There’s nothing terrible about “twos” for owner Jeffrey Bamond when it comes to his dream pacing mare Anndrovette.
Earlier this year, Anndrovette received her second consecutive O'Brien Award as the best older female pacer in Canada, two trophies that can go alongside her two Dan Patch Awards for getting the nod as the division’s best the past two years in the U.S. as well.
Last season, she became the first horse to win the Breeders Crown Mare Pace in back-to-back years. In addition, her end-of-the-season 'Crown' triumph pushed her career earnings to more than $2 million.
Not too shabby.
“I wouldn’t say she’s a once-in-a-lifetime horse, but she might be my once-in-a-lifetime horse,” said Bamond, who owns the mare with his son, Jeffrey Jr., and Joe Davino. “She’s just as tough as nails. She’s got the biggest heart going. And she’s so nice to be around in the barn. That’s the nice thing; you can bring the grandkids and your friends around her. She’s got a great disposition."
Anndrovette has won 28 of 67 career races and earned $2.02 million. In addition to her two Breeders Crown victories, her other top wins include the 2012 Roses Are Red and Overbid, the 2011 Artiscape, Betsy Ross and Spring of Hope, and the 2010 Lady Maud, American-National and New York Sire Stakes Championship.
Bamond and his partners bought Anndrovette, a daughter of stallion Riverboat King out of the mare Easy Miss, in the middle of her three-year-old campaign for $65,000 at the Tattersalls Summer Mixed Sale at the Meadowlands in August 2010.
“My son had noticed her and said she looked like a nice-sized filly,” Bamond said. “We thought she would be a nice New York Sire Stakes horse; she already had a couple sire stakes wins. So we set out to get her, never figuring she’d be what she is. Things just skyrocketed from there.”
Anndrovette finished last season by winning the Breeders Crown by one and a half lengths over favourite Drop The Ball in 1:50.1 at Woodbine Racetrack, but it was her July victory in the Roses Are Red that stood out for Bamond. Anndrovette beat Drop The Ball by a half-length with a world-record 1:48.1 mile.
The record lasted for only two weeks as Put On A Show erased it with a 1:47.3 victory in the Lady Liberty at the Meadowlands, but Anndrovette played a key role in that outcome by setting the pace before finishing third, defeated by three-quarters of a length.
Anndrovette’s Roses Are Red effort remains Canada’s best-ever mile for a female pacer.
“The Roses Are Red, that race was tremendous,” Bamond said. “The Lady Liberty stands out, too. She did all the work and just got beat.”
Anndrovette is preparing for the start of her six-year-old season, which will begin March 22 with the six-week-long Blue Chip Matchmaker Series at Yonkers Raceway. Anndrovette, driven regularly by Tim Tetrick for trainer P.J. Fraley, won three preliminary legs in last year’s series and finished second to Rocklamation in the final.
“After the Matchmaker she’s going to follow the same exact schedule as last year,” Bamond said. “We’ve got about 20 races scheduled for her right now. She’s doing great and I’m chomping at the bit.”
If Anndrovette can capture a third consecutive Dan Patch Award, she will join Eternal Camnation (2001-03) and Shady Daisy (1992-94) as the only pacing mares to accomplish that feat. None have won four in a row.
“We’ll see if she has another good year and what that bodes for down the line,” Bamond said. “I’ll continue to race her as long as she can race at a high level.”