoe Shalee (for catch-driver Mike Lachance) and the $120,264 Jim Lynch Final (for Brian Cross). Bunny Lake was selected as the 2001 Horse of the Year in the Dan Patch Award balloting, as well as Pacer of the Year and 3-year-old filly pacer of the year.

Returning to the racing wars as a 4-year-old, Bunny Lake added $400,049 to her coffers on the strength of six wins, six seconds, and five thirds in 19 starts. She was a winner for Stark in the $250,000 Classic Distaff Final. Still racing at the top level as a 5-year-old in ’03, Bunny Lake earned $531,134 and was victorious in 10 of her 24 trips behind the gate. She was triumphant (for catch-driver John Campbell) in the $201,650 Roses Are Red and a $75,000 Mares Invitational at The Meadowlands, while Stark piloted her to a victory in a $50,000 match race over Worldly Beauty at The Big M.

The 2004 season was the swan song for Bunny Lake and she went out in fine style, banking
$484,819 thanks to 11 in-the-money finishes in 17 appearances. Her brightest moments came in the Roses Are Red at Woodbine for catch-driver Luc Ouellette. This duo won their $38,500 elimination in 1:49 (a lifetime record that was also a national season’s best for an older pacing mare on a mile track) and the $289,905 final in an identical time of 1:49. Bunny Lake also won an $85,000 Classic Distaff leg at Dover for John Campbell in 1:50.2, a world record for an older pacing mare on a five-eighths-mile oval.

Other top horses over the years for Stark include Getting Personal, Teeth Of The Dog, Adadot, Mimz, Baron’s Escape, Big Guv, Hamilton White, Quick Comeonover, Laker Magic, Pass The Line, A B Sea, Dominatricks, Kash Echo, Wallingford, Sinner, Two-Fifty- Seven, Fashionable Liv, Missile Mike, Ms Rome CC, Exporter, Musical Power, Buffy T, Color Me Beachy, Becca J, and Algiers Hall.

John Stark Jr.'s Career Training Statistics through January 1, 2010
Year   Starts  Wins  2nds  3rds    Earnings     UTRS
2009      385      55      48      53      $870,209      0.258
2008      436      75      69      61      $717,738      0.307
2007      494      88      82      63      $932,963      0.313
2006      395      104    61      46      $1,673,654   0.388
2005      393      74      65      59      $548,634      0.330
2004      477      113   62      59      $1,248,789    0.350
2003      328      97      56      46      $1,331,038    0.437
2002      304      59      43      43      $1,223,759    0.320
2001      215      70      26      22      $1,742,991   0.427
2000      339      86      46      49      $1,294,711   0.377
1999      340      101     59     46      $1,230,226    0.439
1998      325      77      64      46      $444,543      0.394
1997      335      73      54      46      $463,928      0.353
1996      294      66      45      28      $393,222      0.341
1995      238      68      41      26      $218,423      0.418
1994      29        5        8        5      $53,438        0.383
1993      14        3        1        1       $6,725         0.278
1992      15        7        1        4       $18,774        0.593
1991      158      34       19     26      $61,365        0.337
Total                1,255                      $14,475,130