Winning Never Grows Old for Trainer Dunham

People may grow old, but winning never does. Trainer Bob Dunham will attest to that. At the age of 87, Dunham is the elder statesman on the New York Racing Association backstretch, especially in terms of years of service as a trainer. He's two days older than fellow trainer Barclay Tagg, and for the better part of nearly 70 years, Dunham has worked as a trainer after starting out in the late 1950s. "I seem to be the oldest person everywhere I go," Dunham said. He has won at least 400 races in his career and trained the champion sprinter of 1972, Chou Crote, who also gave Dunham his biggest thrill in racing when she won the 1971 Spinster (G1). "She was an amazing filly who could beat the boys," he said. These days, Dunham has just a two-horse stable, but that hasn't kept him away from the winner's circle. On Aug. 1 at Saratoga Race Course, Dunham sent out Come Full Circle to win the eighth race and spark a ton of warm memories. "I won't say winning grows old. It still feels great to me," Dunham said. It was Dunham's first win of 2025, though that's hardly surprising given the size of his stable, and the celebration was quite festive. "It was so great. I was so happy that the owner (Bill Castner), who is a long-time friend, was there. My two daughters were there (Sara and Amy, who is married to former trainer Phil Gleaves). It was special," Dunham said. Castner is best known as the former co-owner of WinStar Farm, but to Dunham, he is a close friend who used to gallop Chou Croute for him. Continuing to go down memory lane, one of the first persons Dunham called after the win was famed veterinarian, Dr. Robert Copeland, who is 99 years old. "He was very happy for me," Dunham said. Something new for Dunham after all these decades of winning was that a fan at the Spa approached him and asked for an autograph after Come Full Circle recorded his 7-1 victory in the $30,000 maiden claimer for New York State-breds on dirt. "He told me he bet $50 on my horse. He said he always bets on my horses because I have longshots," Dunham said with a laugh. There were some melancholy feelings attached to the win as the 3-year-old son of Slumber (GB) out of the Courageous Cat mare Cirque was bred by E. Siobhan McCormack, who owned horses with Dunham for about 25 years until she passed away in 2024. "She would have loved to see this horse win. We were always high on him. He's a big, good-looking horse. His pedigree with Slumber says he should like turf, but he doesn't. He likes dirt," Dunham said about the gelding who broke his maiden in his fifth try. The other horse in Dunham's barn is Kaaterskill, a 4-year-old Solomini filly who was bred by McCormack and Dunham. Owned by McCormack's estate, she's sidelined now but gave Dunham his previous winner when she took a Nov. 17, 2024 maiden claimer at Aqueduct Racetrack. It was Dunham's first win since 2021. Looking ahead, he's focusing on a state-bred allowance race for Come Full Circle. Beyond that, as time passes, Dunham will stay active and search for another win and a thrill that never ages.