2025 Standardbred Trainer Inductee
John Bax’s journey into Standardbred racing began unexpectedly when his father purchased a Peterborough-area property that came with over 40 harness horses. That twist of fate introduced Bax to harness racing and launched his exceptional training career as a trotting specialist with 925 wins and more than $26.8 million in purses.
His early breakthrough came with Fax Machine in the 1990s, but his most celebrated horse was Hall of Famer and World Champion, Goodtimes, who retired as the richest Canadian-bred trotter in history with 50 victories and career earnings of $2.2 million. Purchased by Bax for $19,000 at the Canadian Standardbred Horse Society Yearling Sale in 1992, Goodtimes earned many positive accolades during his 11-year career, including multiple stakes wins and a third-place finish in the prestigious Elitlopp.
Over the years, Goodtimes set a Breeders Crown record with five appearances. He was sidelined at five with a cracked pastern but showed no ill effects when he returned to the track. His accomplishments as an older trotter included winning the Frank Ryan Memorial at Rideau Carleton three times, the Maple Leaf Trot, the Classic Series Trot and the Trotting Classic. In winning his third Frank Ryan Memorial, he trotted to his lifetime record of 1:53.3, a World Record on a 5/8ths-mile track. In 1999, at the age of eight, Goodtimes finally earned his first O’Brien Award as Canada’s Older Trotting Horse of the Year.
In 2001, Bax won the O’Brien Award as Canada’s Trainer of the Year after a standout season that saw him condition horses that won $1,850,273 in purse earnings and 36 races, including a Breeders Crown Championship with Duke of York.
Other standouts from the Bax stable over the years have included Define The World ($1.65 million), a 2008 O’Brien divisional winner and winner of $1.65 million, Riveting Rosie, who won Ontario Sires Stakes Super Finals and O’Brien Awards in 2013 and 2014, Charmed Life ($830,000), Northern Bailey ($775,000), Pepi Lavec ($650,000), Summer Indian ($435,000), Oaklea Odessa ($410,000), Oaklea Omega ($400,000), Elegant Supreme ($380,000) and Aimees Image ($230,000).
In the 2014 Peaceful Way Stakes, Bax-trained horses finished in the top three positions.
In 2015, Bax’ Ontario-sired student, Hemi Seelster, pulled off a stunning 76-1 upset in the $233,000 final of the Goodtimes Stakes on North America Cup night against top Grand Circuit horses.
Earlier that year, Bax had purchased and relocated his stable from Peterborough to the site of the famed Standardbred breeding operation, Glengate Farms, in Campbellville that ceased breeding operations in 2005.
A respected judge of yearlings and a dedicated industry leader, Bax served as a Director with both the Ontario Harness Horse Association and the Central Ontario Standardbred Association.
John had an outstanding 2021 season with Up And Ready winning an Ontario Sires Stakes Super Final and Duly Resolved earning more than $600,000 as a two-year-old and finishing a very close second in the Mohawk Million.
In 2022, he secured his third victory in the Peaceful Way Stakes with Righteous Resolve. He had won the event previously with Riveting Rosie in 2013 and Stubborn Belle in 2014.
After a standout season in which he achieved a personal-best $1,936,494 in earnings and earned his first Johnston Cup as the leading trainer in the Ontario Sires Stakes, Bax retired from training and passed the reins of the stable to his son, Matt at the end of 2022.
During his training career, John established an exceptional legacy, developing champions and making a lasting impact on Canadian harness racing.