by Dean A. Hoffman

Doesn’t the name Christmas List seem perfect for a foal out of the mare Tinsel?

Christmas List was not only a good name; he was also a good horse. In fact, he’s the richest Standardbred with “Christmas” in its name. The 1981 colt by High Ideal out of Tinsel earned $277,041 and took a mark of 1:54.2 on the pace almost two decades ago.

Of course, he is not the only foal from Tinsel with a holiday theme to its name. She’s also the dam of the former world champion Trim The Tree. (Tinsel’s best foal, however, was the unforgettable grey sensation Laag.)

There are many Standardbreds named along a Christmas theme, just as breeders often choose other themes for naming foals.

Want a few examples? Christmas Deal was a trotting mare by Square Deal that earned $114,321 in the 1970s. Or what about Christmas Lights, foaled a decade ago? She earned $107,459.

Perhaps the most prolific contributor to Standardbred names on a Christmas theme was a former world champion. Back in 1963, the filly Christmas Time (sired by Good Time) paced to a record mile of 2:00.4 at the old Liberty Bell Park. She beat top colts like Bengazi Hanover is doing so, and it was the fastest effort ever by a freshman filly on a 5/8-mile track.

When placed in the breeding ranks, Christmas Time yielded foals with names such as Merrie Christmas, Happy Christmas, Christmas Present, Christmas Spirit, Christmas Dream, Christmas Lad, Christmas Candle, and Christmas Sparkler.

There are variations on the theme, of course, as evidenced by the millionaire New Zealand import and Horse of the Year in that country, Yulestar N. A less successful import was the 1964 gelding Santa Claus, a winner of $8,442 in North America.

St. Nick was a pacing gelding who banked more than $100,000 in a career that ended in 1981. His trotting counterpart was Saint Nicklaus 5, 1:55.4 ($75,996).

While the Christmas theme is used in names, more often you see foals named using a Valentine’s Day or Easter theme, because both of those holidays occur during the normal breeding season. If a Standardbred foal is born at Christmas time, it’s likely that someone goofed in breeding a mare too early.

There are exceptions, of course. The mare Christmas Eve was named for a very obvious reason; that’s when she was foaled. She’s by Nevele Pride out of The Favorite, and arrived on Christmas Eve in 1974. At that time, however, foals born in November and December were considered part of the following year’s foal crop. So although Christmas Eve was foaled in 1974, she raced in 2-year-old events in 1977. (Her final foal was fittingly named Christmas Past.)

There are many other variations on the Christmas theme, such as Silent Night (and Silent Knight), Joy To The World, Deck The Halls, and, yes, even Kris Kringle.