So far in 2012, you would be hard pressed to find a more aptly-named performer on the Cal Expo grounds than Glad To Be Back.
A multiple stakes winner for trainer Jim “Junior” Wilkinson at age 2 and 3, he has $125,000 in the bank and sports a sparkling 1:51.4 career standard. Coming into last weekend, however, it had been a long time between drinks for the Power Of Art homebred who carries the banner of his trainer Wilkinson, Jay Rosenberg, Billie Schwartz and Hans Karge.
After just missing in his 2011 finale after carving out all the fractions, Glad To Be Back reconnected with the winner’s circle last Friday (January 6) in a coast-to-coast score with Rich Wojcio doing a perfect job of rating the newly-turned 6-year-old pacer.
“He was a very good horse,” Wilkinson related, “but then he broke down as a 3-year-old and there were a couple of other times along the way when I told my partners that it didn’t look like he was ever going to get to the races again.
“You have to remember, he set his 1:51.4 mark when he won a leg of the Junior Trendsetter at the Meadowlands, and he came back to be second in the final. He also raced in the North America Cup.”
Junior didn’t give up on the dark-hued pacer and he returned to the wars last season after missing a full year of action. He had to settle for minor awards, but finally ended the drought with last weekend’s wire-to-wire decision.
“He’s only racing at a small percentage of what he was, but it was still gratifying to see him back in the winner’s circle after all that time,” his mentor noted. “It was just hard to give up on him, because he has so much ability. Who knows, maybe he got some confidence the other night and will do some good once again down the road.”
