Travis Cullen drives past the 20 million mark in earnings

While most young boys were sleeping in to the last possible minute before leaving for school, Travis Cullen of Glenboro was heading to the stables before sunrise tending to the Standardbreds. “Both my parents (Ron Cullen and Jodie Manning Cullen) grew up in the business, it is in my blood. They always told me hard work pays off and to always keep my horses healthy, happy and fit. “The best advice I ever received from my dad was to never stop learning; ‘Keep your ears open!’ he would say regularly.” Following his parents advice proved to be very beneficial as 33 year-old Travis has just surpassed $20 Million in career earnings on the harness racing circuit.

“In his blood” is an understatement as both sets of his grandparents (Carol and Morley Cullen and George Manning) were also heavily involved in racing, as was his great grandfather, Alfred Siliphant. It doesn’t stop there as trainer/blacksmith Uncle Greg Manning and his aunt Debbie McLeod, trainer/driver, are more family members involved. His sister Ashleigh (Cullen) Hensley, who attained her first trainers license when she was 18, as been involved as long as she can remember. In fact, brother and sister worked along side each other until Hensley graduated from high-school when she ventured out on her own.

Although he had many early mornings at the stables, Travis talked about moments spent on the couch watching racing with his dad. Top favourites to watch were Al Cullen (a cousin of his dad’s) and Mark MacDonald driving at Mohawk or Woodbine. “I tried to learn as much as I could from watching them drive and I would pretend I was the one in the drivers seat,” said Travis, reminiscing to his childhood years.

His imagination, observances, natural ability and genuine love of the sport earned him being dubbed as one of Canada’s top Standard Bred racers by the time he was 23 years old. His biggest day racing was the night he won 4 races at Canada’s best track, Woodbine Mohawk Park and a 7 win day at at Century Downs in Alberta.

It is difficult to list each victory as there are so many throughout his driving career that began in 2010. But here are a few notable victories: He reached his 1,000 career driving win shortly after relocating to Ontario in 2017; Travis, who now resides in Dundas, Ontario, achieved the huge milestone on Tuesday, April 2nd when he surpassed the $20 million mark as a driver; His victories tally 2,394; 2022 was his best season with 329 wins, however his best year by earnings was the following year with earnings of $3,271,179.

Travis is a busy boy as he trains a sizeable stable, drives all of his own horses and he also shoes ALL his horses for a sizeable stable of 50 broodmares, colts and racing horses. Races happen 7 nights a week. “That makes for some pretty late nights and some really early mornings. You really must be dedicated;” commented his mom, Jodie.

He loves his entire stable but there is a special one that has really touched his heart. ‘Tells on A Roll’ races the top class of mares at Woodbine Mohawk Park, and another one that was really special (winning 17 races a row) was ‘Who Doesn’t’, “who is currently retired on our farm;” said Travis thoughtfully.

After spending 6 years in Alberta, Travis made the move to Dundas, Ontario in 2016. “We moved here because the racing is so much bigger here and offers a lot more opportunities.” He thought for a moment and smiled; “When I was young, I used to dream about winning a race at the big track.” He laughed, but that spoke volumes about having a dream and pursuing it, despite the odds.

Having won the Future Star Award at the O’Brien Awards 2013, and the recipient of the first time O’Brien Award of Excellence the following year, you would think one of the two might hold one of the most memorable moments for Travis, but no, he commented; “My most memorable day was going back home to Glenboro and driving against the guys I grew up with.”

PHOTO CAPTION: Travis Cullen of Dundas, Ontario, formerly from Glenboro, has become one of the top harness racers in Canada.