CHAUFFEUR TO THE (EQUINE) STARS - IVAN VANDERBURGH

CHAUFFEUR TO THE (EQUINE) STARS

IVAN VANDERBURGH

BY JENNIFER MORRISON

He's one of the most recognizable faces in Ontario racing and a friend to all horses and horsepeople. Ivan Vanderburgh, who began shipping horses some 70 years ago, is retiring at the end of 2025 and the HBPA and the Ontario horseracing community want to thank him.

From Woodbine to Kentucky and Florida and across Canada, Ivan shipped  horsepeople's most precious cargo from track to farm and back. If anyone needed him at any time of day for an emergency trip to a clinic, Ivan was there; his dependability is well known in racing circles. In fact, Ivan was honoured by the Jockey Club of Canada with the Industry Service Award in 2022 and celebrated by his peers with a race in his name.

"I appreciate all of the recognition," said Ivan, who is soon to be 90. "I don't want any accolades though; I just like to move horses around safely."

Born in Toronto, Ivan fell in love with horses at a young age and said he also "fell into becoming a van driver." His father Goldie was a trainer and Ivan began driving a horse van from where his father's horses were kept. In the 1950s, the van company Ivan was working for was taken over by Les Ehrlick who built his company into one of the biggest in the country.

"We had 23 trucks and a huge home base near Dundas and Dovercourt in Toronto," said Ivan. "Vanning horses was big business, mostly in the U.S., and we were hauling horses from Ontario to Boston, New York, New Jersey and West Virginia."

The commercial trucking industry was regulated at that time and there weren't many companies as it was difficult to start up; the trucking companies would have to have customers attend a tribunal to testify that they needed the company's services.

That all changed with the Motor Carrier Act of 1980 in the U.S. which deregulated the industry. In Canada, economic regulation of highway transport was significantly reformed and eased in 1987, with full deregulation generally occurring in the early 1990s. 

Ivan, who had worked with Ehrlick until the 1970s, had moved to Nationwide Horse Carriers and was running the Kentucky-based company until the breeding industry and yearling sales north and south of the border suffered a sharp decline.

"There was a crash in the breeding and the racing and suddenly there wasn't enough business. Nationwide closed down. I was getting ready to slow down myself, so I kept one truck for myself and for the last 30 years it has just been me with no employees."

Ivan has many fond memories of his job, in particular when it came to famous horses and people he worked with. Of course, when asked who his favourite horse was, the answer for Ivan is easy, Northern Dancer.

It was when the Dancer was at stud in Oshawa but being prepared to be moved to E.P. Taylor's Windfields Farm division in Maryland that Ivan got to know the the champion.

"When they first stood him in Oshawa, they didn't think they were getting enough mares to come up from the U.S. for him, so he went to Maryland. But I would have to bring him back to Ontario each year for a while. It was either that or pay a duty on the horse to stay in the States and that would have been exorbitant."

Ivan has fond memories of other notable horses he transported such as Kennedy Road and Victoria Park.

"And of course, Secretariat, I picked him up at the airport and brought him to Woodbine for the 1973 Canadian International."

Ivan, along with his wife Erie, made many friends and connections, whether they were based in Ontario or in Kentucky. And Ivan had a way with making his horses comfortable on their journeys. "They had their hay and water and when you stop for fuel, you always check on them. Once in a while, you might get one that may throw a fit briefly but for the most part everything went smoothly."

The comfort of the horse, said Ivan, was always the number one goal of a van driver but there were other important qualifications. "You had to be on time and be ready for anything. You have to be a careful driver, watch the corners and stop signs as they are big rigs."

Ivan has been driving strictly locally for the last few years but as horsepeople in Ontario can attest, Ivan would always help a horse in need. He also drove the horse ambulance at the track and helped out with the RCMP Musical Ride horses.

"I think vanning horses was a lot easier many years ago. I don't think horse transportation gets a fair shake these days. The backstretches at some tracks have rough roads or speed bumps, things that just aren't good for hauling horses."

But the job was a natural fit for Ivan. "There wasn't anything I didn't like about it. I enjoyed the people and the horses and I came to know so many of them well."