Freshman pacing colt Beau Jangles is now unbeaten through six career starts after posting his fourth Ontario Sires Stakes Gold victory of the year on Friday (Aug. 29) at Woodbine Mohawk Park.
The son of Cattlewash out of Mrs Major Hill won the $140,000 Leg 4 event in 1:51.
It wasn’t an easy trip against a strong field of nine and starting from the rail the second week in a row, but driver Bob McClure didn’t appear overly concerned at any point in the mile, even with a four-horse cavalry charge close behind in the stretch. The margin of victory was 1 ½ lengths over Tillthecowscomehome (Jody Jamieson), followed by Redlands Rocket Man (Louis-Philippe Roy), No Waitlist (Tyler Borth) and Windor (Doug McNair).
“I kind of saw a bunch of them leaving, especially with [Beau Jangles] having the rail,” McClure told Woodbine broadcaster John Rallis. “From a drivers’ point of view… you don’t want anybody parked. You just want clear sailing. And when Jody landed in front of me [with Tillthecowscomehome], I figured he was the best horse to follow. If Jody hadn’t moved, I’d have followed him the whole way, but when Jody moved, I didn’t want to come first up on him. So, we got stretched pretty hard to make the lead tonight.
“I’m not going to say I wasn’t concerned at all, but when [Beau Jangles] landed on the front, he settled right in for me, and he had his ears up all the way down the stretch. I never asked him. He was just phenomenal, like he always is.”
Sent off at 1-5, Beau Jangles paid $2.70 for the win.
Beau Jangles was bred by Tara Hills Stud of Port Perry, ON and sold for $65,000 out of the Preferred Equine consignment at the 2024 Standardbred Horse Sales Company’s yearling auction in Harrisburg, PA.
The colt is owned by:
- Adam Ainspan and Mary Beth Roberts under the Graham Grace Stables LLC of Clifton, VA
- Anne Hooper and Jonathan Roberts under the Kiwi Stables LLC of La Plata, MD
- Ed, Garth and Philip Bolton, plus John Draper of the Bolton Stables of Clermont, FL
Through six perfect starts – all in Ontario – the imposing son of Cattlewash out of Mrs Major Hill already has earnings of $452,125. Beyond the four Gold victories, Beau Jangles has also won the $227,100 Battle of Waterloo at Grand River Raceway and the $117,150 Nassagaweya on Aug. 23. Previously, Beau Jangles won Gold events on July 5, July 19 and Aug. 14, all at Woodbine Mohawk Park.
“I’ve never had one that gives me as much confidence, mostly because you can do anything you want with him,” McClure said. “One thing for sure, if he’s ever in a bad spot, it’s the driver’s fault, not his, because he’s push button. But you know, a true testament to him is he’s had the rail two weeks in a row, and it doesn’t faze him. The rail here is very hard for a 2-year-old, any caliber of 2-year-old, and with him, it’s nothing. If I wanted to make the front in :25.4, I’m confident I could have, but I was just trying to find the path of least resistance and keep this guy as fresh as long as we can. He’s got some big dances coming up. I’m looking forward to it.”
This week, Beau Jangles’ connections – majority owner Ainspan, co-owner Jonathan Roberts and trainer Dr. Ian Moore – spoke to Ontario Racing about the colt’s origin story and about managing the pacer’s growing expectations. Beau Jangles is next expected to tackle Grand Circuit competition for the first time in the Sept. 13 eliminations for the Sept. 20 $1 million Metro pace at Woodbine Mohawk Park.
Dr. Moore said Beau Jangles will now get a bit of a break before prepping for the Metro.
“He’s going to get probably, six, maybe seven days off in the paddock with no harness,” said Dr. Moore, adding that the other colts in the division are all getting better as the year progresses. “It’ll tighten up as the year goes along. It always does. And hopefully we can keep going on the same route that we’re on now until the end of the year.”