Trudy McCaffery
Encyclopedia
Trudy V. McCaffery was a prominent Thoroughbred
racehorse
owner/breeder in California
who served on the Board of Directors
of the Edwin J. Gregson Foundation
, the NTRA Charities
, the California Thoroughbred Breeders Association
, the Oak Tree Racing Association
, the Thoroughbred Owners of California, and was a Trustee with the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association
.
Born Trudy Hanson in Winnipeg
, Manitoba
, Canada
, she was the daughter of Minnesota
-born Canadian Football Hall of Fame
inductee Melvin "Fritz " Hanson
and a his wife, Maxine. As a young girl growing up in Calgary, Alberta, she became an accomplished equestrian
. As an adult, in addition to participating in the sport of horse racing, she was an avid and good golf
er.
While living in Rancho Santa Fe, California
, in 1989 she began a racing partnership with Canadian-born John Toffan. It became one of California's top racing and breeding operations and in 1997 the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association
named them "Owners of the Year." They bred Round Pond
who won the 2006 Breeders' Cup Distaff
. Their top runners included:
In addition to her involvement with various California horse racing associations, in 1999 Trudy McCaffery founded "Kids to the Cup", a non-profit organization dedicated to developing young racing fans. She also put a great deal of time and energy as a member of the Board of Directors of the Edwin J. Gregson Foundation, which raises money to help racetrack backstretch employees, and the Board of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association
Charities. For her contributions to the Thoroughbred racing industry she was awarded the 2002 National Thoroughbred Racing Association Commissioners Cup and in 2004, the Clay Puett Award by the Racetrack Industry Program.
Sixty-two-year-old Trudy McCaffery died at her home on February 12, 2007 following a lengthy battle with lung cancer
.
Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...
racehorse
Horse racing
Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...
owner/breeder in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
who served on the Board of Directors
Board of directors
A board of directors is a body of elected or appointed members who jointly oversee the activities of a company or organization. Other names include board of governors, board of managers, board of regents, board of trustees, and board of visitors...
of the Edwin J. Gregson Foundation
Edwin J. Gregson Foundation
The Edwin J. Gregson Foundation, Inc. is a nonprofit foundation in the American Thoroughbred horse racing industry based in Arcadia, California...
, the NTRA Charities
National Thoroughbred Racing Association
The National Thoroughbred Racing Association is a broad-based coalition of horse racing interests consisting of leading thoroughbred racetracks, owners, breeders, trainers and affiliated horse racing associations, charged with increasing the popularity of horse racing and improving economic...
, the California Thoroughbred Breeders Association
California Thoroughbred Breeders Association
The California Thoroughbred Breeders Association , founded in 1937, is a non-profit organization committed to the advancement of Thoroughbred breeding and racing in California. It is governed by a board of 16 directors elected by the association's general membership...
, the Oak Tree Racing Association
Oak Tree Racing Association
The Oak Tree Racing Association is an American not-for-profit corporation that exists to conduct live thoroughbred horse racing in Southern California.-History:...
, the Thoroughbred Owners of California, and was a Trustee with the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association
Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association
The American Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association based in Lexington, Kentucky is a trade organization for Thoroughbred racehorse owners and breeders...
.
Born Trudy Hanson in Winnipeg
Winnipeg
Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...
, Manitoba
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, she was the daughter of Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
-born Canadian Football Hall of Fame
Canadian Football Hall of Fame
The Canadian Football Hall of Fame is a not-for-profit corporation, located in Hamilton, Ontario, that celebrates great achievements in Canadian football. It is an open to the public institution. It includes displays about the Canadian Football League, Canadian university football and Canadian...
inductee Melvin "Fritz " Hanson
Fritz Hanson
Melvin "Fritz" Hanson was a Canadian football player for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and the Calgary Stampeders. Hanson was signed by the Blue Bombers for $125 a game and free room and board, which was a considerable sum in the cash-strapped dirty thirties...
and a his wife, Maxine. As a young girl growing up in Calgary, Alberta, she became an accomplished equestrian
Equestrianism
Equestrianism more often known as riding, horseback riding or horse riding refers to the skill of riding, driving, or vaulting with horses...
. As an adult, in addition to participating in the sport of horse racing, she was an avid and good golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
er.
While living in Rancho Santa Fe, California
Rancho Santa Fe, California
Rancho Santa Fe known locally as ″The Ranch″, is one of the most exclusive and affluent communities in Southern California. It is also a census-designated place in San Diego County, California and an unincorporated bedroom community of San Diego County...
, in 1989 she began a racing partnership with Canadian-born John Toffan. It became one of California's top racing and breeding operations and in 1997 the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association
Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association
The American Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association based in Lexington, Kentucky is a trade organization for Thoroughbred racehorse owners and breeders...
named them "Owners of the Year." They bred Round Pond
Round Pond (horse)
Round Pond is a retired American Thoroughbred racehorse bred in Kentucky by Trudy McCaffery & John Toffan. The bay filly is the daughter of Awesome Again out of the mare Gift of Dance. Owned by Rick Porter's Fox Hill Farms, Round Pond was trained by Michael R...
who won the 2006 Breeders' Cup Distaff
Breeders' Cup Distaff
The Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic is a Weight for Age Thoroughbred horse race for fillies and mares, 3 years old and up. Known as the Breeders' Cup Distaff from its inception in 1984 through 2007, it is held annually at a different racetrack in the United States or Canada as part of the Breeders'...
. Their top runners included:
- Mane MinisterMane MinisterMane Minister is an American Thoroughbred racehorse best remembered as the first horse to ever finish third in all three of the U.S. Triple Crown races. Bred by Normandy Farm in Lexington, Kentucky, he was out of the mare Lacework, whose sire was In Reality, winner of the 1967 Florida Derby and...
(b. 1988) - Won Santa Catalina StakesRobert B. Lewis StakesThe Robert B. Lewis Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in early March at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. Raced over a distance of 11/16 miles on dirt, the Grade II race is open to three-year-old horses...
and finished third in all three of the U.S. Triple CrownUnited States Triple Crown of Thoroughbred RacingIn the United States, the "Triple Crown" is usually the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, a series of three Thoroughbred horse races for three-year-old horses run in May and early June of each year consisting of the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and Belmont Stakes.While Daily Racing Form...
races; - Pacific Squall (b. 1989) - won Grade I Hollywood Oaks (1992);
- Bien BienBien BienBien Bien was an American Thoroughbred racehorse bred by William S. Farish III & William S. Kilroy and raced by Trudy McCaffery and John Toffan....
(b. 1989) - a homebred who won four Grade I races including the San Juan Capistrano Invitational HandicapSan Juan Capistrano Invitational HandicapThe San Juan Capistrano Invitational Handicap is an American invitational handicap Thoroughbred horse race run annually on turf at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. It is North America's longest graded stakes race. Open to horses age four and older, the Grade II event currently offers a...
and set a course record for 1¼ miles while winning the Hollywood Invitational Turf HandicapCharles Whittingham Memorial HandicapThe Charles Whittingham Memorial Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually during the second week of June at Hollywood Park Racetrack in Inglewood, California...
. Retired with earnings of $2,498,370; - Free HouseFree House (horse)Free House was an American Thoroughbred racehorse that Blood-Horse Publications called one of the best California-bred horses of all time. A descendant of Nearco through both his sire and dam, he was bred and raced by John Toffan & Trudy McCaffery...
(b. 1994) - a homebred who was a two-time California Horse of the YearCalifornia Horse of the YearThe California Horse of the Year is an American horse racing honor awarded annually since 1973 by the California Thoroughbred Breeders Association to a Thoroughbred racehorse bred in the state of California.-Winners:...
and whose eight stakes raceGraded stakes raceA graded stakes race is a term applied since 1973 by the American Graded Stakes Committee of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association to thoroughbred horse races in the United States and Canada to describe races that derive their name from the stake, or entry fee, owners must pay...
wins included California's three most important dirt races, the Santa Anita DerbySanta Anita DerbyThe Santa Anita Derby is an American Grade 1 thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds run each April at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California and carries a purse of $1 million. Inaugurated in 1935, it is considered the most important West Coast stepping-stone to the Kentucky Derby...
(1997), the Pacific Classic StakesPacific Classic StakesThe Pacific Classic Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race for runners aged 3-year-old or up run at the classic American distance of a mile and a quarter...
(1998), and the Santa Anita HandicapSanta Anita HandicapThe Santa Anita Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in early March at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. It is a Grade I race for horses four years old and up , and is considered the most important race for older horses in North America during the winter racing season...
(1999); - A. P. Assay (b. 1994) - won the 1998 A Gleam Invitational HandicapA Gleam Invitational HandicapThe A Gleam Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in mid July at Hollywood Park Racetrack in Inglewood, California. Open to fillies and mares, age three and older, it is contested on Cushion Track synthetic dirt overr a distance of seven furlongs.Inaugurated in 1941 as the...
and Desert Stormer HandicapDesert Stormer HandicapThe Desert Stormer Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in mid May at Hollywood Park Racetrack in Inglewood, California. Raced on Cushion Track synthetic dirt at a distance of six furlongs, it is open to horses age three and older...
; - Bienamado (b. 1996) - a homebred son of Bien Bien, raced in EuropeEuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and the United States in partnership with Robert SangsterRobert SangsterRobert Edmund Sangster was a British businessman, thoroughbred racehorse owner and breeder. He was British flat racing Champion Owner five times and his horses won many major races, including two Epsom Derbys, four Irish Derbys, two French Derbys, three Prix de l'Arc de Triomphes and a Melbourne...
. Won Prix de CondePrix de CondéThe Prix de Condé is a Group 3 flat horse race in France which is open to two-year-old thoroughbreds. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 1,800 metres , and it is scheduled to take place each year in October.-History:...
in FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and three Grade I races in California. Career Earnings of $1,261,009; - Bosque Redondo (b. 1997) - a hombred son of Mane Minister. In 2002 won the San Bernardino HandicapTokyo City CupThe Tokyo City Cup Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at the end of March at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. A Grade III event raced on Pro-Ride synthetic dirt at a distance of 1½ miles , it is open to horses aged four and older.Run as the San Bernardino Handicap...
; - Came HomeCame HomeCame Home is an American Thoroughbred racehorse that is now retired to stud. He was sired by Gone West, who was recently pensioned at . Came Home is out of the graded-stakes-winning mare Nice Assay....
(b. 1999) - a hombred raced in partnership with John Goodman, and William Farish III whose wins included the Grade I Hopeful Stakes at Saratoga Race CourseSaratoga Race CourseSaratoga Race Course is a Thoroughbred horse racing track in Saratoga Springs, New York, United States. It opened on August 3, 1863, and is the oldest organized sporting venue of any kind in the United States. It is typically open for racing from late July through early September.-History:John...
and Santa Anita Park'sSanta Anita ParkSanta Anita Park is a thoroughbred racetrack in Arcadia, California, United States. It offers some of the prominent racing events in the United States during the winter and in spring. With its backdrop of the purple San Gabriel Mountains, it is considered by many as the world's most beautiful race...
Pacific Classic Stakes and Santa Anita Derby. Career earnings of $1,835,940.
In addition to her involvement with various California horse racing associations, in 1999 Trudy McCaffery founded "Kids to the Cup", a non-profit organization dedicated to developing young racing fans. She also put a great deal of time and energy as a member of the Board of Directors of the Edwin J. Gregson Foundation, which raises money to help racetrack backstretch employees, and the Board of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association
National Thoroughbred Racing Association
The National Thoroughbred Racing Association is a broad-based coalition of horse racing interests consisting of leading thoroughbred racetracks, owners, breeders, trainers and affiliated horse racing associations, charged with increasing the popularity of horse racing and improving economic...
Charities. For her contributions to the Thoroughbred racing industry she was awarded the 2002 National Thoroughbred Racing Association Commissioners Cup and in 2004, the Clay Puett Award by the Racetrack Industry Program.
Sixty-two-year-old Trudy McCaffery died at her home on February 12, 2007 following a lengthy battle with lung cancer
Lung cancer
Lung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. If left untreated, this growth can spread beyond the lung in a process called metastasis into nearby tissue and, eventually, into other parts of the body. Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary...
.