Harness: Reasonably successful 2020 for Harrison import project

When last we spoke, trainer Kelvin Harrison was ready to embark on a new phase of his career. The affable Harrison had begun importing horses from New Zealand and Australia at a level well above his past history. The concept this spring was to bring race-ready horses to the U.S. and qualify them with a mindset towards pricing and quickly re-selling them to trainers in need of solid raceway horses.

"I'm happy with the way things worked out considering," said Harrison, now with his first full year of a process coming to an end. "We had a bunch ready to roll when they got here and then we got shut down."

Adding insult to injury for Harrison was the fact that even when racing began again, it was only a few months before his horses would be sidelined. "We had a virus go through the barn and most of them got sick," said Harrison, revealing the double whammy that made his initial proposition difficult but not impossible to swallow.

"I think from a horse standpoint we had some that proved to be better than what we paid for them and some that were worse. On the whole we sold about eight or nine," said Harrison. "Some were making money racing." That caveat led Harrison to maintain his stable, now roughly 15-16 strong, with more horses in transit to arrive from Down Under before the New Year.

While Harrison's imports have developed nicely, the trainer has no problem selling horses with high-class potential. "Bracken Storm (A) is a pretty nice horse I sold to Noel Daley," said Harrison. Indeed the 5-year-old was sold in late November and has two solid second-place finishes for his new connections.

One of the issues Harrison faced due to the racing climate during COVID-19 was the need to move horses outside of New Jersey just to allow them racing opportunity, and perhaps at the same time, convince other horsemen they were worth purchasing. Some horses were sold and others came back.

"The Devils Own N was a horse we had ready when he came over here," said Harrison of the 6-year-old that won his debut in late February at The Meadowlands in 1:50 3/5 but would only get two more starts before racing shut down. When racing opened up again The Devils Own N quickly broke the 1:50 barrier with back-to-back 1:49 3/5 and 1:49 wins at The Meadowlands in June. The Devils Own N would win in 1:48 flat in his Woodbine Mohawk Park debut in late August for trainer Tony Montini. "He got a bit sick and started going in the wrong direction, so we shut him down," said Harrison of The Devils Own N, who is training back for a return early in 2021.

Harrison recognizes the difficulty in what he's doing but believes he's learned a great deal from the type of horses he has brought to the States. "Number one you have to bring a horse that has speed. Number two you want them to be good gaited and not hit their knees," said Harrison.

One reason many horses make the trip from Anzac to North America is that Lasix is not allowed in the Southern Hemisphere. "That's definitely a factor," said Harrison. "But Lasix isn't a miracle cure for all of them."

Surprisingly Harrison has been able to pluck some lightly-raced horses for purchase, which he considers a bit of an anomaly. "It's really hard to buy good young horses that are eligible to non-winners down there. The Australians will scoop them up for $100,000 and up," said Harrison.

Nevertheless, Harrison may have found a diamond in the rough in the pacing mare She's Nun Bettor N. The Bettor's Delight-sired mare made but seven starts as a 3-year-old, with one victory last year before arriving in Harrison's stable. Since then, she's made a healthy living in Pennsylvania racing up the class ladder, with five wins in nine starts while finishing on the board each time.

While Harrison of course would like to keep all of the good ones, it's just not possible. "We"ve got to try to sell some to keep rolling," Harrison said, indicating his plans for 2021 are to continue if not refine his business to bring horses that are ready to race and fit all classes.

The bright spot for Harrison, if anyone can find it in the year 2020, is that horses he's listed to train have earned more than $400K in this abbreviated season, with the number escalating when you consider the horses he's sent to Canada and Delaware in the equation. That alone should give confidence to anyone looking to buy a proven horse when Harrison's imports come to town.