by Kimberly French, USTA Web Newsroom Senior Correspondent

Williamsport, PA — He stands just a shade over 14 hands, but 8-year-old Zippy Star knows size does not determine who gets their picture taken.

“He gets to talking, thinking that everybody should know that he is a big stud but he is a little horse,” Gary Hafner a resident of Letts, Iowa, and Zippy’s owner/trainer/driver, said. “Especially when you stand him up against all them other guys.”

Realizing talk, or in his case, a whinny, isn’t enough to do the trick, Zippy reinforced his superiority by showing his heels to the competition 14 times in 16 attempts this year. While racing almost exclusively on the Iowa fair circuit, the bay son of American Winner and the Speedy Somolli mare Legendary Love, has compiled a career line of 100-50-17-6, while amassing a bankroll of $87,578.

Timothy M. Jones photo

Zippy Star lowered his lifetime mark to 1:54.3 last month in winning a Topline event at the Illinois State Fair in Springfield for driver Brandon Simpson.

Zippy currently finds himself in a tie for third place among the leading dashwinning older trotters in North America this year and on September 1, established a new track record of 1:59.4 at What Cheer in Keokuk, Iowa.

However, winning wasn’t always an easy task for the ridgling.

“We have been a long time getting here,” Hafner recalled. “As a 2- and 3-year-old Zippy couldn’t hold his speed together on the trot. He started coming around as a 4-year-old and after he got onto it, has been a success story ever since.”

When he is not racing, Zippy spends his down time breeding Hafner’s mares.

The Iowa native is a self-taught, hands-on-horseman, who just a year ago, quit his full-time job making office furniture to earn a living in the horse business. He had high hopes for Zippy before his feet ever touched the ground.

“I purchased the mare (Legendary Love) at the Harrisburg Sale in foal with Zippy hoping this would be the foundation for my breeding program,” Hafner explained. “He breeds only my mares and has five foals. A year ago, his first one went to the track and won ($453) but she tore a suspensory and hasn’t been able to come back from that. However, I’m breaking and jogging two of his yearling colts and everything is going quite nicely.”

Zippy’s success on the track and in the breeding shed stems from his character.

“His personality is what is great about him,” Hafner said. “He is very sensible around other horses, has a big heart and enjoys everything he does.”

Hafner intends to continue racing his star and hopes the dark bay will keep providing enough income to maintain the rest of the stable, which includes seven other horses. However, Zippy is the only racehorse and has developed an entourage that avidly follows his career.

“It’s a small town and Zippy has quite a local following,” Hafner said. “At Christmas last year, my family broke out green t-shirts for Hafner Racing. Every time Zippy wins, my brother, his wife, their two boys, their children and their extended families, all get into the winners’ circle with their t-shirts on for the picture. It is quite a sight and is always a very happy event.”

There is only one thing Zippy prefers to winning races: apples.

“They are his favorite and he eats bushels of them,” Hafner said with a laugh. “For awhile I was buying them by the case and I give him whatever he wants. Wouldn’t you?”