favorite horse

[Any1Left]

I am not talking best horse but a horse that was special to you,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,At GREENWOOD MANY YEARS AGO there was a horse called BANKER FRITZ AND I LOVED SHADY HILL PRIDE AND THOSE ARE MY TOP HORSES........

[Bitter Truth]

There are so many but I'll mention two..two different types. TASER GUN.. One of the best leavers ever.
And TUNE TOWN..a closing fool

[pylon]

I am not talking best horse but a horse that was special to you,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,At GREENWOOD MANY YEARS AGO there was a horse called BANKER FRITZ AND I LOVED SHADY HILL PRIDE AND THOSE ARE MY TOP HORSES........

Banker Fritz or Banker Fretz?...anyway i remember him...trained by garth gordon no?
along the same lines....also Greenwood....as a kid at 23 owning a 4500$ claimer  50 plus years ago Edgewood Duke...my favourite horse that i owned
non owner fav? a tie between 1990,s Samfrancisco Irv and a few years later Admiral,s Express...The Grey Gladiator

[Bernie Madoff]

Mighty Oak Diamond.

[Any1Left]

Banker Fritz or Banker Fretz?...anyway i remember him...trained by garth gordon no?
along the same lines....also Greenwood....as a kid at 23 owning a 4500$ claimer  50 plus years ago Edgewood Duke...my favourite horse that i owned
non owner fav? a tie between 1990,s Samfrancisco Irv and a few years later Admiral,s Express...The Grey Gladiator

tHANK YOU AND YOU ARE CORRECT,,,,,,,,,

[Bitter Truth]

Just changed my screen saver..Got a Rick Zeron signed pic..Can't remember exactly  but must have been in
Canada eh? [promotional night]  Nice call on him..Like I said, there are so many.

[Sam R]

Rival Guy A.

[whiptherabbit]

Banker Fritz or Banker Fretz?...anyway i remember him...trained by garth gordon no?
along the same lines....also Greenwood....as a kid at 23 owning a 4500$ claimer  50 plus years ago Edgewood Duke...my favourite horse that i owned
non owner fav? a tie between 1990,s Samfrancisco Irv and a few years later Admiral,s Express...The Grey Gladiator

Samfrancisco Irv, he the one who got his foot trapped years ago during a race with Wappes driving?

[Harness racer]

Sanabelle Island

[kantseeback]

Ironstone Dynamo with Syl King Junior.
The horse's head was so low to the track while he was racing his chin was scraping the dirt.

[pylon]

Samfrancisco Irv, he the one who got his foot trapped years ago during a race with Wappes driving?

not sure...but he was one hellava hard knocking claimer who gave his all week after week

[Mazola]

Banker Fritz or Banker Fretz?...anyway i remember him...trained by garth gordon no?
along the same lines....also Greenwood....as a kid at 23 owning a 4500$ claimer  50 plus years ago Edgewood Duke...my favourite horse that i owned
non owner fav? a tie between 1990,s Samfrancisco Irv and a few years later Admiral,s Express...The Grey Gladiator

I remember Edgewood Duke

[Jctoronto]

The brilliance of BANKER FRETZ
Garth Gordon shares many of the memories of the gelding who faced many tough customers at GREENWOOD RACEWAY Toronto and beyond AND who passed at ripe old age of 37, in 2012.

**
Banker Fretz last set foot on a racetrack in 1985, yet trainer Garth Gordon says there are still a surprising number of people who remember the hard-knocking pacer who accumulated a record of 46-18-19 in 127 starts. Certainly the gelding, co-owned throughout his career by Gordon and his dentist, competed in some illustrious company. “We raced against Niatross in an invitational,” Gordon says. “I think it was 1982, at Greenwood. We were third to him.”

“He also raced against Fan Hanover, and Abercrombie. And I’m sure we raced against Cam Fella as well, but we never beat him, I know that!”

Gordon purchased Banker Fretz as a yearling in 1976. “It was at the old Liberty Bell sale,” he recalls. “I had a New Zealand horse that I sold to Gord Waples for $11,000. So I went down to buy one yearling with the money. I kept looking at these Harold J’s, and I came home with Banker for $10,000.”

Gordon chose wisely – Banker Fretz turned out to be Harold J’s most illustrious offspring and his top money-earner. A son of Worthy Boy out of Lady Scotland, by Scotland, Harold J himself was a pacer born of trotting bloodlines, who earned $159,179 and set a lifetime mark of 1:57.4 in 1963. He sired a number of useful six-figure earners, but only Banker Fretz managed to break the $500,000 barrier, and his speed mark of 1:56 was one of Harold J’s best as well.

Banker Fretz was also the only standout among his dam Julie Barmin’s eight offspring. By the Tar Heel sire, Thorpe Hanover, out of an Adios mare named Adios Gertie, Julie Barmin herself never saw a harness, thanks to a bad hip, says Gordon. “They bred her at two, and she had Banker Fretz at three,” he recalls. “Dana Irving bred him and named him after his bank manager.”

Julie Barmin later had three other foals by Harold J, but only one of those, Friendly Banker, made it to the races, earning a grand total of $2,172 for Gordon, who had purchased him in the hopes of lightning striking twice. “He was pretty useless,” the trainer admits with a laugh.

Julie Barmin’s last foal, Ralphs Jewel, arrived in 1985 and was durable if not profitable, starting 98 times and earning a grand total of $13,779. In total, of the $582,896 earned by Julie Barmin’s offspring, Banker Fretz is responsible for all but $19,889 of it.

“He was a great horse for us,” says Gordon. “I don’t think I ever found another one as good. He paid the bills, and he did it the hard way. He never raced for big purses. In fact, the highest purse we ever had in the invitationals was $11,500, and I think the biggest purse we ever went for was $40,000, in Ottawa. He earned $563,007 the hard way. A horse like him today would probably make that much in a single season.”

What stands out most about Banker Fretz, however, might not be his six-figure bankroll, but rather his ornery temperament. “He was awful to break,” Gordon chuckles. “He kicked and fought and was just a handful to work around. I ended up gelding him in June of his two-year-old year, and it helped in settling him down. But he never got to the races as a two-year-old – he wasn’t developed enough. He was awful hard to gait when I was breaking him, too. He would never pace free-legged.”

The Banker finally made his first start in February 1978, as a three-year-old. It was less than auspicious. He broke, and had to re-qualify, but ended up making $130,000 at three, once he got going.

“In the fall of his three-year-old year at Mohawk,” Gordon recalls, “he was in an invitational pace where he was third to Abercrombie and Flight Director – that was pretty good company.” With an inside post in the next two invitationals, he won both of them.

“He won his first start back at four, in February,” adds Gordon, “and I sent him to The Meadowlands, where John Campbell drove him in an invitational pace – John was just an up-and-comer then. He was second there, but shortly afterwards he came up with a knee problem and we lost most of the rest of his four-year-old year. He came back late in the fall and won an invitational pace at Mohawk for the second year in a row – in fact he won that race at three, four, five, six, seven, and eight years of age.”

It wasn’t the only serial victory for the gritty gelding. “There was the Canuck Cup, May 24th weekend in Ottawa,” Gordon remembers. “He won that at six, seven, and eight. By the time he was eight he was dealing with three broken splint bones – two on one front leg, one on the other – and he only ended up being a last-minute entry. He was parked every step of that mile and still won it. That was one of his best efforts ever.”

Banker Fretz continued to earn his keep, and then some, until soundness issues forced his retirement at age 10. “His splint bones kept cracking, and he had some other little problems,” Gordon says. “I never raced him in the claimers. I never wanted to cheapen him.

“So when it came time to retire him, I sent him to Barry and Deb Bird’s farm in Harwood, and Barry put him out with the broodmares. I’ve known Barry all my life and they gave him a nice home. He’s the master of the mares.”

“I didn’t think I’d be feeding him for 23 years when I took him,” jokes Barry, “but we’re glad to have him. He’s in exceptional condition for his age -- never so much as had a cough. He’s very low-maintenance.”

These days, Banker’s main occupation is as a baby-sitter extraordinaire. “We wean all the foals with him,” remarks Deb Bird. “He’s a great ­protector. He still runs with them – he can’t keep up but he sure tries! One of his claims to fame is that he weaned ($3.7 million earner) Boulder Creek.

“When he’s not with the weanlings, he’s turned out with Sutter Creek, who was our first horse. Garth picked her out for us and we named the farm after her; she’s 22 now and her last foal, Capilano Creek, raced in the Grassroots this year.

“The two of them are just the same in temperament; they deserve each other. Neither of them can be caught if they don’t want to come in. It’s embarrassing when the farrier comes!”

“We try to bring him in at night in the winter,” agrees Barry, “but if he doesn’t want to be caught, forget about it. He doesn’t much like it inside. When it gets cold enough he’ll come to the gate to get his mash. Every morning, he bangs on the door until we let him out.

“Periodically, Garth will come out and visit him, or Mrs. Wright, who is the widow of the dentist who was half-owner. She’s one of the few people who can catch him! She brings him apples and carrots, and it does your heart good to see him with her.

“He’s got a lot of class, old Banker,” Barry grins. “He does things his way. He was a champion on the track, and now he’s a champion in the field and in our hearts. It’s a pleasure to look out and see him every day.”

“I was there this summer and said hello to him,” laughs Gordon, “but he turned his back on me. When you brush him, he tries to step on your foot. He knows he was the best.”

Tags
Comments
Tim O'Connor
Absolutely blown away that
13 March 2012 - 5:54 pm
Absolutely blown away that the Banker lived this long....saw him at Greenwood when I was a teenager...a long, long, long time ago...Kudos to the family for looking after him for so long.

roger kopas
Banker Fretz. His name
11 March 2012 - 2:04 pm
Banker Fretz. His name brings forth some great memories of an iron tough,class horse and an equally tough,classy guy,Garth Gordon. Garth and BF deserved one another. May the old horse rest easy and God bless Garth and his family for their loyalty.

Bernard Tobin
A note from Garth Gordon I
9 March 2012 - 9:07 am
A note from Garth Gordon
I talked with Garth and he asked me to post the following comment ....

Reading all your kind comments brought a tear to my eye. After all these years, I'm truly touched that so many people have such fond recollections of Banker and those great Saturday afternoons at Greenwood.
On behalf of myself, my wife Gloria, and Betty Wright, I want to thank everyone for sharing such wonderful memories. A special thank you goes out to Barry and Debbie Bird for taking such great care of Banker for so many years.

Thank you all,

Garth

Leslie Kuretzky
THIS was the horse that got
8 March 2012 - 7:06 pm
THIS was the horse that got me started in Harness Racing. I loved his name and began listening on CFRB 1010 for the results just to hear if he won. 37 is amazing. RIP Banker Fretz and Thank you for introducing me to the great sport of Harness Racing

Dan Davis
I too loved this tough old
8 March 2012 - 3:54 pm
I too loved this tough old boy and remember him at Greenwood.
Those were the days!!!!
Was he not 2nd to Niatross in that retirement race for Niatross.
And Kudos to Garth and the Birds for giving this horse a great
retirement home he so deserved!!!

Peter Anthony
The Banker had a very unique
8 March 2012 - 2:20 pm
The Banker had a very unique pacing style...very powerful! I can remember the announcer at Greenwood yelling "And outa the east end parking lot here come Banker Fretz" classic line for a classic horse. RIP

Santo Vena
He was always my favorite
8 March 2012 - 8:17 am
He was always my favorite horse to go watch at greenwood,couldnt wait for the Saturday afternoon FFA's.this really brings us back to when racing was all about the horses,and there was alot of media coverage
The banker had a great long life and Garth really took great care of him.
Rest in peace Banker
Santo

norm files
Very sorry to hear about the
8 March 2012 - 12:48 am
Very sorry to hear about the Banker!
He was one of my favorite horses back in the day.Iron tough as can also be attributed to such a long life he lived!.
And a true testement to the The Birds and the Gordons as to how much they cared for and looked after this champ to live such an incredibly long life.

Karen English
Garth, so very sorry to hear
7 March 2012 - 8:57 pm
Garth, so very sorry to hear about Banker Fretz. We're thinking of you. Karen, Betty and Sam

Gord Brown
This kind of reminds me of a
7 March 2012 - 8:23 pm
This kind of reminds me of a Roger Mayotte story because without Garth there is no way and no how Banker would have become what he did. I remember him racing like it was yesterday, what a warrior.
To Barry & Deb, I think it sums up what great people they are. I wish there were more.

Garnet Barnsdale
"The Banker" was one of my
7 March 2012 - 6:31 pm
"The Banker" was one of my all-time favorites. What an honest, hard-trying horse. I cashed many tickets on "The Banker" with 'ole Garth driving. Glad to see he lived a good, full life. RIP Banker.

jeff batucan
i remember when i was kid
7 March 2012 - 5:23 pm
i remember when i was kid and i'd name my hot wheel cars after horses...one of the cars name was Banker Fretz. i raced the cars pretending they were FFA horses around an oval track and do race calls...that was by 30 yrs or so ago. Sad to hear the passing of one of my favorites but im glad he had such a wonderful life. R.I.P.

Gary Blackburn
A true warrior has passed.
7 March 2012 - 2:16 pm
A true warrior has passed. My condolences.

The Banker takes all of us that were around in that era, back to those glorious days on a freezing cold Saturday afternoon at Greenwood with a packed grandstand watching those great animals giving their all trying to win the FFA in front of a roaring boisterous crowd.

Allan Casselman
R.I.P. Banker !!! Harwoods
7 March 2012 - 1:02 pm
R.I.P. Banker !!! Harwoods most respected and oldest equine citizen. God bless Debbie and Barry Bird for loving and protecting him for all the years. Every time we saw each other we would share how "The Banker" was. Gone , but not forgotten.

debbie bird
Thank you for the wonderful
7 March 2012 - 12:34 pm
Thank you for the wonderful comments. Our hearts are sad although we know he lived a good long life. He's buried under his favorite apple tree. We loved him like our own and will miss him as no other.

Barry & Deb

mike wassilyn
What a tribute to Garth
7 March 2012 - 12:06 pm
What a tribute to Garth Gordon,,,this is testimony to a man that has love,,,actually i knew it when Garth had a broken line in a race,, when the banker trusted Garth enough to permit Garth to leap out of the sulky,,, onto the bankers back,, and the banker carried Garth to safety down the lane,,,,now thats a team Garth i know this hurts,,,think of the Blessing you received to have this horse,,, in return,,,your gratitude was evident,,,,hang on you are about to be BLESSED again,,,Greenwood Raceway oh how we all miss that best atmosphere of racing all time,,,your pal Mike

Will Boggs
Had the pleasure of watching
7 March 2012 - 11:50 am
Had the pleasure of watching Banker and Garth take on Town Drunk and Vern Crank in the Connaught Cup many years ago. What a thrill it was as a young boy to see these two go at it!

Joe Riga
Sad to hear about the Banker
7 March 2012 - 11:36 am
Sad to hear about the Banker passing.
He was one of mine and my brothers favourite horses and definitely had a large influence on us becoming harness racing fans. I remember many trip as a teenager going to Greenwood (still my favourite track but that's another story)to see the Banker race against the likes of Happy Hoot, Armbro Turk, Noble Hill GB etc. I was there the day he raced the mighty Niatross. Those were the good old days when harness racing was more about fun and less about business. The days when you went to the track to buy a sausage and go outside to see the horses and get up close. Not like today where you go to play a slot machine. Those days the tracks were all about the horses and rightfully so. Racing was a great game then and I miss it.
So long Banker, thanks for the memories.

kevin nickerson
very heart warming story its
7 March 2012 - 10:35 am
very heart warming story its good to know that he was well taking care of after his great career and baby sat many great horses in his life after racing rip old man and good luck at the race track in the sky along side the greats you once raced say hi to the admiral for me

John Carter
It is nice to see that there
7 March 2012 - 9:48 am
It is nice to see that there is some owners willing to take care of a horse long after there racing career has come to an end. It doesn't happen near often enough in this business. A big thumbs up to the connections of this horse.

Terry Lantz
wow.....talk about going
7 March 2012 - 9:46 am
wow.....talk about going down memory lane. the "Banker" was one my favorite's when i first got into harness racing back in the early 80's. the old Free For All pace's back then at Greenwood and Mohawk where really awesome to watch and so competitive. the "Banker" was easily a fan favorite, watching him compete weekly against Happy Hoot, Saunders Alpine Lobell GB and Armbro Turk amongst others where truly a treat. i know we all remember horses from different era's but watching the "Banker" and the one's listed above really stick out in my memory. not surprising that a "tough" old campaigner like him would live to 37 years old.

michael chomica
Two things I remember about
7 March 2012 - 9:39 am
Two things I remember about Banker Fretz were his wicked brush, and the part time track announcer Paul Dubiel's calls,"Here comes the Banker" in his one of a kind unique tone

Daniel Clements
Growing up in the Greenwood
7 March 2012 - 9:21 am
Growing up in the Greenwood days when the game was filled with true horse stars , Banker Fritz was my all time favorite FFA'er ...He just had that look about him and always gave a great effort and I looked forward to watching him every Saturday afternoon when racing was racing aka "Back in the Day" ..


jimmy cauchon
Banker Fretz.... wow.. I
7 March 2012 - 8:51 am
Banker Fretz.... wow..

I started following the harness game on many a snowy weekend afternoon in the late 70s/early 80's at Greenwood watching 'The Banker' in the FFA.

37 a great long life for a great horse.

thanks for the update SC
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[pugdog1]

Mr. Sandman summer of 1981 Sportsman Park. He win 3 races that summer meet and we crushed the pools every win. I ran the his driver bets that year. SB.  The good old days

[Jazzman]

hazel park levar hanover