Somebeachsomewhere: The Harness Racing Legend from a One-Horse Stable

 

Who would have thought that a small group of Maritime friends, organized by Truro car salesman and harness racing enthusiast Brent MacGrath, would have bought a yearling Standardbred colt that was destined to smash harness racing records for pacers? But that’s exactly what happened when the friends behind Schooner Stables—a literal one-horse stable—plunked down $40,000 for a bay colt with a bold presence and a kind eye at a prestigious horse sale in Lexington, Kentucky in the fall of 2006.

Somebeachsomewhere—referred to by most as “Beach” or “The Beach”—would go on to be trained in part by MacGrath, raced by veteran driver Paul MacDonell, and win 20 of his 21 starts as a professional pacer at tracks around North America. Retired from racing after just two seasons, he then stood at stud on a Standardbred breeding farm, where he went on to sire hundreds of superb pacing colts and fillies before his untimely death from cancer in January of 2018.

There’s the gist of the story that Marjorie Simmins unfolds for us in her newly published book on Somebeachsomewhere, but the story is far more exciting and heartwarming—and yes, heartbreaking—than this. Most of us have likely never been to a harness race—even those of us who are horse-crazy—and perhaps even more couldn’t tell the difference between a pacing and a trotting racer. But countless thousands of people from our region, and beyond, were entranced when Beach burst onto the racing scene in 2007. His winning ways were exciting—and his personality, the story of Schooner Stables, and the fondness towards the big bay colt that everyone around him showed, all made up for a fairy tale-like story of success.

Simmins has told Beach’s story, and that of those closest to him, with the kind of care and detail that only a true horseperson can create. An equestrian herself from a young age—a story she told compellingly in her book Year of the Horse: a Journey of Healing and Adventure—she keenly desired to tell the story of this improbably-successful pacer and his handlers. In this, she was wholeheartedly encouraged by her husband, the late Silver Donald Cameron, who passed away in June of 2020 while Simmins was deep research and writing for her book.

That she was able to bear down and focus on writing in the midst of grieving—and in the midst of COVID-19 lockdowns—and see the story through to completion speaks to her utter courage and belief in the story. Simmins interviewed 15 people for the main flesh of the book, including the MacGrath family and the other members of the original Schooner Stables, driver Paul MacDonell, as well as veterinarians, sports writers, and owners of the farms where Beach stood at stud—and acknowledges that there were far more stories shared by people connected to Beach that she couldn’t include, due to time constraints. 

While it certainly helps to “speak horse” in writing about these animals, Simmins also intuitively understands what sorts of questions a non-horse person would ask, especially when it comes to the world of harness racing. Throughout the book there are explanatory sidebars that shed light in the story—such as the fact that all Standardbreds and Thoroughbreds have the same birthday, January 1, regardless of when they were actually born—and these sidebars are especially interesting and educational.

Most people might not know the difference between a trotter and a pacer—Beach was the latter—nor how betting works, nor how breeding is done in the racehorse world. Along with tidbits such as these, Simmins has compiled several appendices, including one on Beach’s entire racing career and another on the art of naming registered Standardbred horses.

You don’t have to be a harness racing aficionado, or even a horse enthusiast, to be smitten by Somebeachsomewhere: The Harness Racing Legend from a One-Horse Stable. If you’re a fan of well-written stories, and a sort of Cinderella tale of a big bay colt who won over hundreds and thousands of fans with his winning ways and personality, do pick up this book.