No comments | Jump to comments

Nathan Sobey just spent a week in Las Vegas. What's amazing about the way it has developed this year is that he didn't walk out with the Mirage Hotel/Casino in one pocket and Caesars Palace in the other.

There is heat and then there is Sobey heat. Sobey said that this year ranked fifth in Canada with a universal coach rating of 0.448, and ranked sixth in Canada with a percentage of universal driver ratings of 0.371. (Statistics of trainers and drivers starting 100 times or more as of December 6th).

But this is not a dream. It is as real as rain. The Alberta rider has had a season. He was the Montreal Canadiens in 1976-77 or Babe Ruth in 1921. As a horse trainer, Soby won 65 horses in 234 races, 51 seconds and 33 three-pointers. As a driver, Sobe has achieved 64 victories in 278 races. He also won 46 second runner-ups and 41 third runner-ups.

"Every horse in the barn has had a glorious year," said Sobe, who turned 30 on Friday. "The hardest thing to accept is to realize that such a year will not happen all the time. This is an abnormal year. I would like to follow up again and again. But I must understand that I may never have such a year again. Years."

Sobey should vote for Alberta's top rider, it's not just the sum. In particular, the four horses-all top candidates for year-end honors-held a particularly outstanding campaign for Sobey in 2021: ice blue scooter, exotic dragon, sacred art and somewhere.

Icy Blue Scooter's victory at Century Mile last Friday gave him eight victories this year and should make him a champion horse.

"The ice blue scooter is amazing," said Soby, who shares an 8-year-old with Diane Bertrand and Robert Gilhespy. "He is my pet. He is a very personable horse. His willingness to win races makes him different. He knows how to win, and he likes to win."

how. Icy Blue Scooter has entered the championship circle 37 times, and his professional income is close to 300,000 US dollars. This is a claim made by a horse for USD 20,000 on October 6, 2018.

"He has received a lot of attention. He has been competing for $16,000, and I think a lot of people are waiting for him to fall back to $16,000," Soby said. "Finally, I told myself that if I really waited, he would have multiple claims. So I jumped on him. We only made a few small changes and let him participate in different shows."

The small changes obviously worked. Entering the $20,000 claim game, Icy Blue Scooter has not won 18 consecutive games. After Soapy took him away, he never saw the claimed price again.

"He has become an amazing racehorse. Even now, when he is eight years old, he can still sprint. Once he rushes to the front, he is a horse that is difficult to surpass. But he will fall asleep on you . You must keep him busy."

Exotic Dragon also won the 10th victory in 18 races on Friday. She was in the three-horse combination of this year's three-year-old mare-her, the battle between graceful horizon and burning heat, which may be in Century on New Year's Eve Casino Mile Filly Pace solved. (The Western Canada Pacing Derby was also held on December 31.)

"These three specimens are the best three three-year-old mares ever raised in Alberta," Sobey said. "If you get third place in any of these three mares, you can count it as a victory."

If Filly Pace is eliminated, they will be held at Century Mile this Friday. The same is true for the pacing derby, which will be eliminated this Friday night.

The Exotic Dragon owned by Robert Jones swept the opponent in three games of the Murphy Series at Fraser Downs in Surrey, British Columbia last Friday Later, the victory was won.

"Dave Kelly drove her in the first round and he didn't need to use her at all," Soby said of the 4-1/2 length win. "I was there for the next race, which was a walk in the park. In the $75,000 final on November 4, she was not as good as I wanted. But when she came to the front, the race was over. .

"She won by 5 points. Confidential. She won by 1 point and 55.3 points. I train with her for miles faster than she has to pace," Soby said of Exotic Dragon, she also won 50,000 The dollar Shirley McClellan and the $45,000 Diamond Championship. "She crossed the finish line with a drill in her mouth and saved something."

Like Icy Blue Scooter, Exotic Dragon was fortunately not infected with the horse virus, which forced the track to miss two weeks of competition through Century Mile.

"Shutdown is the right thing to do," Soby said. "On the opening night of November 19, 35 horses were scratched due to the virus. The Alberta Standard Stallion Association, Alberta Racing Association and Century Mile did what is best for the industry as a whole. It’s too easy to put a horse in. "You didn’t know that you were sick behind the door. Animals always come first. We are a gambling sport, but horses always come first. "

Then there is Shen Yi, a two-year-old pony who has won three of the six games, including the Super Finals, Stardust and Emerald Championships. Divine Art is the favorite to win the Junior Female of the Year award instead of Saphire Blue. The latter won five of the six games of trainer Harold Haining. The only loss was in the super finals. She stopped after attracting outside lines. Miles eighth post.

"The magical skill was young at first, but she soon became a strong one."

Finally, there is a certain place where he has a very reasonable chance of winning the Horse of the Year award. Sobey believes that this four-year-old is also owned by Jones of Stony Plain and will prove even better than Icy Blue Scooter. Sometime Somewhere won 13 of his 20 starts this year, including 7 consecutive and 9 of 11 games.

"I think Sometimes Somewhere will get a 1:49 score at some point. I believe he will become one of the fastest Pacers ever in the West. We may discover this next summer. I keep telling Bob (Jones ) Said he has a very good horse. Last Friday he ranked second after Icy Blue Scooter (2-1/4 length), but I think Sometimes Somewhere can beat him. He still can’t quite catch up with the old man.”

Just like Divine Art and Exotic Dragon, when Keith Clark, a member of the Canadian Hall of Fame, announced that he would retire this summer, he was the best equestrian rider of all time in Alberta and Sobey got somewhere.

"I received a call from a friend one afternoon. He told me that Bob Jones had called him and asked for my phone number. Then I received a call from Keith and said that I had better prepare some booths-I would have been I was going to find a few horses. Then I got a call from Bob and asked if I would accept him as a client. I changed a few things, and Sometimes Somewhere took off. He learned how to race and gradually progressed to the point where he could become The best horse of the year."

Having a good horse in a season is special. Having two possible champions is great. three? Well, this is something you can only dream of. Four? This is beyond the chart. After all, Sobey did not qualify for the finals of the O'Brien Outstanding Canadian Rider Award.

"I don't mind," Soby said. "It would be nice to be considered for O'Brien. But Dave Kelly is also worth it. It gives me some direction to work hard."

Think about how a good year for Sobey started so miserably.

"Some COVID restrictions were lifted and we were finally able to compete again on May 18. On the opening day, the first start of the year, I bumped into a horse named Sintaluta, which was trained by Kelly Hoerdt. A horse The horse broke and strode forward, and then there was a leak. Daryl Thiessen and I fell. Neither of us could avoid it. I was blown away. I landed on my head and it knocked me down. Take it. When I came down, I knew that Daryl and I were on the way to the hospital. I also had a bad butt bump. I went out for three weeks.

"That was the beginning of 2021. So, no, with COVID and that accident, I have never seen a year like this. This is really great. I think we never thought we would publish the numbers we had I am going to have a good week, I think it’s good, if I can pass another week or even half of it, I’ll be very happy. The good weeks keep coming. It’s just snowballing like snowballs, and then we go Up.

"I couldn't do this without the help of my master. They gave me so many good horse training and the girls in the barn. They made everything work. The staff worked very well together. There are So many people have my surgery because I am where I am now."

Even so, Sobe is still not satisfied.

"I may go east to play for three months in the new year. I am talking to the owner and studying the details. Maybe I will bring six horses and look for some new inventory. As I have learned in the past few years In that way, people who make money and win games keep updating their stocks.

"I have invested a lot of horses now. I own three one-year-old horses, and Keith Clark’s former partner gave me about 10 horses. I have not finished yet. I want to buy some more horses. I "I want to buy some A three-year-old kid and took advantage of some of these bets in Ontario. This is an incredible year. This is an evil dream. "

(File from Curtis Stock / thehorses.com)

© 2021 Standardbred Canada. all rights reserved. By using this website, you agree to and comply with the legal disclaimer and privacy policy.