Bear Stables

2009 Record: (238-38-36-26)

2009 Earnings: $1,771,862

2009 Win %: 15% In-The-Money %: 42%

Owner(s): Danny "Bear" Dion
Born: May 2, 1960, in Chidougamau, Quebec, Canada. The name of the small mining town means “you're welcome” in the language of the native Cree tribe.
Residence: Bonnyville, Alberta, Canada
Family: wife Gwen; children, Darcy, Evan and Jeff
Professional Background: President and owner of Bear Slashing, Ltd., a land clearing and site preparation company Dion founded in 1988. The largest mulching operation in the world, Bear Slashing employs nearly 200 and serves the oil and gas industry as well as the agriculture, recreation, forestry, and construction industries.
Racing Background: Bear Stables was founded in 2002 in a bar ... “I can't lie about it. This is the truth,” Dion said. “I was in a bar with my friend and neighbor and I was drunk. I told him I wanted to buy his racehorse. So I gave him $5,000 cash right then and another $2,000 the next day when I sobered up.” The horse, In Pursuit, was a low-level claimer who never found success on the track. “I'm still in pursuit,” he laughed. “The problem was that I probably ran faster than that horse.” ... Dion named his racing stable after himself, “Bear” being a nickname he picked up in Quebec. “When I was lifting the big logs out in the bush, I'd growl like a bear. To this day nobody calls me Danny,” he said … Many of his horses have names that include the word "Bear," an animal he knows well. “Oh, yeah, I've run into one before,” he said. “Back in Quebec, I was out in the bush growling like a bear and guess I got this very large old guy pretty ticked off. He came right up to me growling back and attacked me. All I had was my saw and a little six-inch copper tree in my hand. I ran and that big bear started chasing me. I was very lucky that my boss was around and he had a rifle in the truck. So he shot him, we brought him back to camp, the Indians cooked him up, and I ate him!” ... Dion eventually found a way to also involve his wife, Gwen, in his racing operation. “I was having a lot of fun but she wasn't agreeing with my horse buying,” he said. “So I bought a 3-year-old at auction and gave the filly to her as a way to get her involved. She named the horse Bears Little Angel because she and her sister loved anything related to angels, and it was a bond they shared. She won a stakes, then another, and she was always stakes-placed until she fractured a knee and we had to retire her." The filly, which they still own, became even more special to Gwen when her sister passed away.
Breeding/Racing Operation: Dion is based at Woodbine with principal trainer Reade Baker ... He made his Breeders’ Cup debut in 2007 with G2 winner Bear Now, who finished 8th in the Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic ... Returning as a 4-year-old, millionaire Bear Now again finished off the board in the 2008 Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic but that year did win the Kentucky Cup Distaff (G3), Ontario Matron Stakes, and Hill 'n' Dale Stakes to earn Canada's Sovereign Award as champion older mare. Bear Now was sold for $950,000 to Town and Country Farm at the 2008 Fasig-Tipton November Select sale ... Also representing Bear Stables in the 2008 Breeders' Cup was Fatal Bullet, who finished second in the Sentient Jets Breeders' Cup Sprint after setting track records at Turfway Park, where he won the G3 Kentucky Cup Sprint, and at Woodbine ... Fatal Bullet subsequently earned Canada's 2008 Sovereign awards as both champion sprinter and Horse of the Year ... Spurred by the championship seasons of Fatal Bullet and Bear Now, Bear Stables took home the 2008 Sovereign Award as Canada's leading owner ... Fatal Bullet is expected back for the 2009 Breeders' Cup Sprint after taking the Breeders' Cup Challenge G3 Phoenix Stakes at Keeneland ... Dion has focused on purchasing yearlings as a means of achieving his ultimate goal of winning the Kentucky Derby, and in 2007 purchased 10 yearlings for a combined $4.1 million at the Fasig-Tipton July sale. He made his Triple Crown debut in 2008 with Kentucky Bear, sixth in the G1 Preakness after finishing third in Keeneland's G1 Toyota Blue Grass Stakes ... Dion also has expanded into the 2-year-olds-in-training market as well ... Additionally, he looks for yearlings and 2-year-olds bred in Canada for Canadian stakes ... Dion was leading buyer at the 2008 Select Session of the Woodbine yearling sale, with seven yearlings purchased for $687,000 ... Dion owns about 10 mares, including Controlled, the dam of Bear Now, which he bought after purchasing the filly. Through Oct. 19, 2009, Bear Stables Ltd. ranked 28th among North American owners by wins with 35 winners from 212 starters and earnings of $1,577,933.