The first year of this decade was memorable. Tonya Harding created a figure skating drama that became one of the greatest scandals in sports history, Wayne Gretzky tied Gordie Howe’s NHL record of 801 goals and Go for Gin won the 120th Kentucky Derby but never another race.
Canadian Donovan Bailey set a 100 metre world record in 1996, jockey Frankie Dettori made history by riding seven straight winners in seven races at Royal Ascot and the average price of a house in Toronto was $198,150. The Alberta bred PAROSE began a race career that earned $1.180 Million and sent him to the top of the Alberta Lifetime Leading Earners list, where he remains to this day. Owned as of his last start by Bruno Shickedanz and bred by Johnie Shewchuk, the chestnut gelding spent his first four seasons racing mainly in Alberta but won almost all his stakes out East.
In 1997 moviegoers flocked to watch the release of Titanic, the highest grossing film of all time at that point, and HIGHLAND LEADER was embarking on a race career that would last for an incredible 14 seasons. The multiple stakes winner finished running with earnings of $475,837 from 137 starts and 26 wins. The 1995 CTHS Alberta Yearling Sale graduate was consigned by breeder, Jim McDonald and bought by E. Hilton, C. Garvey, and P. Schaffer for $6,207. Canada celebrated the 125th anniversary of Confederation this same year.
The search engine Google was founded in 1998, the worlds biggest airport opened in Hong Kong and CODE NAME FRED won his first start at Northlands. The 1997 CTHS Alberta sale graduate was bought by Bar None Ranches Ltd. from breeder and consignor Central Valley Ranches for $22,995 and went on to become a graded stakes winner with earnings of $481,229 over from 15 wins over eight seasons.
ITunes was released by Apple in 2001, the 911 terrorist attacks shocked the world and led to the twenty year US invasion of Afghanistan and SIXTHIRTYJOE started his race career at Stampede Park. The Important Notice runner was named the 2002 Champion Horse of the Year and Alberta Bred and went on to earn multiple stakes wins with 19 wins in 51 starts earning $546, 767 in six seasons. The bay gelding was bred, trained and owned throughout his career entirely by Deanne Davies. The year closed with a re-opening of the Leaning Tower of Pisa after an eleven year closure to stop it from falling over and the great Triple Crown Winner Affirmed passed away.
Canadian pop punk princess Avril Lavigne launched her first album in 2002 to great commercial success, the Ford Focus was the top selling car and TV reality show "The Bachelor" debuted on ABC while BEAU BRASS ran his premiere race at Northlands Park. The Dixieland Brass gelding went on to win numerous stakes races including back to back Speed to Spare Stakes and was named the 2005 Champion Alberta bred. After eight seasons, the multiple stakes winner retired from racing with $500,468 from 59 starts and 10 wins for owner Tom White and breeder Denny Andrews and Horse Racing Alberta (HRA) was enacted this year to implement change within the horse racing industry.
Also racing during this decade; 1996-EXCLUSIVE RUN (Lifetime earnings of $671,773), 1996-TIMELY RUCKUS (Lifetime earnings of $618,004), 1997-SHADY REMARK (Lifetime earnings of $449,330), 1997-PICK’S PROSPECT (Lifetime earnings of $400,325),1996-RIVER WILD (Lifetime earnings of $394,225).
*Disclaimer- Horses for each decade were chosen for that decade based on the first year they raced and ranked according to lifetime earnings. It is possible that depending on how they are viewed they may fit into more than one decade. We leave it to the “People” to decide which decade they feel these Alberta bred horses best fit.
