Standardbred
The Standardbred is an American horse breed best known for its ability in harness racing, where members of the breed compete at either a trot or pace. Developed in North America, the Standardbred is recognized worldwide, and the breed can trace i ...
harness racing horse who earned $4.2 million in total winnings during his racing career. Gallo Blue Chip's sire was Magical Mike, and his dam was Camatross. Magical Mike's sire was Tyler B., and his dam was Racing Date; Camatross' sire was Albatross, and her dam was Bye Bye Camille.
Background
Gallo Blue Chip was purchased by his owner, Martin Scharf, for $100,000 from Chris Oakes of
Lockport, New York
Lockport is both a city and the Lockport (town), New York, town that surrounds it in Niagara County, New York, Niagara County, New York (state), New York. The city is the Niagara county seat, with a population of 21,165 according to 2010 census ...
Collins, New York
Collins is a town in Erie County, New York, United States. The town is on the south border of the county and is considered to be one of the " Southtowns" of Erie County. The population at the 2010 census was 6,601.
History
The area was first set ...
.
Career
Gallo Blue Chip won eight of eight starts in 1999, including seven New York Sires Stakes and the $150,000 championship. In 2000, Gallo Blue Chip won the
Meadowlands Pace
The Meadowlands Pace is a harness race for three-year-old pacers, held at the Meadowlands Racetrack, in East Rutherford, New Jersey, East Rutherford, Bergen County, New Jersey, Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. It is the richest pacing rac ...
horse race at the
Meadowlands Racetrack
The Meadowlands Racetrack (currently referred to as Meadowlands Racing & Entertainment) is a horse racing track at the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, New Jersey, United States. The track hosts both thoroughbred racing and harness ...
in
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
with a time of 1:50.4. The same year, he also won the Breeder's Crown Three-Year-Old Colt and Gelding Pace at
Mohawk Racetrack
Mohawk Racetrack (branded as Woodbine Mohawk Park) is a harness racing track in Campbellville, Ontario. It is owned by Woodbine Entertainment Group (formerly the Ontario Jockey Club) and is about 40 km southwest of the company's other racet ...
in 1:51.1. Winning the
North America Cup
The North America Cup is an annual harness racing event for 3-year-old standardbred pacing horses which is held at Woodbine Mohawk Park in Campbellville, Ontario, Canada. The race replaced the Queen City Pace run from 1964 to 1983. From 1984 to ...
(1:50.1; $1 million),
Tattersalls
Tattersalls (formerly Tattersall's) is the main auctioneer of race horses in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
Founding
It was founded in 1766 by Richard Tattersall (1724–1795), who had been stud groom to the second Duke of Kingston. T ...
Pace, and
Art Rooney Pace
The Art Rooney Pace is an American harness racing event for three-year-old standardbred pacers run each year at Yonkers Raceway with the exception of 2006 when it was hosted by Monticello Raceway. Little Brown Jug Preview with a time of 1:50, becoming World Champion.
Gallo Blue Chip's owner, Martin Scharf, described his feelings about the horse's North America Cup victory, saying, "Winning the North America Cup was a thrill and a relief. Even if you know a horse is good, he has to prove it. I've been in this business for 10 years and you never really know if you have that caliber of a horse. The horse's trainer, Mark Ford, said of him in July 2000, "He's a little hard to train. You won't be impressed if you train him in the middle of the week, but he is good when he races."
At the close of 2000, Gallo Blue Chip had won more than $2.4 million, becoming the Standardbred record holder for winning the most money in any single racing season. Gallo Blue Chip won additional awards early in his career, including being named 2000
American Harness Horse of the Year
The Harness Horse of the Year is an honor recognizing the top harness racing horse in the United States. The award is selected by the United States Trotting Association and the United States Harness Writers Association (USHWA), which issues the an ...
; and 2000 and 2001 Pacer of the Year in the United States and Canada. He also won the
United States Trotting Association
The United States Trotting Association (USTA), headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, is the governing body for the sport of harness racing in the United States. It licenses drivers and trainers; trains racing officials; makes the rules of racing; mainta ...
and Canadian (O’Brien) Three-Year-Old Pacing Colt of the Year awards in 2000.
Gallo Blue Chip became the all-time leading money-winning pacer in 2001 with $3,227,861 by winning the Canadian Pacing Derby Prep. That year, he won 10 out of 19 starts, including the Battle of Lake Erie, Graduate Pace, Canadian Pacing Derby, and American-National. He was the first pacer in the history of harness racing to earn more than $4 million in winnings, having done so in 2003 as a six-year-old at the Presidential Series final.
As an eight-year-old in 2005, he was continuing to race prior to his retirement on March 12, 2005. In 2005, Gallo Blue Chip retired "as the sport's leading money winning pacer" and Standardbred gelding of all-time. He is the first horse to have won more than $4 million in the sport.
Gallo Blue Chip was inducted into the Harness Racing
Hall of Fame
A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...
on July 3, 2011, having received 34% of the votes from members in good standing of the United States Trotting Association. He had a total of 53 wins of 133 starts during his career.