Milton, ON – A few hours before being crowned, Ontario-sired prodigy Beau Jangles was dancing slightly in his stall at Woodbine Mohawk Park; ears up, eyes bright, grooving and bobbing slightly like a boxer laser-focused on the battle to come despite it being the 12th bout of his freshman campaign. There wasn’t a hint of weariness.
Beside him, his caretaker, Riley Noble, was grinning. It has been one heck of a ride with the colt Noble said is best described as “cheeky.” It’s a fitting characterization given how the 2-year-old pacer has upset the normal order of things in the North American harness racing business.
A little later that Friday evening (Oct. 24), watching Beau try to overturn his sulky a few times in the winner’s circle after a dominant, record-setting Grade 1 Breeders Crown victory at the Campbellville, ON track looked to be more an act of playful attention-seeking than aggression. Beau had just brushed off top U.S. invaders for the fourth time this season with a 1:48.3 Canadian record to remain undefeated through a dozen career starts.
He concluded his rookie campaign with $1,688,750 in earnings, tops among all North American standardbreds this year regardless of age, plus victories in the Grade 1 $1 million Metro Pace, the $227,100 Battle of Waterloo at Grand River Raceway and all six of his Ontario Sires Stakes (OSS) events.
No wonder the colt’s confidence currently matches his imposing stature.
On Wednesday (Oct. 29), many in the harness racing media agreed Beau is something special, despite being a freshman. Voters in the weekly Hambletonian Society / Breeders Crown poll selected Beau Jangles as the #1 horse on the continent over more seasoned Standardbreds and fellow Breeders Crown champs.
The likely favourite to win Canada’s Somebeachsomewhere Horse of the Year award (named after his grandsire), talk is starting to build that Beau, who is owned entirely by Americans, will get serious consideration for the overall Dan Patch Horse of the Year Award in the United States despite only racing in Ontario, to date. Cheeky, indeed.
“I say he’s cheeky all the time,” said Noble, who cares for the colt for Hall of Fame trainer Dr. Ian Moore. “[Beau Jangles is] not mean, but he’s not relaxed. He’ll play with you. He can get a little testy, but it’s more cheeky.”
BEAU IS A PRODUCT OF CANADIAN AND U.S. INGENUITY
His talent alone has earned him a growing legion of fans, yet, in a time of rising patriotism and heightened cross-border tensions, that cheeky Ontario-sired and Ontario-bred colt has been especially appealing to Canadians eager to support their own and prove their worth to their U.S. friends.
Yet, Beau is a product of both Canadian and American equine ingenuity.