The Rise of Julius Art: From Harness Racing to Show Horse Champion

The subject this month, Julius Art, is a Standardbred and a good-looking one, too. Thanks to the likes of people like Kathleen Mullan from Victoria and the introduction in 2015 of the Alabar HERO (Harness Re-education and Rehoming Opportunities) Series, the Standardbred has been elevated from the plain but reliable trail riding horse to the beautiful and surprisingly good moving show horse. Breanne Pope and Julie De Zilwa’s Julius Art is the most recent in an ever-growing number of good-looking and good-working Standardbred show horses. Ridden by successful young professional Ty Zoontjens, Jay Jay took out the Alabar HERO Championship at the VAS Ltd Show at Bendigo in early January.

The name Standardbred goes back to about 1870 when to be included in the Wallace Trotting Register in the US, the hopeful prospect had to meet a standard, which was to trot a mile in two and a half minutes. Clearly, Jay Jay’s (Julius’ stable name) ancestors did just that. Bred by LA Fraser in South Australia, Jay Jay was foaled in 2012. He is by Julius Caesar (NZ), a successful sire in both New Zealand and Australia and described as “the royally bred son of In The Pocket”, with the Champion Tar Heel (USA) and Most Happy Fella (USA), the son of Triple Crown winner, Meadow Skipper (USA) on his sire line. Jay Jay is out of a Perfect Art (USA) mare (Precious Art (Aus). Perfect Art won over $US 500,000 in America and was imported to Australia in 2001. Julius Art raced twice at Globe Derby Park in 2015 for one second placing and $392 in earnings, and that was the extent of his racing career.

Breanne Pope grew up surrounded by horses in the South Australia and is a keen and successful exhibitor of show horses and ponies. “In 2018,” begins Breanne, “I needed a companion for some of my show horses, and I happened to see on Facebook that Jay Jay was being given away to a good home. He stopped racing when he did because of tendon issues. I took him and thought this would be great as he can keep everyone company. I also did a little trail riding on him when we went out with the Thoroughbreds. He was great because he was quiet. People think that it is the Standardbred temperament that is quiet, but I think it is because they have so much more done to them as youngsters. They have to learn to go in the cart, which involves a lot of desensitising, benefiting the owner/rider in a future career.

“We downsized, and we really no longer needed Jay Jay, so I rehomed him as a trail riding horse. Then, in 2021, I saw him advertised. OMG, that’s Jay Jay. Apparently, he had been through a few homes, and a lady from Aldinga way found Jay Jay in a bad way. I felt so guilty, so my mother and I bought him back, with the intention of his lifetime care. He came back and started to put on weight. A girl working for us asked if she could ride him, and I said sure. I was watching her ride him in the arena one day, and I thought, this horse has potential, and really, ever since then, he has been a show horse. I was thinking of Jay Jay just before I saw him for sale, as I was just wanted a horse I could go out on a trail ride, as the Thoroughbreds are not always the easiest or the most pleasant.

“I started to re-educate him, and my equine chiropractor thought he was a Warmblood, as he is such a nice-bodied horse. I had little experience with Standardbreds, so I reached out to a friend, Flick Marie, and she gave me some good advice. She also came out and helped me. She introduced me to trot poles. Jay Jay is a pacer, so obviously, he could not trot over poles. So, we started with just one pole and over time, we added poles, and he learnt to trot. The exercise built him up over time as well. So, when anyone in the Standie world asks me now about getting them to trot, I say lots and lots of trot poles, starting with one and only moving on when the horse is ready. It builds up cadence and strength.

“I sent Jay Jay to Ty in early 2022, and he has had him in work since then and has done a wonderful job, as was demonstrated at Bendigo. Ty has an amazing connection with Jay Jay; I give him full credit for his success. In October 2023, we went to the Wentworth Show in NSW just across the SA border to qualify for the HERO Final at Bendigo. Jay Jay was also the Supreme Ridden Standardbred and Top Five Ridden Horse of the Show. Jay Jay lives with Ty when he is in work and comes home to me on his breaks.

“My partner, showjumper, Link Ryan’s parents have harness racing horses. They have 40 horses, and I have been looking over them for potential show horses, and I have singled out two black horses. Toby and Lisa Ryan think Jay Jay is well-bred and think it is a shame his racing was cut short so early in his career. They were also very interested in seeing what the Standies can do after racing.

“Link and I drove Jay Jay to Bendigo a few days early and kept him at Link’s uncles property to let him recover after the long trip, and mum, who loves Jay Jay too, and Ty drove over for the competition. It was a thrill to win and take home the generous $1,000 prize money. I think we will aim for the Alabar HERO Series again. By the time this article is out we would have been to 2024 State Championships in February. From there we plan to take him to the 2025 NSW Standardbred Championships in Tamworth and then hope to go to Sydney Royal from there. We are keen to show him off; it was such a lovely experience at Bendigo.”

A word from Ty Zoontjens

“Jay Jay had a very good start with Breanne, and I think we both just trained him like we would train any horse. We worked on developing his strength and balance. Breanne did a lot of good work with the trot poles, and I would take him out to the hills and do a lot of cantering uphill in straight lines. Then I tried to get his balance in the canter on the lunge in the arena, initially using the wall for support and then away from the wall. Jay Jay is a quick learner, and he has just started learning flying changes, which I think will be a first for a Ridden Standardbred. I was impressed with the standard at the HERO Final. Some trainers are prejudiced against the Standardbred, but the better they are trained, the better they will go. Owners should not be nervous about asking the top trainers for help. The standard is getting better all the time, and Jay Jay has some strong competition, as there are some very nice Standardbreds out there.”

Article: Anna Sharpley.

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