by Dave Di Somma, Harness News Desk
Christen Me’s heroics in North America have us got thinking.
The former New Zealand Horse of the Year, owned by Dexter Dunn, chalked up win career number 50 over the weekend at Miami Valley Raceway in Ohio.
Now based in the USA, the champion driver claimed Christen Me for $US30,000 in September last year saying at the time – “I feel like I’m his family. He’s from back home and I’m from back there. He was Horse of the Year one year and to say that I own him now, that’s pretty cool.”
Christen Me was an 11-time Group One winner in New Zealand and Australia, with his 32 wins in 58 starts including the Miracle Mile, Auckland Cup, Victoria Cup, Hunter Cup and the Easter Cup.
“The horse means a lot to me as he won every major race in Australasia for me. When he was four and five he was unbelievable. His speed was phenomenal.”
His longevity has also been remarkable – now 13 he started racing as a two-year-old in 2011. The weekend’s victory was his 18th in North America.
Fifty wins is an incredible achievement for any horse, and from what we can glean from Harness Racing New Zealand records it’s a milestone that no horse, including Christen Me, has been able to do racing exclusively in this country.
Lyell Creek, for instance, had 56 career victories, winning 28 of them in this country while the great Cardigan Bay won 80 races in total, of which 29 were in New Zealand and the remaining 51 were overseas.
Delightful Lady tops the all-time NZ list with 47 wins, from 1977 to the mid 1980s.
The list of the top 50 winners in New Zealand only includes only one horse that is currently racing, and that’s champion trotter Sundees Son, who has won 27 races from 61 starts. He is poised to be New Zealand’s next millionaire with earnings currently of $999,667.
Sundees Son is currently ranked 33rd in that top 50.
Horse Name Number of Wins
Delightful Lady 47
Lordship 45
Idle Scott 45
Sir Castleton 39
Robalan 39
Easton Light 36
Blossom Lady 36
Tussle 36
Luxury Liner 35
Young Quinn 35
Monkey King 35
Take A Moment 33
Jenner 33
Bonnie’s Chance 32
Hands Down 31
Christopher Vance 31
Directorship 30
Landora’s Pride 30
I Can Doosit 30
Terror To Love 30
Scotch Tar 29
Moment Of Truth 29
Cardigan Bay 29
Sly Flyin 28
David Moss 28
Sovereignty 28
Caduceus 28
Arapaho 28
Lyell Creek 28
Johnny Gee 27
The Fiery Ginga 27
Chokin 27
Sundees Son 27
Auckland Reactor 27
Comedy Lad 27
Sundon 27
Il Vicolo 26
One Over Kenny 26
Lazarus 26
Nigel Craig 26
Christen Me 26
Noodlum 26
Lord Module 26
Robin Dundee 25
About Now 25
Some Direction 25
Master Mood 25
Thriller Dee 24
Basil Dean 24
Great Adios 24