Other than his usual top stock, two-time O'Brien Award winner Jody Jamieson will be at the helm of both Hypnotic Blue Chip and St Elmo Hero Saturday night at Woodbine Racetrack. The pilot has gone on the record with some info on
both charges.
Trained by Kevin McDermott, Hypnotic Blue Chip has drawn Post 7 in the nine-horse Spring Pacing Championship. The five-year-old Art Major millionaire will looking to get back on track when the race heads to post at roughly 9:15 p.m. The horse is winless from two starts so far this year. He last raced March 26 at the Meadowlands Racetrack, where he got beat in the lane and had to settle for second.
"Well, Brian Sears drove the horse that night, and he thought the horse would be fine coming up here," Jamieson said during an interview with the Woodbine Entertainment Group. "He's drawn the eight-hole and it's going to be a good spot for him, I believe. Brian said he just didn't have a whole lot of fight and that the track was a little heavy down there that night. The weather is supposed to be great here Saturday and I'm expecting to hook up with a second or third-over trip. The horse loves to come off cover and I expect him to do very well."
When asked about McDermott's thoughts on the horse heading into the dash, Jamieson said that the conditioner did relay that there were some issues with the horse early in the week.
"I think he was a little disappointed with the way he raced last week. He found some excuses -- and I think legitimate ones, at that. I think with a change of venue… the horse always gets good when he comes to Canada, a la the Molson Pace last year -- and obviously he came back again and won a Canadian Pacing Derby elimination. I think Kevin was a little disappointed last week, but the further the week went on, the more excited he got about the Spring Pacing Championship."
In regard to St Elmo Hero, who is carrying a 24-race career unbeaten streak into Saturday's $28,000 Preferred 2 Pace (Race 9, 10:18 p.m.), Jamieson said that there is obviously some pressure there for the connections, but he is confident his charge can get the job done, even if he is coming off a six-week layoff.
"The way I look at is that if the horse wins, that's great; I'll be part of a long streak -- the longest streak that I will have ever been a part of. If he doesn't win -- which I don't expect; I expect the horse to win -- it will be one of those things where you move on to the next race, the next horse," Jamieson said. "Obviously, there is a lot of pressure on John Barnard and St Elmo Hero -- and (Canadian trainer) Meg Crone, for that matter -- for the next couple of starts. The horse had some well-documented foot issues. His feet are back together perfect and he's been trained up. Meg called me the other day and said that her boyfriend, Anthony Haughn, trained the horse, and he trained well, and, like I say, they are expecting good results. He's drawn a nice bunch, and he's raced tougher horses in the (United) States, but six weeks off is going to be a bit of a concern. That all said, I don't think he is going to lose; I think he's going to be as good as he's been."
In terms of how he foresees the race unfolding, Jamieson said that he is confident the horse will be able to adapt to whichever strategy has to be employed.
"I'm hoping that most drivers are going to be looking for St Elmo Hero coming off the gate. If I can float out, sit close early and maybe re-move to the front… or, depending on the way the race goes, it may go differently and (I may) have to sit back and come second over. I've spoken to Tim Tetrick, who has been his regular driver for most of his starts, and he thinks that the horse is very versatile and is always on call when you ask him, so with him being short, I know he's a good horse and I think he'll be fine with the break, and it doesn't really matter the way the race unfolds."
To view entries for Saturday's card of harness racing from Woodbine, please click the following link: