Times Advocate, 1994-10-19, Page 16Page 16
Times -Advocate, October 19, 1994
SPORTS
Four generatlons training horse
Morrissey family continue to produce champions
By Fred Groves
T -A staff
MT. CARMEL - The big stone
gates are warm and inviting.
Scholtz the young German shep-
herd lets you know he is there and
he takes his job seriously but affec-
tionately.
Over 50 horses of all ages graze
in a nearby paddock and they greet
their owner with love when he ap-
proaches.
This is a horseman's heaven and
for Dave Morrissey and his family
it is where they have helped the
harness racing business produce
some of the fastest horses in On-
tario.
"We just race in Ontario now. We
used to race a lot in New Jersey but
our purse structure in the Ontario
Jockey Club is just as good," said
Morrissey.
He has been in the business for
40 years and the Morrissey name
carries with it a very long tradition
of excellence in the business. His
grandfather Gus and his father John
taught him and passed on a keen
eye for race horses.
In turn, Morrissey has passed that
on to his sons Dan and Rick who
are now fourth generation trainers.
"It gets in your blood, that's why
you stay in it," said Morrissey.
The reason he has become so suc-
cessful is that on his 200 -acre farm
near Mt. Carmel he and his sons
not only train the horses on the
well-groomed oval track but they
breed them.
"It's risky doing your own but it's
more risky buying someone else's
for $30-40,000."
World record holder: The Mor-
rissey name has a very strong her-
itage to it. Perhaps the most historic
couple of years for the Morrissey
racing family were 1982 and 1983.
In 1982, the Merger, owned and
trained by the Morriseys, set a
world record as a two-year old, cir-
cling the track at 1:53.4. At that
time, it was the fastest two-year old
pacer in history. A year later, Mer-
ger won the Ohio Little Brown Jug.
In the Morrissey's home is a
painting of the horse and in the
barn where the veterinarian comes
to visit during the breeding season,
the office has a picture of Merger
to let everyone know of the ex-
cellence produced from the farm.
tfAliver M
off` and some of the horses on his 200 -acre farm in Mt. Carmel. Below, left;
lgC,ksnllth Dog plomson is,gf llor;frce4,s;;the stables.
•
Shuffleboard
Hensall
October 11
6 game winners
Hazel McEwan
Dave Woodward
Doug Insley
Emma Campbell
Dave Kyle
Jim Davis
5 game winners
Lloyd Lovell
John Pepper
Gertie Moir
Exeter
October 12
5 game winners
John Pepper
Olive Essery
Steve Hrapchak
4 game winners
Ann Northey
Lil Baechler
Gil Northey
Marj McCurdy
October 13
4 game winners
Gil Northey
Joe Gosar
Allen Johns
Mike Elzenga
475
423
422
392
373
357
361
350
338
398
385
376
359
353
347
334
430
419
371
369
"The small
tracks
aren't
doing well
but our
Ontario Sires
Stakes
is doing
well."
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Now the laurels belong to Harem
Success which was bred and
trained in Mt. Carmel. Over the
past two years, this horse has
brought in a total purse of over
$100,000.
Over the last couple of years the
harness racing business has re-
ceived a real shot in the arm as tele -
theatre wagering has increased the
money being put in.
"The small tracks aren't doing
well but our Ontario Sires Stakes is
doing well. It (OSS) has been the
bright spot of our business," said
Morrissey who took one horse to
Flamboro on Thursday, two to El-
mira on Saturday and one to Sarnia
on Sunday.
The Morrisseys don't drive, they
leave that up to those who are at the
track.
"We just try and get the top driv-
ers at each track."
While training the horses and
owning hopeful winners is one end
of the business, the Morrisseys also
make a career out of breeding and
selling.
"It's a tough business but the
sales are up 17 percent in Toronto
and 27 percent in London over last
year. We generally race them as
two and three year-olds and then
sell them."
When asked what his dislikes of
being in the business are, Morrissey
said the late hours and, "sometimes
the pay isn't that good."
As far as the likes are con-
cerned,"you are your own boss," he
said.
There is also the good-hearted
feeling of passing a tradition down
to your sons who you work with
day-to-day and then there is the
tranquility of watching Scholtz
keep an eye on the blacksmith
shoeing a stubborn horse.
Also there is peace of mind stroll-
ing the paddock and being with the
horses which have been a very big
part of your life.
RACING TI D -BITS ON THE TRACK
• In her Ontario Sires Stakes debut on Saturday, Cassandras Girl,
owned by Dave Morrissey and trained by Dan Morrissey won one of
the two-year-old pacing divisions with a time of 2:02. It was the first
win for this filly in the $7,066 Grass Roots heat.
• A big race at Western Raceway on Friday as the three-year old
pacing colts and geldings will be in an OSS race for $40,000. One of
the favourites is Venture Seelster owened by Doug Peacock of Exet-
er, Vic Hargreaves of Brucefield and Egmondville's Brian Glanvil.
This horse, trained and driven by John Muir made its OSS debut on
October 9 at the Kingston Park Raceway and won at 1:57.4.
• Remember Staying Together, Bob Hamather's prized horse that
was the Horse of the Year for 1993, well it was scheduled to be in
the $334,000 Breeders Crown on the weekend.
PINTS
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