Bettor’s Wish. The ultimate example of a well-bred, well-conformed, and extremely athletic pacing yearling that was somehow overlooked at the Lexington Selected Sale. Not by trainer Chris Ryder though, who snatched up the promising youngster for just $20,000.

Brittany Farm manager Art Zubrod, who watched Bettor’s Wish mature and excel in the fields, knew exactly the potential that might lie ahead. He went in on the colt immediately following the sale with he and his wife Leah Cheverie’s Fair Island Farm, along with other partners. And the rest, as they say, is history.

He banked more than $2.6-million and took 21 victories in elims or finals of stakes races, and became a favorite of fans and horsemen alike for his determination and gutsy performances throughout his career. In his championship 3-year-old season he took 13 wins and six seconds in 19 starts and won elims of all three “bigs”—the Meadowlands Pace, North America Cup and Breeders Crown—and finished second in the finals of each by a total of a mere three-parts of a length.

As a 4-year-old he combined standing stud and racing, and proved his driver Dexter Dunn correct when he told the trade press, “It’s not an easy move from ages three to four, but Bettor’s Wish is amazing and you know he’s going to go out there and give you 100 percent!”

That “100 percent” enabled him to win a host of stakes that year including the Sam McKee Memorial in his record 1:47.3 and the Allerage at the Red Mile in track record time. He closed out his racing campaign in grand fashion, taking a front-end, blowout victory in the TVG Open Pace Final that led Meadowlands track announcer Ken Warkentin to exclaim, “He’s pouring it on, running up the score!”

The back-to-back Dan Patch award winner now enters the second phase of his career as a full-time stallion, and like many Brittany-bred colts before him, delivers the ultimate in value for his owners.