New Mexico State Fair - New Mexico Horse Breeders Association

Dedication and
Determination
Trainer Juan Gonzalez
By PETE HERRERA
Juan Gonzalez’ legacy stretches far beyond that Labor
Day afternoon seven years ago when the New Mexico-bred
gelding By By JJ won the All American Futurity.
It has reached deep into Texas, where Gonzalez’ first
born, Juan Carlos, graduated last May from the University
of Texas at Austin with honors and a degree in civil engineering.
It has dropped roots near the Gonzalez’s home in
El Paso, where Juan’s daughter, Patricia Isabella, is a
pre-med student at UTEP with aspirations of becoming a
pediatrician.
And it lives in the hearts of fellow quarter horse trainers
who look at Gonzalez’ odds-beating journey from poverty in
Mexico to prosperity in America as a beacon that anything
is possible.
For if there’s a poster person for how far hard work,
dedication and determination can carry the human spirit,
that individual is Gonzalez.
Since his arrival in El Paso in 1993, Gonzalez has built
a reputation as one of the best quarter horse trainers in
New Mexico. His stable, which produced 2003 All American
Futurity winner By By JJ, this year is home to some of the
fastest New Mexico-bred 2-year-olds. Horses like Streak of
Sixes, Six Gun Regard, A Streak Again and Moro Moon.
Streak of Sixes won the $370,000 Spring Futurity at
Sunland Park and the Mountain Top Futurity ($220,000) at
Ruidoso Downs. A Streak Again scored a longshot win in
the Zia Futurity at Ruidoso, where Gonzalez’ four horses in
the race were the first four across the finish line.
He had five horses—half of the field—qualify for the
finals of the New Mexico Classic Futurity at Zia Park. They
included the three fastest of the day—Moro Moon, Streak
of Sixes and One Fast Regard. Also in the finals were
Snow Regard and Six Gun Regard as Gonzalez saddled
the winners of four of the five trials.
Gonzalez’ barn also dominated qualifying trials for the
Senorita and Senor futurities at this year’s New Mexico
State Fair meet. He had three fillies—Snow Regard, Chiquita
Caliente and Samia Fame in the Senorita and three of
his colts, Mal Intenciones, Blazing Pacquiao and Six Gun
Regard were in the Senor.
Gonzalez’ victory in the All American Futurity was a
defining moment for the then-39-year-old trainer. In the winner’s
circle that afternoon, Gonzalez proclaimed in Spanish:
``The dream of every trainer is to win the All American,
but I’m also proud to be the first 100 percent Mexican to
win this race.’’
That, in essence, was a take-that response to those
who over the years had scoffed at the idea that a trainer
with Gonzalez’ background and limited resources could win
the most prestigious quarter horse race in the country.
``I was told it was impossible for me to win the All
American. I kept saying I’d win it, but many didn’t believe
me,’’ says Gonzalez.
The All American win brought Gonzalez to a pinnacle in
his career, but he had paved the way there with a decade
of enduring success. He came to the United States to work
for longtime El Paso horse owner Chico Diaz, who turned
over his entire stable of quarter horses to Gonzalez.
Success came quickly. A year later, he won the Shue
Fly and Santa Fe futurities with the 2-year-old Fire Ball. But
it was the All American, where By By JJ outran the favorite,
Planet Holland, that changed Gonzalez’ career and life
forever.
``People saw me in a different light,’’ says Gonzalez.
New owners came calling and American trainers who
had been hesitant to communicate with Gonzalez—in part
because he speaks very little English—nonetheless acknowledged
with a nod or a handshake what he had done.
About the only thing that hasn’t changed is Gonzalez’
steadfast loyalty to his native language. He says the long
hours and dedication his training career demands leaves
him with little time or inclination to learn English.
Besides, says his brother Eliseo, who speaks fluent
English, fast horses understand good training in any language.
34 New Mexico Horse Breeder