Competitive fires still burning in millionaire Georgia Pacific
May 25, 2009,by Kimberly French, USTA Web Newsroom Senior Correspondent
Kimberly French Williamsport, PA — 
“I can’t imagine what else he would do if he didn’t race,” said Valerie Grondin, who conditions the 8-year-old gelding for William Varney of Bangor, Maine. “He loves to get out there to jog and train; he just doesn’t want to do anything else.”
Varney purchased the Pennsylvania-bred son of Western Hanover-Armbro Savannah as a yearling in partnership with Randy Bendis, Susan Castelli, and John F. Campbell for $32,000 at the 2002 Tattersalls Sale. Throughout his seven-year-career, Georgia Pacific has collected 38 victories from 151 starts while earning nearly $1.3 million.
USTA/Ed Keys photo
Georgia Pacific banked $705,389 with 10 wins as a sophomore in 2004.
In his sophomore season he established his lifetime mark and world record tally of 1:49.1f in the 2004 Matron Stakes, paced the quickest first heat ever (1:50) in his 2004 Adios elimination, finished second in a 2004 Jug Preview split and competed in the finals of The Meadowlands Pace, North America Cup, American-National and Berry’s Creek. At age 4, the gelding finished second behind Boulder Creek in the 2005 editions of the U.S. Pacing Championship and Breeders Crown.
Before entering Grondin’s barn last December, Georgia Pacific raced primarily at The Meadows under the tutelage of former co-owner Bendis and has compiled a second and two thirds from four race miles in 2009.
“He’s like me, he still has the desire, but we don’t have the same ability that we once had,” Varney said with a chuckle. “Racing was a little bit hard down there at The Meadows, so we discussed retirement and my partners wanted to know if I would bring him up here because I have a big farm with a lot of horses, but since he was still sound, we decided to just race him lightly. We thought up here (in Maine) would be a good place for him to semi-retire.
“He wants to keep racing and I think it’s good for him,” he continued. “We are just going to let him do what he can do and when I think he’s tired or doesn’t want to race anymore, I’ll just turn him out and keep him up here. I own him solely now.”
He may not possess the speed of his younger years, but Georgia Pacific’s competitive fire has not diminished.
“He’s perfectly mannered to handle when you are doing something such as brushing him, but he’s very excitable when he gets out on the track,” Grondin, a 44-year-old resident of Corinna, Maine, said. “He loves his work and hopefully he’ll be good enough in the Open and Invitational classes here for Bill to enjoy him.”
Varney acknowledges the gelding may be a bit spoiled, but does not hold it against him.
“Like us older people, he definitely likes his own way, but he’s fun to have around,” he explained. “When he goes out in the pasture he bucks and plays; he’s a happy horse. Everybody that has ever worked with him just loves him.”
As for Georgia Pacific’s future, Varney revealed it is entirely up to the gelding.
“We will just let him tell us what he wants to do,” he said. “He really does love his work and when another horse comes near him while he’s jogging he wants to go faster. We love him and he’s been very good to us, so we will be very good to him.”
Editor’s Note: Georgia Pacific was profiled by Nicole Kraft in the April 2005 issue of Hoof Beats. To view that story in PDF format, click here. To purchase this issue, visit the USTA store at http://shop.ustrotting.com/april2005issue.aspx