Stark, a long time owner, trainer and driver, has had a stellar career spanning over three decades at Saratoga. John trained and drove the 2001 USHWA Horse of the Year, Bunny Lake, who was inducted into the Saratoga Harness Hall of Fame in 2009 and into the National Harness Hall of Fame in Goshen in 2010.
Stark has won more than 4,100 races as a driver and 1,300 as a trainer to go along with lifetime earnings of more than $21 million.
Bunny Lake won more than $2.8 million over the span of her career and was initially purchased for much cheaper – $37,000.
Aside from Bunny Lake, he also worked with Saratoga Harness Hall of Fame horse Algiers Hall (2010). Algiers Hall set a trotting track record at 1:55.2 in 2006. That record has since been broken.
Tye Dye, was a hard racing, pacing mare who climbed through the claiming ranks at Saratoga, competing in the top filly and mare classes. She was trained locally by George Merton, Jr.
Overall, her lifetime stats were 363 starts, 63 firsts, 66 seconds, and 55 thirds, while hitting the board an incredible 51 percent of the time. Her lifetime earnings totaled $304,468 and she had hit her lifetime mark of 1:53.4(1M) 10 times.
In addition to Stark, Tye Dye’s former co-owner Tom St. Dennis was presented a plaque with golden horseshoes along with a summary of their racing careers.
Stark now officially sits with some of the all-time greats as one of the most accoladed horsemen to compete at the harness track. The 54-year-old was the top dash driver in central New York for three straight years, after bringing five horses to Saratoga in 1990.
In addition to Tuesday’s events at the museum, was the presenting of the annual Virginia O’Brien Memorial 110 Percent Award. This year Cheryl McGivern was honored. The award honors individuals who devote their life to the pursuit of the sport of harness racing, such as a groom or backstretch worker, who might not otherwise be in the limelight. McGivern works for Mickey McGivern Stables and deals with promotions for the harness track.
The nominees are chosen by their peers from the Saratoga Harness Horseperson’s Association.
