Trainer Tom Fanning is understandably excited when he thinks ahead to racing Artstanding in the major sophomore stakes this season.

Artstanding, however, isn’t so excited. But that’s because the Artsplace colt doesn’t get too excited about anything. In fact, it’s the colt’s laid-back attitude that impressed Fanning most when he saw him at the Harrisburg sale in 2004.

“Every time I walked by his stall at Harrisburg, he was lying down,” says the New Jersey trainer. “He was in a pretty busy spot at the sale and I figured if he could take all that action and be calm and rest, he might be a good one to campaign.”

Fanning was right. Last year Artstanding earned $383,967, a tidy profit for owners Jim Switlyk and Bob Gorney on their $35,000 investment.

Even with a yearling of racing under his girth, Artstanding still doesn’t get too worked up during his daily routine.

“Probably a good $20,000 claimer will beat him training,” says Fanning. In a race, however, Artstanding comes alive.

Artstanding was bred and raised by Hanover Shoe Farms, and he’s a son of Artsplace out of the Western Hanover mare Jasmine Hanover. She was nothing special on the track herself, but her dam J. D.’s Bret produced the Jug winner Jaguar Spur.

Jaguar Spur is a name that’s faded from prominence in the two decades since he won the Jug, but he was everything that a horseman dreams about in a pacer. Jaguar Spur won 49 races and more than $1.8 million while earning a mark of 1:49.2 as a 4-year-old in a 1988 time trial. Incidentally, when he took his record, Jaguar Spur became the third fastest horse in harness racing history behind Matt’s Scooter and Niatross.

Fanning enjoying great season

While Artstanding has yet to make his first start in 2006, trainer Fanning is already having a banner season with a Universal Trainer Rating above .300. That figure, comparable to a baseball player’s batting average, is one of the best ways to judge a trainer. Some trainers can pile up impressive earnings and wins by virtue of a lot of starts, but their averages aren’t so impressive. And the UTR also tells you something about how good a trainer is at finding spots to race his stock.

Fanning has never had a large stable stocked with lots of owners with deep pockets, but success breeds success and now Fanning’s owners are buying better horses. The stable’s results speak for themselves, but Fanning attributes his accomplishments simply to better horses.

He says that owner Jim Switlyk of Berkeley Heights, New Jersey put Artstanding (then named J. Watkin Hanover) on a list of yearlings for Fanning to inspect at Harrisburg in 2004. Fanning liked what he saw.

“He’s a big, stout, muscular horse,” says Fanning. “He’s only the second Artsplace I’ve ever trained, but he seems to have the Artsplace head.”

Fanning broke the youngster at Gaitway Farm and the colt took to his lessons easily. He then was shipped south to trainer Scott Norris at Pinehurst to develop during the winter. Fanning talked to Norris often and even went down to train his youngsters (“and play a little golf,” adds Fanning) at Pinehurst, but the Artsplace colt did nothing to show signs of being special.

“Artstanding did what he was asked to do, no more, and no less,” says Fanning. “He was good gaited, but he certainly wasn’t a dominating colt. He just did his work.”

Fanning has been in the game long enough to know that young horses can fool you. Some will train like a star and then hit a wall, while others train like a wallflower then become a star. Artstanding fell into the latter category.

“I try not to get too high or too low on a young horse,” Fanning says. “He was sound and good-gaited and that was important.”

Artstanding had been around 2:16 when he shipped north in early May. He overcame a slight bit of sickness and Fanning was able to put the finishing touches on him.

2:02.3 to 1:52.2 in three weeks

His first baby race came on June 22. Fanning’s philosophy is that such events are strictly education opportunities. He isn’t concerned with how fast the mile went or where his horses finish. In this case, Artstanding finished fourth, timed in 2:02.3. Yannick Gingras was in the bike.

“I just want them to behave themselves, have a good experience, and finish strong,” he says. Artstanding’s final quarter in 28.2 answered that question.

“It wasn’t a flashy-looking line, but I was happy,” says Fanning.

Fanning put Mike Lachance up the next time and Lachance was happy after piloting him to a 1:59.1 mile with a final quarter in 27.2. Again, it wasn’t a flashy line on the surface, but a veteran like Lachance knew talent when he sat behind it.

“He’s a very good horse,” Lachance told Fanning after the race.

Fanning says that in Switlyk and Gorney, he’s fortunate to have owners who don’t insist in their horses ripping off big miles in baby races. That allows Fanning to bring along young horses with an eye to the future.

In his first New Jersey Sires Stakes, Artstanding just missed a neck in a 1:56 with a final quarter in 26.4.

“He was better than I expected,” admits Fanning. “He learned fast. I don’t train my babies hard and I explained that to Mike [Lachance]. He’s very good at understanding that when racing young horses.”

Artstanding was indeed a fast learner. In his second purse start, Artstanding roared from behind to catch heavily-favored Western Ace to win the $175,000 New Jersey Sires Stake in 1:52.2.

“He really stepped forward,” says Fanning. “I think our horse surprised Ron Pierce [driving Western Ace] when he finished that strong. I was surprised, too. I didn’t think he was ready to go that fast.”

So just three weeks after he paced in 2:02.3, Artstanding had a record of 1:52.2 and almost $100,000 in the bank. Not a bad way to start a career.

That sudden drop in time concerned Fanning at first, but Artstanding came out of that NJSS victory in top shape and raced good the following week in the Niatross, finishing second to Western Ace.

During the month of August, Artstanding got a vacation of light jogging and some turnout out time. Fanning had his sights set on some later races and he wanted to keep his colt fresh.

Freehold first quarter in 26 seconds

Artstanding returned with two qualifiers in September at Freehold so that he could be ready for the Babic Memorial. His second qualifier was an impressive 1:55.3 win by more than 10 lengths. Yannick Gingras drove him in his Freehold starts.

“For a big horse, Artstanding gets around turns on a half-mile track real well,” says Fanning.

In the Babic elimination, Western Ace worked his way to the front and Artstanding couldn’t catch him in the stretch. He finished second.

Fanning was extremely pleased with his season to that point, but Artstanding still never shook off his lethargy between races.

“In the morning when you train him,” says Fanning, “it’s hard to believe he’s as good as he is. But he knows the difference when it time to race. He’s all business when he gets in behind the gate.”

Artstanding was certainly all business when he got behind the gate in the $160,000 Babic final, Artstanding had post six while Western Ace started from the rail. Gingras rocketed his colt away from the gate and around Freehold’s first turn, reaching the first quarter in a scalding 26 seconds.

“I was a little surprised there,” admits Fanning. “I think Yannick felt that if he got to the front, he could control the race.”

Artstanding did control the race until the stretch when Western Ace zipped past him to win by three lengths. Artstanding held on for second and a $40,000 paycheck.

Fanning then shipped his prize pupil to Ontario for the Governor’s Cup where he wound up second behind Palone Ranger in their elimination heat.

In the final, Artstanding trailed the speedball Jereme’s Jet all the way and simply couldn’t catch him over the sloppy track. It was another second-place check, this one worth $148,258 in US funds.

“That Jereme’s Jet is the best 2-year-old I’ve seen in a long, long time,” says Fanning. “The track wasn’t good that night and our colt still got over it fine. He’s so versatile. I know that Palone Ranger had trouble with the track. Our colt can make his own trip.”

In early November, Artstanding went to Dover for the Matron elimination and he went off at 1-5 odds. Lachance decided to send him to the front.

“I don’t think that the front end is the best place for him, but we thought he was much the best, so Mike raced him on top,” says Fanning. “He’s a little lazy. Mike had to get after him a little on the backside, but at the end he was pretty comfortable. The colt was just waiting for someone to come to him in the stretch.”

He was an easy winner in 1:54.

In the Matron final, Took Hanover took the lead and Lachance tucked Arstanding in behind him. Western Ace came first up with Palone Ranger on his back. When Took Hanover began to surrender in the stretch, the outer flow had the momentum and Lachance had to duck Artstanding into the passing lane.

“The passing lane at Dover is very short and our horse is not a sprinter,” says Fanning. “By the time Mike got him down there, the best he could do was fourth. He basically just held his ground.”

The denouement of the season would come in the Breeders Crown at the Meadowlands and Artstanding drew in against Jereme’s Jet, his conqueror in Canada. Jereme’s Jet was the 2-5 favorite, but was nailed in the final strides by Western Cyclone. Artstanding finished nipping at their heels in third, thus earning his ticket to the rich Breeders Crown final.

That’s when bad luck delivered a near knockout punch. Artstanding drew post 10, a substantial handicap even for the best horses.

“It’s the luck of the draw,” says Fanning. “It happens. Our job was to make the best of it.”

The bettors judged Artstanding at 51-1 to win, but Lachance wasn’t about to surrender without a fight. He sent Artstanding away from the gate and gained a seat in the middle of the pack.

“Mike had to use him hard leaving,” says Fanning. “Then we were just hoping to get some room.”

Artstanding finished fifth, just beaten for fourth.

“It was a bit disappointing because we were really looking forward to that race,” says Fanning, whose wife Moira is the Breeders Crown and Hambletonian Society publicist. “That’s just the way it goes.”

Fourth richest freshman colt

At the end of the year, Artstanding’s dance card read 2-6-1 in 11 starts. His earnings made him the fourth richest freshman pacing colt of the 2005 season, less than $2,000 behind the third-place colt Palone Ranger. Jereme’s Jet and Western Ace led the division in earnings.

Artstanding has trained back nicely this winter and Fanning plans to qualify him next week (April 27) at the Meadowlands.

“He’ll qualify twice, then probably go into a New Jersey Sires Stakes, then into the elims for the Jersey Classic,” says Fanning.

The jackpots in 3-year-old pacing events are even bigger, and Artstanding is eligible to virtually all the major sophomore classics this season. The competition gets tougher, too, but owners Switlyk and Gorney and trainer Fanning have confidence in their colt.

They might have to wake up Arstanding to remind him it’s time to race, but when the starter says “go” Artstanding’s rivals better be awake.

by Dean A. Hoffman

Courtesy of The USTA

4-21-2006