DUNDAS, ON — If the old adage about patience is true, John Holding may be the most virtuous person to harness a horse at Flamboro Downs on Wednesday, Aug. 13.

When it comes to three-year-old trotting gelding Long Ago, Holding has been exercising his patience daily for almost two years. The youngster is hesitant to tackle new experiences, was slow to grow into his body, and showed no signs of becoming a racehorse until early this spring.

“Around the barn we say he’s been in Grade 4 for two years. This is his third year, and he’s going to ace it all out,” says Holding, with a chuckle. “He’s a very slow learner.”

Campbellville resident Holding and partner Bryan Montgomery of Elora purchased Long Ago for $4,000 at the 2006 Canadian Open Yearling Sale. Through his early lessons the young trotter was afraid of everything, and as the start of the freshman racing season drew closer it became increasingly evident that Long Ago was not going to be able to compete.

“He was just growing too much. He trained down to 2:18, but he was big and awkward and he just wasn’t going to race at two,” recalls Holding. “I trained him down until June or July, and then I turned him out in the paddock every day until October, and he just grew and grew.”

While Long Ago was lolling around in his paddock, Holding struck up a conversation with trainer Pat Hunt, who was nurturing the gelding’s full brother Durable Duke through his sophomore campaign. Also unraced at two, Durable Duke would go on to win six races at three, earn $64,884, and single-handedly sustain Holding’s hope that Long Ago might someday see a racetrack.

“I talked to Pat last summer about my horse, and it gave me hope for the future, because they both sounded identical,” explains the horseman. “The better Pat’s horse started to get, the more encouraged I got with my horse.”

When Holding started back with Long Ago last fall, the gelding seemed bigger, but not much more capable. As the intensity of his training regimen picked up, the Duke Of York son seemed like he was barely hanging in there. Holding says it was not until he reached the 2:05 mark with the trotter that Long Ago seemed to perk up and take an interest in the program.

After 19 months of waiting, Long Ago was finally ready to qualify in April. The half brother to $285,616 winner Brancaleone qualified at Grand River Raceway on April 21, finishing fourth in 2:04.3, and then tackled the novice class at the Elora oval on May 5, finishing fourth again in 2:03.2.

Twelve days after earning his first pay cheque, Long Ago had to delay his second lifetime start due to sickness. Holding got the youngster back in the pink in time for the Grassroots season opener at Western Fair Raceway on May 27 and Long Ago stepped up with an impressive effort to finish second in the 2:02.2 mile.

Fifth in an overnight at Mohawk Racetrack on June 9, Long Ago found his way to the winner’s circle in the second Grassroots event on June 22 at Rideau Carleton Raceway, stopping the clock in 2:00.2. Regular reinsman Shayne Barrington then piloted Long Ago to a third-place finish in the July 6 Grassroots skirmish at Dresden Raceway. With a total of 87 points, the gelding currently sits tied for third spot in the Grassroots standings as the second half of the season gets under way.

In his last three starts the trotter has missed the board twice and finished fifth once at Mohawk, but Holding thinks Long Ago should be able to step back into the top three from the advantageous Post 1 in Wednesday’s eighth race.

“He should be real good in there off the rail. He was leery of the gate in his first couple starts, but we’ve got him so he’ll go right up to it now,” notes Holding. “I took him over to Flamboro three weeks ago and schooled him off the gate a couple of times.”

Holding hopes the gelding’s familiarity with the Dundas oval will prevent another little hiccup Long Ago sometimes experiences.

“Every time we go to a new track I have to have somebody over in the grandstand to turn him in case he won’t turn,” Holding explains. “He doesn’t do it every time, after a while he does learn.”

Among the colts Long Ago and Barrington will face in their $20,000 Grassroots division are former Grassroots winner and Canadian Breeders starter Ballykeel Mike from Post 6, and former Gold Series regular Sergeant York from Post 7.

The other Grassroots battles are slated as Races 2, 3, 5, 6, 9 and 11. Post time for Flamboro Downs’s Wednesday program is 6 pm.

For complete entries please go to: http://www.standardbredcanada.ca/entries/data/eflmdwe.html.