by John Manzi, publicity director, Monticello Raceway

Monticello, NY — He had always been a good trotter but late last season Chosen Voyageur had hit the skids. His four legs had suspensory ligament problems and his previous owners had summoned an Amishman to purchase Chosen Voyageur as a buggy horse.

But the $5,000 asking price was too much for a horse to pull an Amish wagon so Stephen Petersheim, perhaps more Mennonite than Amish, tried to peddle the trotter with his stops at various racetracks while looking for buggy horses to sell to the Amish.

Geri Schwarz photo

Chosen Voyageur cruised to a 1:58.1 victory on Oct. 5, his 10th of the year.

A stop at Monticello Raceway in mid-January proved fruitful. Petersheim told trainer Gary Messenger that he had a horse aboard his truck that he thought could possibly make it back to the races.

“He (Petersheim) told me Chosen Voyageur stood in the stall for three months. I checked him out and saw he had four bad suspensories that had been pin-fired but they seemed tight. So I hooked him up and jogged him. He seemed pretty good and I asked him what he had to get for the horse,” Messenger related.

Petersheim had told Messenger the owners wanted $5,000 for Chosen Voyageur. Messenger said he’d take him but Petersheim had a stipulation which was that he wanted to purchase half of the horse.

Since Chosen Voyageur had won $71,000 during 2010 and took a 1:53.3 record at Dover Downs that season, Messenger agreed to go partners with Petersheim.

After a lengthy period getting the trotter ready to return to the wars, Messenger finally put him in a qualifying race at the Mighty M in late March and Chosen Voyageur won the qualifier in 2:06.4 with Shane Taggart aboard.

Messenger entered the trotter in an overnight event with a $20,000 claiming tag on April 6 with Zeke Parker aboard and Chosen Voyageur won the trot by a neck in 2:01.4. After five more starts — one at Tioga Downs where he finished second in 1:56.3 and one at Yonkers Raceway where he finished fourth — Chosen Voyageur returned to the Mighty M and began his racing season in earnest.

By the first of October Chosen Voyageur had won nine races — eight faster than 1:59.3 on the Monticello half-mile oval — and had five seconds in 19 starts. His fastest trotting victory was a 1:58 clocking on May 25.

“He leaves like a pacer and loves to be on the lead,” said Parker, who has been Chosen Voyageur’s regular driver. “All of his wins this year have on the front-end.”

The Balanced Image-Ms Vic Valley 8-year-old gelding made his 20th seasonal start at the Mighty M on October 5 another winning one when Parker reined him to a wire-to-wire, four length triumph in 1:58.1, while still carrying a $20,000 claiming tag.

“Racing horses is a gamble but the one we took when we bought Chosen Voyageur was one of the best gambles I ever took,” Messenger said. “I’d like to buy a horse like him for $5,000 every day of the week.”