James Charles Bentley (1903 – July 7, 1984) was a

Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame The Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame was established in 1976 to honour those who have made a significant contribution to the sport of harness and Thoroughbred horse racing in Canada. It is located at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario. The H ...

trainer of Thoroughbred racehorses who twice won Canada's most prestigious race, the Queen's Plate. During his career he trained horses to win six

National Championships A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the best team, indi ...

, three of which would earn Hall of Fame induction.

Background

Born in Ireland, Jim Bentley exercised and rode horses in both

steeplechase Steeplechase may refer to: * Steeplechase (horse racing), a type of horse race in which participants are required to jump over obstacles * Steeplechase (athletics), an event in athletics that derives its name from the steeplechase in horse racing ...

and Flat racing for a stable run by his father. In the early 1920s he emigrated to the United States where he found work for Edward R. Bradley's

Idle Hour Stock Farm Idle Hour Stock Farm was a 400-acre (1.6 km2) thoroughbred horse breeding and training farm near Lexington, Kentucky, United States established in 1906 by Colonel Edward R. Bradley. Beginning with the sire, Black Toney, and a roster of qualit ...

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, Fayette County. By population, it is the List of cities in Kentucky, second-largest city in Kentucky and List of United States cities by popul ...

. While at New York state's Saratoga Race Course in 1927 he met Canadian trainer John Dixon who encouraged him to come work for him in Canada. Bentley accepted and became part of Ontario racing until he saddled his last horse on April 23, 1984, at Greenwood Raceway. During that long career, Jim Bentley trained for a number of prominent owners including E. P. Taylor and his son

Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*k ...

, as well as

Arthur Stollery Arthur is a common male given name of Brythonic origin. Its popularity derives from it being the name of the legendary hero King Arthur. The etymology is disputed. It may derive from the Celtic ''Artos'' meaning “Bear”. Another theory, more wi ...

and his wife Helen.

Top horses

Jim Bentley runners Arise, Kennedy Road, and

Lauries Dancer Lauries Dancer (April 4, 1968 - March, 1991) was a Canadian National Champion and Hall of Fame Thoroughbred racemare who won top races in Canada and the United States. Background She was bred at Angus Glen Farm in Markham, Ontario by owner Art ...

would each be inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame. Bentley race conditioned Kennedy Road to three National Championships. The

filly A filly is a female horse that is too young to be called a mare. There are two specific definitions in use: *In most cases, a ''filly'' is a female horse under four years old. *In some nations, such as the United Kingdom and the United States, t ...

Lauries Dancer was voted the 1971 Canadian Champion Three-Year-Old Filly and

Canadian Horse of the Year The Canadian Horse of the Year is a thoroughbred horse racing honour given annually since 1951 by the Jockey Club of Canada. It is the most prestigious honour in Canadian thoroughbred horse racing. Part of the Sovereign Awards program since 1975, ...

. In the pre

Sovereign Award {{refimprove, date=October 2021 The Sovereign Award is given annually since 1975 by the Jockey Club of Canada to the outstanding horses and people in Canadian Thoroughbred racing. The most prestigious award for horses is Sovereign Horse of the Y ...

era, the

Windfields Farm Windfields Farm was a six square kilometre (1,500 acre) Thoroughbred horse breeding farm that was founded by businessman E. P. Taylor in Oshawa, Ontario, Canada. Origin The first stable and breeding operation of E. P. Taylor originated w ...

colt Lord Durham was named the 1973

Canadian Champion Two-Year-Old Colt The Canadian Champion Two-Year-Old Colt is a Canadian Thoroughbred horse racing honour. Created in 1975 by the Jockey Club of Canada, it is part of the Sovereign Awards program and is awarded annually to the top 2-Year-Old male Thoroughbred horse c ...

. With some of his most successful runners, Jim Bentley won top stakes races in Canada as well as in the United States. With Kennedy Road, Bentley won his first Queen's Plate in 1971 and

Fiddle Dancer Boy Fiddle Dancer Boy (1978–1991) was a Canadian Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 1981 Queen's Plate, Canada's most prestigious race and North America's oldest annually run stakes race. Bred by prominent Ontario owner/breeder Warren Beasley, he ...

gave him a second win in 1981.''2018 Woodbine Media Guide''
On July 7, 1984, Jim Bentley died at age 81 in

Wellesley Hospital The Wellesley Hospital was a teaching hospital in Toronto, Ontario, Canada affiliated with the University of Toronto. It was founded by Dr. Herbert Bruce as a private hospital, but became publicly operated in 1942. History The Wellesley Hospita ...

in Toronto.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bentley, James C. 1903 births 1984 deaths Irish jockeys Canadian horse trainers Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame inductees Equestrians from County Limerick Irish emigrants to the United States