In 2019 Ohio became the number one State in North America for breeding Standardbreds with 119 registered harness racing stallions standing at 71 breeding farms in 33 Counties.
Since the inception of the VLTs in 2012 the Ohio harness racing Industry has blossomed ten-fold.
Ohio is the number one State for mares bred to stallions and standardbred foals produced from 2014-2018, and in 2019 the State has the most number of registered Standardbred owners in North America.
In 2018, Ohio’s four pari-mutuel racetracks hosted 473 live days of harness racing at extended meets with 6,653 live races, or 57,739 harness racing starts.
Now that the floodgates are open, Ohio is on the verge of historical changes that are going to impact the entire North American Breeding Industry with huge investments been made to bring in sensational top end mares and stallions and the news gets better every day with new announcements almost daily for the harness racing Industry in Ohio.
The recent investment by Ola Yoder from Nappanee of champion broodmares at the White Birch dispersal sale at Harrisburg and the influx of legitimate world class stallions this year such as Lather Up, the equal fastest pacing horse in history and the outstanding trotting stallion and Sweden Cup winner Volstead, a son of champion Cantab Hall, really argues well for the future of harness racing in the State of Ohio.
Volstead is an outstanding and imposing (16.2 hands) individual, Volstead was bred in the USA and became an International Champion.
Other recent stallions to stand in Ohio such as Downbytheseaside, What The Hill, Fear The Dragon, Creatine, Uncle Peter, Dancing Yankee and Racing Hill, all add to the historical change that is rapidly engulfing the booming Ohio Harness Racing Industry.
Spring Run Farm of Ohio (owned by Eli Miller) is the new home of recent purchases by Ola Yoder out of the White Birch Farm Dispersal sale.
Perhaps the biggest news today is Ola Yoder’s purchase of the outstanding 2019 Breeders Crown Champion, the three-year-old trotting filly Winndevie. Winndevie is to be bred to the Hambletonian Elimination winner Enterprise, a son of Chapter Seven standing at Dublin Valley Farm in Ohio. Enterprise served over 100 mares in 2019 even though he was not even announced to stand in Ohio until mid-February.
Enterprise a Hambletonian Elimination winner
Winndevie is one of North America’s leading three-year-old filly trotters in 2019 (by Credit Winner), whose late-charging success in the $655,000 Breeders Crown in a lifetime best 1:53 at Mohawk, was her crowning achievement in a glittering career. Now retired to the broodmare band at Dublin Valley Farm in Ohio.
As a two-year-old she won six of her seven starts including five legs and the $225,000 final of the New York Sires Stakes and banked $227,858, while at three she annexed the Breeders Crown Final and four legs of the New York Sires Stakes.
She finished up with a stake tally of $863,257 – an average of $39,238 per start! Her Canadian earnings were $328,575 and her US earnings were $534,682
Winndevie has a background of trotting blood second-to-none. Apart from being by Credit Winner, a millionaire trotter and twice premier trotting sire in USA, Winndevie belongs to one of America’s most successful classic winning families, that founded by Medio, by Cooper Medium.
On her distaff side, Winndevie’s first three dams are Stakes winners and she can claim the blood of Muscles Yankee, Conway Hall and Valley Victory, all champion sires and broodmare sires.
Winndevie’s dam, Vida De Vie, won 10 races including the time-honored Lady Suffolk, earned $140,206 in stakes and took a mile record of 1:54.4 and was a smart race mare in her own right.
This is her first foal.
By Muscles Yankee, Vida De Vie was out of Velma K, also a stakes-winning mare with a mark of 1:55.4 at three and a bankroll of $171,857. At the stud she left three winners – all inside 2:00 – in Vida De Vie (Tr 1:54.4), Funknpancakes (Tr 3, 1:56.4) and I’m Yelling Timber (Tr 3, 1:58.4) from only six foals.
Tra La La (Tr 3, 1:58.2), the third dam of Winndevie, was a Stakes winner at three and a very successful broodmare. Besides Velma K, she was the dam of a fine trotter in Mystical Ann , a Group winner in Sweden, the Ontario Sires Stake Gold champion Fosse Tr 3, 1:58 ($86,890), Wedding Singer Tr3, 1:56.4 (winner of $95,750) and the Stakes winner Do Ra Me (Tr 3, 1:56.8).
In the back removes of Winndevie’s pedigree are trotters of the caliber of Manchego Tr 1:49 ($2 million), the world’s fastest female trotter, When Dovescry (2019 Hambletonian Oaks), Musical Victory, Possess The Magic and Lookout Victory, all Breeders Crown champions at two, Swan For All (sire of 2017 Horse of the Year Hannelore Hanover), Musical Rhythm and many others.
Winndevie can boast a strong 3×4 cross to Valley Victory on the bottom side of her pedigree, and multiple strains of the blood of Speedy Crown, Star’s Pride and Super Bowl.
2019 Breeders Crown – Winndevie – 3YO Filly Trot
Winndevie’s first consort as mentioned above will be Enterprise Tr 1:52 ($423,121), a Hambletonian heat winner, is by the dual Breeders Crown champion Chapter Seven, the sire of millionaire trotters Atlanta and Gimpanzee, and a member of the same maternal family as the USA and Canadian 2YO Trotting Filly of the Year Poof She’s Gone Tr 1:53.2 ($1.3 million).
Harnesslink Media