13-Year-Old Racehorse Bam Bam Cam Wins at Collinsville IL

Bam Bam Cam is by any measure an old racehorse, but he still finds ways to win and still enjoys eating carrots.

The 13-year-old horse, owned by Edwardsville High School assistant hockey coach Rob Wiemers, is one of the oldest thoroughbreds in North America. On Saturday night at FanDuel Sportsbook & Horse Racing (formerly Fairmount Park), Bam Bam Cam won his second straight race, as well as one second-place finish and one fourth-place finish this year.

Bam Bam Cam, who is coached by husband-and-wife team Harry and Becky Lynch, was named after Wiemers’ 21-year-old stepson, Cam Gillen, a former EHS hockey player.

“He was amazing and continues to defy age,” Wiemers said. “They say the last thing that ages is the heart, and he has a wonderful heart. This really was special and couldn’t have happened without the excellent care that Harry and Becky provide him.

“People love to watch him run, and they know about him all over the Midwest. Harry goes to Hawthorne (Race Course) in Chicago, and they even talk about him there.”

The horse’s improbable comeback began two years ago, at the age of 11, when he returned to racing after a five-year injury-related layoff. Competing on FanDuel, he won three straight races, as well as one second-place finish and one third-place finish.

Bam Bam Cam broke his leg as a 3-year-old but came back as a 5-year-old and won six races. However, a ligament injury forced him to retire to the farm and it seemed his racing days were over.

But Bam Bam Cam’s story was far from over.

“He was out for five years and came back as an 11-year-old and won three in a row. He had a good year last year but didn’t win any races, but this year he’s been on fire, especially in the last two races,” Wiemers said.

“He was an inspiration to all of us old guys. We don’t know how much longer he’ll be racing, but we’re looking forward to seeing and enjoying what he can do from here, and he should have another race in about three weeks.”

“When Susan Jakovac, Bam Bam’s breeder, told me many years ago, when he was just a child, that he loved the carrots he picked from the farm, I never imagined that as a 13-year-old we would be celebrating two wins in a row.”

Both of Bam Bam Cam’s victories this season were with jockey Victor Santiago.

“He came to the stable and asked to ride Bam Bam a month ago,” Wiemers said. “He won both races, and those were the only two times he rode him.”

Even Harry Lynch, who has over 40 years of experience training horses, was surprised by what Bam Bam Cam has achieved over the past two years.

“I never thought he’d be back racing after five years off and at 11,” said Lynch, who runs Lynch Stables on FanDuel. “But we take good care of him, and he’s had special care all winter, and it’s paying off now.

“He remains 100% fit. We all agree that if he has any issues we will not push him and we will retire him, but in the meantime he has a big heart and gives it his all every time he runs.”

The horse got its name from Cam Gillen, who was nicknamed Bam Bam Cam early in his hockey career because he liked to hit everything.

“He’s a patron of the Bam Bam Cam, and a lot of family and friends come to watch the Bam Bam races. We usually squeeze a lot of people into the winning circle photos.”

Today, Bam Bam Cam is the horse racing equivalent of the legendary Gordie Howe, who at age 52 was the oldest man to play in an NHL game.

And when it comes time to race, the horse has a personality that would please Mr. Hockey.

“Bam Bam loves being the center of attention and always wants to know what’s going on,” Wiemers said. “You come here on a non-racing day and feed him carrots and he’s loved. But when it’s racing day and he hears the national anthem, he starts running. He wants Harry to take him out there and he always thinks it’s his turn.

“When it’s time for him to go, he goes. In the equestrian industry, a lot of horses know when they’re winning, but he also knows when he’s losing, and he doesn’t like it. He’ll come back here and go faster than any other horse Harry has in the yard. His personality is why we didn’t give up and let him race when he was 13. He’s still got that competitive edge.”

The resilience of a horse, especially as it ages, is equally important for its recovery later in its career.

“He comes back from racing very well,” Wiemers said. “When other horses might be a little sore, he shows no pain at all. If you or I were in a race, we’d be sore.”

“As a hockey coach, you always feel fortunate to know that you’re getting the best effort from every player in every shift, and Bam Bam is no different. We know what we’re getting in every race.”

The horse’s success on FanDuel has earned him his own unofficial fan club, with 13-year-old Isabel Armstrong of Edwardsville likely to be the president. Isabel, who will be an eighth-grader at Lincoln Middle School, may be Bam Bam Cam’s No. 1 fan.

“Isabel is an athlete and a hockey player for the Edwardsville Tigers,” Wiemers said. “She started coming here and feeding Bam Bam carrots (his favorite treat) and watching him and all the other horses run.

“She started making posters and pictures of Bam Bam, and we have a few hanging here in the barn. We also have a few pictures of her at the rink. She and her family have a great time coming here to watch him race.”

On Monday morning, Isabel was present for a photoshoot with Bam Bam Cam in his barn and, of course, fed him lots of carrots.

“My family moved here when COVID started, and we started going to horse races for fun,” Isabel said. “We met Rob when I was just starting out playing hockey, and we came here and he took us back to the stables.

“I really bonded with Bam Bam and started feeding him carrots. It just clicked.”

It didn’t take long before Isabel felt inspired and decided to express her love of horses through art.

“I’ve always loved drawing and creating art, and I also love drawing horses,” she said. “I like drawing Bam Bam, and his last two wins were particularly inspiring to draw.

“When we took our first picture with him, he snuggled up to me. He was always a really sweet horse.”

Wiemers currently has four other horses in the same stable, but they are all youngsters compared to Bam Bam Cam.

“If you add them all up, I don’t think they’re as big as Bam Bam put together,” Wiemers said with a laugh. “We have a 4-year-old, two 3-year-olds and a 2-year-old. We own the JW Racing Group, where I’m the managing partner, and Bam Bam is the granddaddy of the whole stable.”

When Bam Bam Cam’s racing career finally comes to an end, Wiemers plans on him becoming a therapy horse and helping children.

“There’s a farm near Grafton that does a lot of great work with horses, and we’ve talked about the possibility of putting him there for retirement,” Wiemers said. “He can live on River Road and work with the kids.”

And eat lots of carrots.