Talented Nova Scotia offspring of racehorse Somebeachsomewhere recovering from surgery

A Nova Scotia colt sired by the legendary racehorse Somebeachsomewhere has more than $1 million in earnings this year, but is temporarily sidelined due to surgery.

Beach Glass has raced in 11 events, winning seven, accumulating earnings of $1,009,166.

But at his last race on Oct. 1 at the Red Mile in Lexington, Ky., owner Brent MacGrath noticed Beach Glass wasn't quite himself. He seemed tired and lost to horses he'd never lost to before.

Beach Glass was diagnosed with an entrapped epiglottis, which occurs when a piece of tissue in the horse's throat becomes inflamed and gets stuck over the top of the epiglottis. This narrows the horse's airway.

"He was quite worked up that day and it's understandable when you can't breathe and get your air that you would be a bit fired up and scared, basically," said MacGrath.

Beach Glass had surgery and the aim is for him to be back on the track for a qualifying race on Nov. 16 at Dover Downs in Delaware.

Beach Glass is one of the 1,073 horses Somebeachsomewhere sired after his hall-of-fame harness racing career wrapped up in 2008. The champion standardbred pacer won 20 of 21 starts and earned more than $3.2 million in earnings.

While around 1,000 horses sired by Somebeachsomewhere have raced, expectations were especially lofty for Beach Glass.

MacGrath, from Truro, N.S., was Somebeachsomewhere's trainer and part owner. The horse was famously purchased for $40,000 — top horses often sell for more than $100,000 — with the cost being split six ways between his Maritime owners.

Somebeachsomewhere's unlikely origins only added to the horse's charm and the public attention he captured.

The question was would magic strike twice for MacGrath?

"For us to even have a horse to be in those races with the small stable we have is unbelievable," said MacGrath. "And then to have the last son of Somebeachsomewhere out of a mare that we own is incredible."

Somebeach died in 2018, but MacGrath still had a vial of the stallion's frozen semen. Beach Glass was born in 2019.

Of the four losses Beach Glass had at his 11 races this year, three were second-place finishes and one was a fourth-place finish at the Red Mile, after which the entrapped epiglottis was diagnosed.