by Kimberly French, USTA Web Newsroom Senior Correspondent

Kimberly French

Louisville, KY — He’s definitely no Thoroughbred and certainly is not preparing to be crowned as the 12th Triple Crown victor, but Lutetium is a champion in his owner’s book.

“He’s no California Chrome,” said the gelding’s owner, Colleen Girdlestone. “But he’s really big around these parts and to me he is definitely that kind of horse. He’s my pet. I make sure I take him out every night for a walk then give him grass and lots of carrots.”

The 7-year-old son of Credit Winner and the Donerail mare Luby just tied the all-age track record at Buffalo Raceway on Friday (May 30) with a 1:56.3 mile for his sixth consecutive triumph over the Hamburg oval, the last five of which have come in top class Open company.

Steve Roth photo

Lutetium tied the track trotting record in his most recent start at Buffalo Raceway.

Claimed by Girdlestone for a $7,500 tag in April 2013 (she originally claimed the horse for $6,000 in January 2013 before losing him a couple of months later), Lutetium is conditioned by Mark Laidlaw and is 14-7-1-1 with just under $41,000 in the bank for 2014. He also trotted his personal best of 1:52.4 on April 11, at Vernon Downs in the $10,000 Miracle Mile and holds the older gelding track record of 1:56.3 at Batavia Downs, which he set last year.

Not too shabby for a horse many drivers told Girdlestone was no good. Lutetium had a number of different pilots over the course of three months in 2013 before Kevin Cummings became his regular reinsman.

“They kept telling us he was junk,” Girdlestone said. “We were racing him in $10,000 and $12,000 (claiming) races and they kept telling us to drop him back down, but we knew he had back class from racing in the New York Sire Stakes earlier in his career and believed in him. Also, Kevin really fits this horse and does a great job with him.”

Laidlaw never shared the opinion Lutetium’s drivers had either.

“When I first got him he was a very nervous, hot horse,” he said. “Now coming from a $6,000 claiming race, I wasn’t exactly sure if he could compete at the Open level like he has, but I knew if we could settle him down he could be a much better horse.”

The plan has worked to perfection and it was pretty simple really. Lutetium really enjoys being at the farm rather than at the track and relishes the one-on-one attention he receives from Laidlaw and Girdlestone.

“We try to keep a harness off him as much as possible because he does get so hot,” Laidlaw said. “So we don’t jog him much, but he gets on the equisizer and on the wheel a lot. When I first got him, we had trouble with him in the paddock because he would get very excited at seeing the other horses so I just would try to keep them out of his sight as much as possible. Now he is much better and knows when it is time to work and when it is time to relax.”

Lutetium has earned $226,596 and sports a record of 112-27-23-10 in his career. Eighteen of those victories have come since Girdlestone has owned him and the gelding has developed his own fan club when he competes at Buffalo Raceway.

“I’m a kindergarten teacher and just got into the horse business several years ago,” Girdlestone said. “The first horse I bought, Master’s Trackster, didn’t win one race the whole year I had him, so this horse is such a big thrill. Every Monday morning I come in and show my kids how Louie (her nickname for him) did on the racetrack and they just love him. I also have an old student that comes every time he races and he does draw a big crowd. Everyone really likes this horse and I’m grateful to Mr. Mango at Buffalo Raceway for allowing us to race him there.”

Laidlaw concurred with Girdlestone’s assessment about how Lutetium fills the grandstand and her thoughts on the generosity of Buffalo Raceway.

“He is kind of a crowd draw,” Laidlaw said. “It’s terrific to be able to race him locally. Mr. Mango, the CEO of Buffalo, has been great to us and so have Jenny and Tom in the race office. I really would like to thank them for how nice they have been to us.”

The gelding’s connections also agree on the source of his success at Buffalo Raceway.

“He’s a big horse, but he really accelerates going into the turns and coming out of them,” Laidlaw said. “That is one of the reasons we try to keep him around a half. I don’t think he needs to be on the front end but he does need to leave the gate well, because he gets very hot behind there so the driver usually has to double up on him and then he breaks. If they go fast enough leaving there he is fine with sitting in a hole and coming at the end.”

“He just flies around those turns,” Girdlestone said. “Once he comes out of that first turn, you can see him settle in and know he’ll be right there at the wire.”

Like nearly everything else about this horse, Girdlestone and Laidlaw concur that he is quite special to them both.

“I love this horse,” Laidlaw said. “He’s a very nice animal to be around and I’ve been in this business for about 30 years and I’ve never had a horse quite like him.”

“You can’t imagine how excited I am to have him,” Girdlestone said. “He set the track record at Batavia and then tied his own record twice and now tied the track record at Buffalo. I didn’t even look at the timer because I was just so happy he won.

“He has been an absolute thrill. Especially since I haven’t been in this business that long but I already am aware of the reality of it. I make sure he gets lots of attention and people are always stopping by the barn to see him. Louie is definitely a great horse. At least to me.”