A day at the races is hard to beat

As horses and ponies raced around the dirt track at the Carlton County Fair last weekend, one could easily imagine similar scenes playing since the original races there in 1891.

The first race Saturday in Barnum featured adults running alongside the three smallest riders and their tiny ponies in the lead-line race. Insiders say the winner is determined by which adult can run the fastest as much as anything.

The second race saw children riding ponies solo, like a smaller, shorter and much slower version of the Kentucky Derby. Whyatt Mielke riding Poppy was the clear winner, with Adalyn Mielke and Ayva Mercer battling for second and third. Ty Olesiak placed fourth and Aaron Grimm fifth.

Announcer Dean Halverson identified each child rider and pony, along with the trainers or owners of each tiny steed.

Then he paused. Here comes one that wasn't on the program, he told the crowd. "And it looks like a donkey," he said.

The donkey, named Snookums, led its tossed rider Morgan Weld on a chase as it approached the finish line in meandering fashion while two other volunteers helped corral the little gray beast.

Then it was on to the next race, and the next, and the next, until all 10 races had finished in front of the grandstand.

In addition to small, medium and large pony races, there were farmers races and thoroughbred races. Both the pony and farmers races began "hully gully" - with riders doing their best to get into a line before taking off to a flag - versus the three thoroughbred races, which used the fair's distinctive portable white and green gate.

The third race was a quarter-mile thoroughbred race featuring three jockeys, all with the same last name: Olesiak. Halverson promised a "Canterbury Downs quality" race with the three jockeys.

"In 131 years of racing at the Carlton County Fair," Halverson said. "The Olesiak family is a huge chunk of the pie."

JJ Olesiak, riding Whipperwilltripp, beat his dad, Jordan Olesiak (riding Chama) by a nose, while Jordan's brother Jake Olesiak (riding Matt) placed third. The three Olesiak men were the only racers in the thoroughbred races Saturday. JJ won all three, with Jordan and Jake swapping second and third.

Racing judge Mary Botosh - related to the Olesiaks through marriage - said if you're not already related by blood, you become family anyway at the Carlton County horse track. It was her first year judging, but she's been coming to the track for over 30 years, as mom, grandma, photographer and videographer.

"It's fun to watch them grow up," she said.

Botosh was one of a handful of volunteer judges on the stand, each one tasked with determining who finished where in a particular place. Two of the judges sat right next to the finish post, filming each race with an iPhone in case of a close finish. All of the judges came together after each race to compare notes. Once they agreed, the announcement was made, trophies were picked up by riders on the way back around the track, and checks were written out to the winners.

In between races, the Blackhoof three-piece band played or Halverson entertained the crowd with tales of days gone by, upcoming grandstand events, his giant pumpkin and previews of each race.

Races for everyone

The two "farmers races" offered the widest variety in both horses and riders, with everyone from preteens to grandparents riding. The horses in these races are the workhorses or pet horses from the farm - not the high-maintenance thoroughbreds that must start in the gate or not at all.

Eleven-year-old Mason Elhardt, riding Such a Foxy Dancer, won the first farmers race, coming from behind to defeat Cassidy Gow on P Kane Fire & Fame in an exciting race for fans and riders. The upstart Elhardt also won the second farmers race on Saturday and both farmers races on Sunday, riding two different horses.

"He'll be a fun one to watch," Botosh said.

Botosh's grandson, Jarrett Olesiak, rode his mother's 24-year-old horse, Cowboy, in the second farmers race, competing against his grandfather, Rodger Botosh, and several others, all riding hard around the dirt track.

Sunday marked the return of the Derby, the grand finale. It is a mile-race, with a larger trophy and blanket. The same three Olesiak men raced, but only two finished. Jordan Olesiak won and JJ took second. Jake Olesiak's saddle slipped and the horse bucked, so he jumped off and didn't finish. Cousin Riata Klejeski joined in the family fun and won the half-mile thoroughbred race.

Memories

Organizers paused the action Saturday to honor horse racing legend Laddie Litfin, who died this year. A riderless horse trotted past the grandstand while the band played. Growing up in Mahtowa, Litfin was always around horses as a child. In his early teens, Liftin became a jockey and rode in county fair races. He became a trail rider and a trainer after that.

In a video interviewing trainers about the Carlton County Fair on the Canterbury Park website, Litfin said the Carlton County Fair is one of the best in the state. It's also the only county fair still hosting traditional horse races.

"I think winning the derby up there is my favorite memory," he said. "We won two or three of them."

In the same video, outrider Cross Hecker remembered riding his pony, Chubby, at the Carlton County Fair as a child. Chubby and Cross were undefeated.

Hecker also recalled riding one of Litfin's horses in the Carlton County Derby race. It was his first time racing on a thoroughbred, first time in a jockey saddle, first time going a mile.

He won.

"From there on, I was hooked," Hecker said. "From our little county fair I went on ... to several different tracks. And now I'm outriding, kind of living the dream."