Trainer has Canterbury people shaking heads

Dave Valento closely studied the racing activities at Canterbury Park in his years as a Minnesotan. He found a new job with Dell and moved to Austin, Texas.

He still follows the live racing at Canterbury and offers analysis and information at his website valentoraces.com. The website includes a message board.

"This was only supposed to be a website dedicated to share opinions on the horses running [who looks good, etc.]," Valento wrote in an e-mail. " ... It has morphed into something else."

The morphing began on June 29, when someone using the alias "jakerlind" opened a new topic with remarks such as, "I don't think I have ever seen a trainer have quite the year at Canterbury that Justin Evans is having this year ... What catches the eye is the sometimes dramatic speed figure improvement horses under his care have shown."

Followers of Valento's site took the bait, eviscerating Evans with dozens of posts and accusations of illegally drugging the lower-rung claiming horses that are the source of his success.

"Many influential track people have visited and even posted on the subject -- owners, trainers, Canterbury employees ...," Valento wrote in his e-mail.

Canterbury racing resumes tonight with Evans as the leading trainer. He has 39 winners and 81 in the money among the 113 thoroughbreds that he has saddled. Mac Robertson also has 39 winners and 80 in the money among his 117 entries.

The difference in the class of horses they are running can be seen in the earnings for the barns: Evans' earnings are $326,003 and Robertson's earnings are $606,646.

The same people posting derogatory comments about Evans credit Robertson as an outstanding horseman -- a trainer who wins with knowledge of this complex game.

Evans, 27, started receiving suspicious glances from his colleagues on the backside very early in this meet. He had two horses test positive for steroids on opening day (May 3). His horses had two more positive drug tests in May and he paid $1,200 in fines.

"I have talked to the racing commission and the stewards about the positives, asking why the fines were what they were," said Randy Sampson, Canterbury Park's president. "Whether there's anything inappropriate taking place, it's still a concern for us when our backsiders and our handicappers are asking us, 'What's going on?'

"Any time track people see a guy who has been around a while start winning much more regularly, the rumors are going to fly."

Evans, 27, won at a 23 percent rate at Canterbury in 2006 and 20 percent in 2007. He's now at 35 percent. What's more dramatic is his overall percentage for 2008 -- first at Turf Paradise in Phoenix, and now at Canterbury. He was between 14 percent and 18 percent for the previous five years, and he's at 32 percent for 2008.

The fact Evans brought a veterinarian, Dr. Troy Looper, with him from Arizona for the Canterbury meeting creates more fuel for the skeptics.

"Dr. Looper is licensed to practice in Minnesota, and he works for several trainers other than Justin Evans," said Lynn Hovda, the commission's chief veterinarian.

Evans was asked Wednesday about the positive drug tests in May and said: "Three of them were for cortisone and the other was for a muscle relaxer. In the past, the recommendation was that if you're going to give cortisone, that you do it five days before the race. But apparently the testing has changed, so we've changed. And I've won 35 races since we had a positive."

Hovda said the testing procedures in 2008 are the same as in recent years.

Asked about the remarkable turnaround in so many low-rung claimers for him, Evans said: "I've taken a whole different stance this year, personally and professionally. I've made positive changes in my personal life. I work a lot harder.

"I have a very aggressive style with the horses -- and I have a very aggressive owner in Curt Johnson [from Detroit Lakes]. He wants to win, and we claim any horse, any time, if we think we can improve them and win with them.

"The first thing we do with these older horses is we worm 'em, we do their teeth, we inject the joints, we feed 'em well, and usually they are in better shape to run than they were when we got them.

"With Curt Johnson as an owner, I'm taking a Gatling gun into a knife fight."

Evans has 19 of his 39 victories for Johnson. Currently, he's looking at three horses -- Chickster, Global Trader and Eagle Storm -- pointed to the Claiming Crown on Aug. 2 at Canterbury.

"I feel like the J.R. Ewing of Minnesota when I'm working on the backside," Evans said. "Some trainers, like Bernie Rhone, are all class, even though we claimed Eagle Storm from him. There are others who just glare when you win.

"Like Jamie Ness. When he's steamrolling 'em, he's walking around back here like John Wayne. But when he's not the guy running over 'em, he won't speak to you."

Patrick Reusse can be heard weekdays on AM-1500 KSTP at 6:45 and 7:45 a.m. and 4:40 p.m. • preusse@startribune.com