Macdonald "Mac" Benson (born June 30, 1930 in

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington ( Lenape: ''Paxahakink /'' ''Pakehakink)'' is the largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish settlement in North America. It lies at the confluence of the Christina ...

) is a

Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame The Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame was established in 1976 to honour those who have made a significant contribution to the sport of harness and Thoroughbred horse racing in Canada. It is located at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario. The H ...

trainer. A resident of

Woodbridge, Ontario Woodbridge is a very large suburban community in Vaughan, Ontario, Canada, along the city's border with Toronto. It occupies the city's entire southwest quadrant, west of Ontario Highway 400, Highway 400, east of Ontario Highway 50, Highway 50, n ...

, Benson came to Canada in 1978 to train for E. P. Taylor's renowned

Windfields Farm Windfields Farm was a six square kilometre (1,500 acre) Thoroughbred horse breeding farm that was founded by businessman E. P. Taylor in Oshawa, Ontario, Canada. Origin The first stable and breeding operation of E. P. Taylor originated w ...

. Since then, horses trained by Benson have won ten

Sovereign Award {{refimprove, date=October 2021 The Sovereign Award is given annually since 1975 by the Jockey Club of Canada to the outstanding horses and people in Canadian Thoroughbred racing. The most prestigious award for horses is Sovereign Horse of the Y ...

s and four Canadian Classics. Mac Benson embarked on his professional training career in 1958 and began by working for prominent Delaware

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are c ...

owner,

William du Pont, Jr. William du Pont Jr. (February 11, 1896 – December 31, 1965) was an English-born American businessman and banker, and a prominent figure in the sport of Thoroughbred horse racing. He developed and designed more than 20 racing venues, including F ...

He later would operate a public stable, racing at tracks in

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

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 ...

, and

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

. Among his clients in the early 1970s was another duPont family member,

Bayard Sharp Bayard may refer to: People * Bayard (given name) *Bayard (surname) *Pierre Terrail, seigneur de Bayard (1473–1524) French knight Places * Bayard, Delaware, an unincorporated community *Bayard (Jacksonville), Florida, a neighborhood *Bayard, ...

, who was a founding director of

Delaware Park Racetrack Delaware Park (also known as ''DelPark'') is an American Thoroughbred horse racing track, casino, and golf course in Stanton, Delaware. It is located just outside the city of Wilmington, and about 30 miles from Philadelphia. Thoroughbred racing ...

and a former president of '' The Blood-Horse Inc.'' magazine. In 1976, Benson was offered a job by the head of operations for Windfields Farm who raced in Canada and the United States, and who maintained breeding operations in Maryland and

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

. Settling in the

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

area in 1978, Mac Benson met with instant success as head trainer of the E. P. Taylor racing stable. He remained with Windfields Farm through the death of E. P. Taylor in 1989 and would later train for American

George W. Strawbridge, Jr. George W. Strawbridge Jr. (born October 10, 1937) is an American educator, historian, investor, sportsman and philanthropist. Biography Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, he was the son of Margaret ("Peggy") Dorrance and the stockbroker Geor ...

and Robert J. Costigan of

Vancouver, British Columbia Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

. Still active in 2009, at age 76 Mac Benson trained Costigan's

filly A filly is a female horse that is too young to be called a mare. There are two specific definitions in use: *In most cases, a ''filly'' is a female horse under four years old. *In some nations, such as the United Kingdom and the United States, t ...

Arravale {{Infobox racehorse , horsename = Arravale , image = , caption = , sire = Arch , grandsire = Kris S. , dam = Kalosca , damsire = Kaldoun , sex = Filly , foaled = 2003 , country = United States , colour = Dark Bay , breeder = Bruce Lu ...

, to 2006

Canadian Horse of the Year The Canadian Horse of the Year is a thoroughbred horse racing honour given annually since 1951 by the Jockey Club of Canada. It is the most prestigious honour in Canadian thoroughbred horse racing. Part of the Sovereign Awards program since 1975, ...

honors. In 2002, Mac Benson was inducted in the

References

Macdonald Benson at the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame

Macdonald Benson profile at Woodbine Entertainment

Macdonald Benson at the NTRA
{{DEFAULTSORT:Benson, Macdonald 1930 births Living people American horse trainers Sportspeople from Wilmington, Delaware Canadian horse trainers Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame inductees People from Vaughan