Named in honour of the world class Standardbred racehorse and stallion, the award recognises extreme and recent meritorious service to the Canadian harness racing industry.

Standardbred Canada established the Cam Fella Award in 1997, and fittingly its namesake was the first recipient acknowledging Cam’s unparalleled contributions to the sport of harness racing.

In 2000, the honourable Michael D. Harris, former premier of the Province of Ontario, was recognised for his government's initiatives to revitalise horse racing.

Minister Mitchell Murphy, provincial treasurer for the Province of Prince Edward Island and the former the minister of agriculture and forestry, was the recipient of the 2003 Cam Fella Award for his efforts in establishing and developing harness racing as a key industry in Prince Edward Island and Atlantic Canada.

The Armstrong legacy is synonymous with extreme effort and dedication to Canadian harness racing.

Their meritorious service to the Canadian harness racing industry has spanned five decades and they continued to invest in an industry they flourished in through 2004, despite the fact that this racing icon was operating in its final year and en route to closing their doors.

The family-owned operation was founded in the 1940s by brothers and construction magnates Ted and Elgin Armstrong.

The Armstrong legacy was carried forward to the present year by Ted and Elgin’s children and grandchildren.

In November 2004, the last of the Armstrong breeding stock was sold, bringing to a close a 50 year reign as Canada’s largest Standardbred breeding operation, and one of the premier breeding establishments in North American Standardbred racing.

The 150 mare broodmare band was consistently reinforced with quality additions even after the dispersal announcement.

The farm was one of the most progressive and profitable Standardbred operations of the last 50 years and has bred, raced and stood at stud a seemingly endless list of champions.

Stallions that stood at the Inglewood Farm most recently included Island Fantasy, King Conch, Camotion, and Dexter Nukes.

Other stallions over the years included Jade Prince, Dream Of Glory, Carlsbad Cam, Armbro Emerson, Village Jiffy, and Adios Pick who was sold and went on to become a foundation sire in Western Canada.

Armbro performers have won nearly every classic event in the sport since Helicopter won the 1953 Hambletonian.

The farm has bred the winners of nearly every classic event including the Hambletonian (Armbro Goal), the Little Brown Jug (Armbro Omaha, Armbro Operative), and the Adios (Armbro Omaha, Armbro Ranger, and Armbro Animate).

The farm produced scores of trotting and pacing champions and also enjoyed considerable success in the Breeders Crowns.

In 2004, the final year of operation for Armstrong Bros., they continued to dominate the Canadian Standardbred breeding Industry, topping the Canadian charts with offspring earning in excess of C$4.8 million.

Armstrong Bros. was also the leading breeder in the lucrative Ontario Sire Stakes, in which Armstrong-bred starters earned over C$924,000. From 148 starters, 101 finished in the top five.

At the Standardbred Horse Sale in Harrisburg, Penn., where the farm’s final dispersal took place, the total consignment brought nearly $7 million.

Beyond the breeding and racing scene, Armstrong Bros. Farms’ dedication to the industry extended to include stakes sponsorships and participation as a major sponsor in two World Trotting Conferences (hosted in Canada in 1989 and 2003).

The farm’s management team consistently demonstrated their commitment to the longevity and health of the Standardbred racing industry by taking leadership positions on various industry boards, associations and committees.

Armstrong Bros. Farms have had a tremendous and unprecedented impact on all aspects of the Canadian and North American Standardbred racing industry highlighted by their leadership in the breeding industry.

A national committee of 16 representing the Standardbred community voted, by secret ballot, to determine the Cam Fella Award winner.

A winner must receive a majority of the votes.

Canadian owned, trained and driven, Cam Fella was an outstanding racehorse in the early 1980s.

He won 56 races, over $2 million in purses, and two consecutive Horse of the Year titles in North America.

As a stallion, Cam sired numerous world champions and horses with earnings in excess of $105 million.

Unfortunately, “Cam” suffered from testicular cancer, and in early 1997 was retired from breeding.

He died in May, 2001 at the Kentucky Horse Park, where he had lived for several years and where he served as an outstanding ambassador of the Standardbred breed.

The creation of the Cam Fella Award was the harness racing industry’s way of ensuring that Cam’s contribution to the sport will never be never forgotten.

The Cam Fella Award will be presented to the management of Armstrong Bros. Farms at the annual O’Brien Awards Banquet, on Saturday, February 5, 2005 at the Delta Meadowvale Hotel in Mississauga.

Courtesy Of Kathy Wade-Vlaar, Industry Communications, Standardbred Canada