GLOUCESTER, ON — When the three-year-old pacing colts return to Rideau Carleton Raceway on Thursday for their $130,000 Gold Final, Ladino Fiori is hoping that L H Stryker can score his fourth straight victory.
The North York resident has been through more than his share of ups and downs getting L H Stryker to the races, but now that he and trainer Kyle Reibeling of Clifford are finally tasting success he is determined to enjoy every minute of it.
“I’m very happy because I’ve been involved with horses for 25 years and I’ve never had something as wonderful as this. It makes me very proud,” says Fiori. “He’s dynamite. It doesn’t matter the competition, it doesn’t matter the track, he keeps on winning.”
Fiori acquired the son of Apaches Fame at the 2002 Canadian Classic Yearling Sale for $8,500 and waited in vain through the winter for promising training reports from the half-brother to $318,856 winner Pronger. Deciding to part company with his trainer in the spring of 2003, Fiori handed the colt over to his grandson-in-law Reibeling with limited expectations for the young pacer’s prospects.
“In 2003 he couldn’t race because he wasn’t ready,” recalls the 79-year-old. “I didn’t know what I had until this year late, so I didn’t pay for many stakes.”
So while his peers tackled the toughest colts from across the continent in the Provincial Cup, Burlington Stakes and North America Cup this spring, L H Stryker was making his debut in the maiden class at Hiawatha Horse Park on May 6. The colt captured that start with a 1:58.4 effort and went back the next week to score a six length victory in 1:55.3, so Fiori and Reibeling sent him to the Grassroots season opener at Grand River Raceway on May 24 where he finished second by a half length.
After battling a virus in early June, L H Stryker returned to Grand River for an 18 length romp in the non-winners of $10,000 class on June 21 and then tried his hand at Woodbine Racetrack on June 28, scoring a three length victory in 1:52 and earning himself a ticket to last week’s elimination round at Rideau Carleton.
“The other day at Rideau Carleton I was scared because he’s never come across horses like that, but he won again,” says Fiori. “He’s a beautiful, beautiful colt, so strong. So far we’ve never asked him to go, he’s done everything on his own.”
Last week the colt and driver Mark Etsell reeled off a 1:54.3 victory in the first Gold Elimination, finishing two lengths up on the competition after spending more than half of the mile hanging out on the outside. The pair will square off against the top seven elimination finishers from Post 3 on Thursday and another solid effort will do nothing to quell the ringing of Fiori’s telephone.
“The offers I’ve been getting! People are asking left and right to buy the colt. We’ve had a lot of money offered, but we’ve refused,” says the owner. “I just thank God that he gave me this gift. It doesn’t happen many times, just once in a lifetime.”
Rideau Carleton Raceway’s first race gets under way at 6:30 pm on Thursday, with L H Stryker facing off against the province’s top sophomore pacing colts in Race 11.