‘High Voltage’ takes out Harness The Dream for 2022
Valedictorian, this years Harness the Dream horse. Photo credit- Hamilton Content Creators.
The winners of the inaugural Harness the Dream competition were announced on Friday night at Gloucester Park amongst a big crowd on course for the Chinese New Year Pacing Cup meeting, with Kristen and Tony Barnard as team ‘High Voltage’ walking away as the victors.
With a 10% share in the ready to race two-year-old Westbred gelding Valedictorian on offer as well as training fees with Group One winning trainer Justin Prentice paid until June 2023 for the winning team, this year’s competition had 10 teams vying for the chance to get their first taste of ownership in harness racing.
Tony and Kristen Barnard are no strangers to horses, with Tony coming from a Polo background and Kristen from a show horse background herself, the love of horses runs deep in the pair. Kristen had a real passion for transforming thoroughbreds off the track into show horses, but recently decided to take a step back, with the Barnards selling their horses in hopes for a more ‘simple life’.
The step back didn’t last long, with Kristen buying a small share in the ladies’ horse, two-year-old Cosmopolitan Girl who is trained by Daniel and Ben Pearce. Cosmopolitan Girl is racing today at Pinjarra in the Magic Millions WA 2YO Classic, jumping from barrier 13 for jockey Kyra Yuill at 5.15pm.
After seeing Harness the Dream advertised on social media, the pair decided to apply.
“I’ve always wanted to learn more about the code, and I thought this would be a great opportunity to do so,”
“We have learnt so much already. I honestly learnt so much from the stable tour and last night (The Grand Final). I am so excited to learn more.” Kristen said
Kristen Barnard and Matt Young with champion Im Themightyquinn. Photo Credit- The Trots WA
Raising three kids is a full-time job in itself, with Kristen and Tony having three boys aged 15, 14 and four years old, and even though they recently made the decision to take a step back from the horses, they still find themselves at various horse events each weekend.
“Since I’ve stopped showing, we’ve found ourselves filling the weekends with horse events anyway,”
“We’ve been to watch a bit of show jumping and various Off the Track classes in other disciplines. I love judging breed shows and plan on doing more of that this year.” Kristen said.
Valedictorian is a son of champion sire Art Major and out of Courage on Fire NZ, bred by Kevin and Annette Charles. Purchased at last years APG Yearling sales, trainer Justin Prentice had his eye on the then colt and advised prospective buyers Trotsynd #20 that he believed the youngster was worth stretching the budget for, with the syndicate purchasing lot 443 for $40,000. Headed by prominent owner Rob Gartrell, there has been glowing reports on Valedictorian’s progress, with the two-year-old set to make his debut on Tuesday the 15th of February in the 2YO Colts and Geldings Sales Classic Heat.
Valedictorian is eligible for four group ones this season as a two-year-old and by all reports, should be an exciting horse for his new owners.
The unsuccessful teams of this years Harness the Dream competition didn’t walk away empty handed, with each receiving a $1500 voucher for this years Neds-APG Yearling Sale which gets underway on Sunday February 27 at 1pm at the Magic Millions venue in the Swan Valley.
Ashleigh Paikos