Jones refreshed, tanned and looking for a big year
Thursday evening harness racing returns to Mohawk Park (formerly Mohawk Racetrack) but Dustin Jones, a regular, will be absent.
The Freelton horseman is continuing his first season wintering in Florida and is in no rush to get back to Ontario.
“I won’t get back until the end of April, and I can tell you I cannot see me wintering in the north ever again. There is absolutely nothing to dislike being here,” the 57-year-old says.
Palema Trotting is his base of operations at Vero Beach. It is easily the best training facility in the Sunshine State, having opened in 2010. “The track is always good, great air and plenty of paddocks. I’m sure the horses like it as much as I do.”
Jones is there with a team of 17 horses, with the plan being to return to Classy Lane Training Centre near Puslinch.
This is an important campaign for Jones. He is coming off his worst season since 1993 with less than $300,000 in purses earned.
“I was pretty discouraged and it was a difficult time to try to attract people to invest in horses for this first Florida effort. In this game, it’s what have you done lately, so I did not have a great deal to spend,” he says.
“I ended up with nine yearlings, and just one has been voted off the island. The others are still going the way I want and I’m very hopeful. But it’s a long time between now and making some money.”
Last year’s one bright spot, Try Try Again, earned $126,000 but cracked a knee in September in his 11th start.
That led to over four months’ stall rest. Try Try Again has just resumed jogging.
“The funny thing is that because of being here, I think I picked up some new people for next year. That’s encouraging, but the stable has to step up this summer. I have seven three-yearolds that were carried over and should produce so again; hopeful is the word.”
In his career, Jones has trained winners of more than $18 million with relatively modest numbers of horses. But that was yesterday and, come summer, Jones will be a man on a mission.