George Sholty

Career His uncle gifted him a trotter named George Jr. in 1950 when he was 17. He began racing at Logansport, with his first success coming in 1951.

During his first seven years as a reinsman, Sholty recorded only 26 victories and earned less than $16,000 in purses.

While racing on the East Coast of the United States in the 1960s, he established himself as a top reinsman with repeated driving titles at Yonkers Raceway and Roosevelt Raceway. In December 1965, he recorded his 1,000th career win. By the end of that year, he had become the seventh driver ever to earn over $4 million in career purses. At the Old Glory Standardbred Sales at Yonkers Raceway in October 1967, he purchased Rivaltime, then five years old, for $40,000.

He campaigned Florida Pro for Al Lippe of Great Neck as both trainer and regular driver, winning nine of the colt's 13 starts at age two. In the 1978 Hambletonian Stakes, he guided Florida Pro to victory in the second heat against Speedy Somolli, but was defeated in the third and deciding heat.

He won the 54th Hambletonian Stakes in straight heats with Legend Hanover in 1979. Sholty trained and drove Conifer who won the Breeders Crown 2-year-old filly trot in 1984. By October 1985, he had resigned from Castleton Farm and was replaced by Dan Shetler.

While working for the Armstrong Brothers, he drove and trained Armbro Fling, a daughter of Speedy Crown. He guided the trotter to victory in the 1987 Breeders Crown Three-Year-Old Filly Trot.

He captured his second win in the Little Brown Jug as trainer of Fake Left on September 24, 1992.

The veteran driver-trainer retired in 1998 at the age of 66 after compiling 2,934 career wins and over $20 million in purses.

Death George Sholty died on December 14, 2000, in Lexington, Kentucky, United States, at 68.

Legacy Sholty became the 34th inductee to the United States Harness Racing Hall of Fame in 1985.