Odds On Racing - Harness Racing

Owner Saul just Loves the Game of Harness Racing
September 2004

Breeder and Standardbred owner Al Saul just loves the harness racing game. It's apparent in his every word, and in his actions. Saul, of Thornhill, Ontario, oversees his Big Al's Stables, and is probably best known in the business for being the proud owner of Armbro Amoretto, a winner of $1,251,736 USD to date. Saul got hooked on harness racing as a teenager in his native Canada.

"At 14 or 15-years-old a friend invited me to Greenwood Racetrack, which is no longer in business," Al remembered. "We would go a couple of times a week. I met a trainer and was hooked on the sport. I looked into getting involved with Standardbreds because of their reasonable cost and year-round racing opportunities. Weekly racing and 30 to 50 starts a year keep this sport interesting."

Al says he prefers to own pacers, as "trotters go off stride all too often. They say there is nothing better than owning a world-class trotter, but then again, there is really nothing better than owning a World Champion Pacer, either."

Al should know. He plucked Armbro Amoretto out of the Kentucky Standardbred Yearling Sale in Lexington for a mere $13,000 USD in the fall of 2001. He had been willing to spend $50,000 USD for the daughter of Artsplace-Singing For Supper-No Nukes.

"This filly was a dream come true," Al had said. "She's definitely spoiled, but is fast on the track and very gutsy when she hits the stretch."

Armbro Amoretto had a banner freshman season, winning the Breeders Crown and earning $427,757 USD. Her sophomore campaign saw her score a mark of 1:50.1 enroute to amassing $800,142 USD in seasonal monies.

"She's an absolute dream horse," Al noted proudly. "She's a real money maker, and is 100% sound right now."

Armbro Amoretto has had only five starts this season, to date, and has nabbed a pair of second-place finishes, garnering $23,837 USD. She is conditioned by Dave Smith.

"I've had the same trainer since 1988," Al said. "He remains an honest trainer, has a good eye for appraisals, bills according to his services and remains a drug-free trainer. I believe in holistic training, as long as we can take the horse to his or her capacity. Enhancements like EPO are dangerous. I think it's unusual when an unscrupulous trainer who gets banned at a track can race at another track.

While Al is proud of his star filly's accomplishments on the racetrack, his heart still belongs to the breeding farm.

"I love the breeding game," he says. "I've been into breeding as long as I've been into racing. It's a slower game, but very, very rewarding. There is a great residual value once you have a pacing filly whose racing career is over. Buying a horse at a yearling sale is a lot different than breeding a horse yourself. The thrill of having a champion that you've bred is an amazing feeling. For now, I leave the breeding of our animals to the experts. Our champion and top mares are breeding and foaling in Kentucky."

"With spring coming, I look forward to getting up early, jogging a few horses and climbing into one of my ATV's and cruising the property. I like to watch the growing babies running around. I make sure to give each horse at least one pear a day from the Magic Pear Tree," he added. "I'm looking forward to the yearling sales this season. Right now we have seven broodmares in foal, and are looking forward to the weanlings that will be born next year for future racing. Eventually I'd like to have 12 top-producing broodmares in my barns at all times. I'd like to have at least one dozen next year, and at least two dozen the year after that."

Al says while he enjoys racing stateside, he prefers to race in Canada for a number of reasons.

"It's easier racing in my own country. It's easier on the horses in terms of traveling-there's less of it for them. Our Ontario Sires Stakes program is phenomenal, as is the Grass Roots Sire Stakes program. With a $600 payment we can race at all of the Sire Stake races in Canada. Conversely, it could cost $15 USD to$30,000 USD per each American bred horse to stake only four or five major events in the U.S."

Al says he thinks slots will need to be initiated at American tracks for racing to survive.

"The advent of slots at Canadian tracks have increased the purses 170%," Al said. "We are advocates of the slots at American tracks, as Canadians own 33% of the horses racing in the U.S. The last thing we want is for the tracks to lose live racing. We can only see the positive in all of this. If slots are done right, they can really help the industry-as long as people don't get greedy. Right now, if only 20% of the tracks have slots, it will hurt the other 80% that don't have them, hence smaller purses for the owners at the track without slots. Slots will also help the sire stakes programs in purse structures, therefore adding more revenue for the breeding farms and their yearling sales at auction."

"We're very proud of Armbro Amoretto and what she has accomplished so far and we are grateful for what we have. Let's consider what the odds are. Think of the odds, with approximately 4,000 horses born each year, 2,000 colts and 2,000 fillies, of coming out on top of your division. But we're always looking ahead to the future," Al concluded.
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