Another chapter was written in one of the best feel-good stories in harness racing Saturday night (Oct. 10) at Woodbine Mohawk Park. Little Brown Jug victor Redland Rocket Man, driven by Jody Jamieson, wired the field in the $350,000 Ontario Sires Stakes (OSS) Super Final for 3-year-old pacing colts in 1:48, breaking a 14-year-old stakes mark while becoming the sport’s newest millionaire.
“It’s been something,” co-owner Gary Volpe said of the colt’s evolution. “As a 2-year-old we knew he was good, but we chased Beau Jangles all year and that was pretty tough. But as a 3-year-old he really came into himself.”
In a season where hopes were high for Beau Jangles – the defending Horse of the Year on both sides of the border – to repeat his freshman magic, health issues led to miscues and missed opportunities throughout the summer. The emergence of Redland Rocket Man and Jamieson, have given Canadians another star from the glamour division to cheer on. The partnership of trainer John Pentland, Murray Cox and Volpe took a big swing when they supplemented their Bulldog Hanover–Granny Hanover colt to the Jug for $45,000, but Redland Rocket Man delivered, winning the 81st edition.
Saturday, the colt made a triumphant return to Woodbine, lining up behind the starting gate for the first time since rocketing to victory at the Delaware County Fairgrounds in Ohio. Waiting in the wings was a resurgent Beau Jangles. The two sophomores had last tangled on Sept. 12, when Redland Rocket Man bested ‘Beau’ in a Grade 3 Simcoe division in 1:46.4. Pentland shipped to Ohio and Beau’s trainer Dr. Ian Moore dropped his charge into a Gold Series leg, winning in 1:49.3. Beau then headed to The Red Mile, winning a Bluegrass division in 1:47.2, and setting the stage for Saturday’s final.
With Redland Rocket Man drawing inside (post three) and Beau Jangles further outside (post seven), Jamieson made sure to protect the lead racing into the turn, clicking off a :26.1 opening quarter as Borderline Mobby (Louis-Philippe Roy) raced second and favored Beau Jangles (James MacDonald) dropped in third.
“I just wanted to make sure I could tell what Beau was doing,” Jamieson said. “I think when the sheet came out and I had the inside of Beau, it really set the tone for what was going to happen. I was either going to put him in behind me, like hopefully the three-hole would have been the best case scenario, or follow him. In this division, I think who ends up cutting it is probably the guy that’s going to be second. But since Beau was a couple back and had to come first up, my horse was large tonight, just super good.”
The top three were content to maintain their positions through fractions of :54.4 and 1:21.4, setting up for a sprint to the finish. Grassroots Championship winner Odds On Bullfrog, the other Moore-trained entry, never saw the rail, racing first over. Once MacDonald pulled Beau Jangles racing into the turn, it appeared the stablemates might have a say in the final outcome. Turning for home, however, Redland Rocket Man jumped out to a 2 ½ length lead in the stretch and powered home to win by 1 ¼ lengths. Beau Jangles settled for second while Odds On Bullfrog raced third.
“It was huge tonight and, you know, I think the world of Beau Jangles and so I wasn’t overly confident,” said Pentland, who also won the Super Final for 2-year-old pacing fillies with Bulldog Hanover daughter Jersey Bulldog in a 1:48.1 Canadian record that was just one tick slower than the 3-year-old boys. “I was confident in [Redland Rocket Man]. I wasn’t overly confident that we could necessarily beat Doc’s horse. [Beau is] a great horse but it was an outstanding effort by my guy and you know I mean he’s taken off halfway through the season and you know he’s just become a phenomenal animal.”
The winning time erased the previous OSS mark of 1:48.1, set by Michaels Power at Woodbine Racetrack in 2012. Bred by Redland Farms of Nova Scotia and foaled in Prince Edward Island, Redland Rocket Man was a $30,000 Standardbred Horse Sales Company yearling purchase at the 2024 auction in Harrisburg, PA that has improved his seasonal earnings to $943,133, and his career earnings now stand at $1,121,420. The colt has won four straight, and five in 15 attempts in 2026. He returned $4.10-$2.10 in victory.
“This is what we do this for,” Jamieson said. “No one’s asking, but I’m 50 years old next month, and to be able to do it at this point in my career is awesome. I’m just happy with the chances that I’m getting, and so far I’m making good with them.”
He made good earlier in the night, guiding Totally Tyler to the OSS Super Final in the 2-year-old pacing colts’ division.
“This is the first time I ever had a double on Super Final night, let alone win a race, so I’m pretty pumped,” Jamieson said. “I’m pumped for Redland Rocket Man. I’m pumped for John Pentland. I’m pumped for myself. I mean, it’s been an awesome, awesome go, and hopefully we’ll just keep going.”
The next stop is a return to the Buckeye State in hopes of toppling the field at Scioto Downs in two weeks and adding yet another chapter to an incredible story.
“We hope to bring home the Breeders Crown,” said Volpe.