There was an occasion when a tourist visiting Reg Ellett’s hilltop farm in Langley asked the proprietor which of his yearlings he fancied.

He pointed to a bay colt and said, “That one has got a special look about him.”

As things turned out it could have been a scene out of the Black Stallion, or whatever the equivalent was back in 1969 when Lord Vancouver was a yearling.

The son of George Royal-Honeybloom by Indian Hemp was indeed something special, becoming the second British Columbia-bred to win a race worth $100,000 when he romped home in the Pan American Handicap on the turf at Gulfstream Park on April 14, 1973.

While that was his most notable victory there were many other memorable performances in a career where he collected 14 wins, 17 seconds and 12 thirds in 81 starts. When he was retired in 1974 he had earnings of $240,628, second on the British Columbia-bred money winnings list to his sire.?????

Conn Smythe purchased Lord Vancouver from Ellett’s consignment at the 1969 British Columbia Select Yearling Sale for $9,000 but by the time the Pan American Handicap had rolled around he had been sold to Preston Gilbride and was trained by Frank Merrill.

Lord Vancouver was stakes-placed as a two-year-old, including a third to Hallman in the Vritish Columbia Futurity when Smythe shipped him west. But as he matured and the races grew longer he proved himself a genuine stayer, particularly on the turf.

At three he won the Kingarvie handicap, setting a track record at Woodbine for a mile and 3/16ths. At four he took the King Edward Gold Cup and the Seagram Cup, and at five he garnered the Pan American, Ultimus Stakes and repeated in the King Edward.

He came close to pulling oss a huge upset in the 1972 Canadian International Championship when he challenged Droll Role and Belle Geste for all the marbles in the most prestigious race in Canada for older horses.