Mark Austin, one of Ontario's most popular and successful trainers, died Sunday, Sept. 14. He was 54.
Austin died while at Flamboro Downs, where he was racing.
Hailing from southwestern Ontario, Austin was introduced to harness racing by his uncle, Bud, and got into the sport full-time after high school. One of his earliest brushes with greatness came courtesy Oldcastle, Ontario's Dr. Joe Johnston, who gave Austin a yearling to break in 1988. That homebred Worthy Bowl colt would later be turned over to trainer Bud Fritz, and go on to never lose a race on North American soil: A Worthy Lad.
Austin would later work for trainer Jack Darling in the mid- to late 1990s during a run that produced Gothic Dream and Northern Luck. Shortly after that stretch working with Darling, Austin made the move with wife Julie from a Windsor-based stable to the Fergus area.
During the 2000s, Austin's stable was consistent and solid; his earnings never dipped below $200,000. In 2009 his earnings surpassed $800,000 thanks to the likes of older pacers Go Get Her, Part Shark and XLB Patrick.
The two horses that more recently made headlines for Austin were Sparky Mark and Fool Me Once. Sparky Mark enjoyed a stellar run at Woodbine's top class from the end of 2011 into 2013, winning multiple Preferred events and earning a spot in the 2012 Canadian Pacing Derby final.
Fool Me Once was one of 2013's top three-year-old pacers, knocking heads with Captaintreacherous, Vegas Vacation and Sunshine Beach throughout the season. Austin selected the son of Art Major as a yearling, and he's won 16 races from 38 starts at the highest levels with multiple sub-1:49 wins. His lifetime best 1:48.1 came in his 2013 Pepsi North America Cup elimination.
"It's just devastating," Darling told Standardbred Canada on Monday morning. "We've been friends for years...Mark was a hard worker who loved the business."
Austin is survived by his wife Julie and two daughters, Paige and Paula.
Funeral arrangements will be posted when available. (with files from SC)
