The sport's future stars continued to prep for their racing careers on Saturday morning with Mohawk Racetrack in Campbellville, Ont. and New Jersey's Meadowlands Racetrack hosting full sessions of baby races.
Mohawk Racetrack hosted 14 baby races with two-year-old pacing colt For A Bettor Time turning in the fastest mile of the session with his 1:56 winning effort for trainer Casie Coleman. Driver Scott Zeron sent the colt from third to first after at the :58.4 half-mile mark. He proceeded to three-quarters in 1:27.2 and then kicked home in :28.3 to hold off the pocket-pulling Here Comes William (Dragon Again-Miracles Delight) by half a length. The Bettors Delight-Kats Treasure colt, who was making his second qualifying start, is owned by West Wins Stable of Cambridge, Ont., J. Robert Darrow of Dublin and Ron Broadstone of Columbus, Ohio. He was a $20,000 Lexington Select Sale purchase.
Zeron also steered the fastest pacing filly winner of the day as the debuting Palm Beach Hanover rallied home off cover in :27.4 for a 1:57.3 one length triumph in the final qualifier. The Somebeachsomewhere-Pilgrims Witchie filly is trained by David Menary for Pennsylvania owner/breeder Hanover Shoe Farms Inc.
On the trotting side, it was the Rick Zeron-trained and driven filly Cantabs Fortune who turned heads with a 15 length wire-to-wire victory in 1:59.1. She won by double-digits for the second qualifier in a row. The Cantab Hall-Incredible Fortuna filly was purchased for $21,000 at the Harrisburg Sale by the Rick Zeron Stables of Oakville, Ont., Paul Marion of Marionville, Ont., and Ferme Rico Limitee of Vars, Ont.
Expedited topped the trotting colts with a 2:02 victory for trainer Carmen Auciello. The son of Federal Flex and Annandale was a runaway on the field early on, building up a 15 length advantage through opening panels of :28 and :58.2 before cruising home for the one length victory with James MacDonald at the reins. Indiana's Rachel Woolf owns the colt, who has been busy learning the ropes with four previous qualifiers stateside throughout June.
Trainer John Kopas sent out two winning trotting fillies during the morning session. Jack Moiseyev steered Miss Aultsville (Kadabra-Keystone Betty) to a five and a half length victory in 2:01.1, with a final quarter clocked in :28.4, and Cool Creek Valley (Windsong Espoir-Allmar Victory) to a one and a quarter length score in 2:02.4.
Stephane Larocque-trained colts went back-to-back early in the day as trotter Mr Lover (Deweycheatumnhowe-Norway No Day) was a three length winner in his third qualifier in 2:03 and the debuting pacer Vance Bayama (Four Starzzz Shark-Charming Ideal) converted off a pocket trip with a :28.3 final panel to win in 1:59.1. Sylvain Filion drove both winners.
Idealbeach Hanover posted an eye-catching :26.3 final quarter to win his qualifier in 1:58. After sitting fourth for most of the mile, Jody Jamieson unleashed the bay colt, who then soared to a one and three-quarter length victory. It was his second qualifying win for trainer Jeff Gillis, who co-owns with New York's Gerald Stay, Mac Nichol of Burlington, Ont., and Big Als Stables Inc. of Woodbridge, Ont. Idealbeach Hanover was purchased for $260,000 at the Harrisburg Sale. The colt is by Somebeachsomewhere out of Ideal Weather ($854,074, 1:49.3), who is a half-sister to Moon Beam ($785,986, 1:51) and Jacked Up ($676,818, 1:52).
Pacing filly Arrivista Hanover (Badlands Hanover-Armbro Cachet), the half-sister to stakes winner Aracache Hanover ($1,514,445, 1:48.1), won her qualifier in 1:58.2 for Rene Laarman. The filly was a $42,000 yearling purchase at the Harrisburg Sale by Glenview Livestock Ltd. of Guelph, Ont., Richard Pointon of Kitchener and Toronto's Eric Sellors.
The Tony O'Sullivan-trained pacing filly Shes Da Bomb (Art Major-Armbro Bombay), won her debut in 1:58.4 with a :27.1 final frame. The full-sister to half-million-dollar earner Major Bombay is owned and bred by New Jersey's White Birch Farm.
Other Mohawk qualifying winners were trotting colt Great White Way (Deweycheatumnhowe-Stage Show) in 2:02.4 for Richard 'Nifty' Norman; the debuting trotting filly Danica Hall (Deweycheatumnhowe-Debbie Hall) in 2:00.4 for Doug McIntosh; and the debuting pacing colt D Gs Machbeach (Mach Three-Angel Beach) in 1:59.2 for trainer Daniel Martin.
Saturday morning's 11 baby races at The Meadowlands were conducted under ideal conditions with the temperature in the 80's and just a light breeze.
A few impressions were left by trotting colts Flacco and Trixton, both trained by Hall of Fame trainer Jimmy Takter and driver by Yannick Gingras. Flacco is a Muscles Yankee-Contag Way colt that was purchased for $62,000 at the Harrisburg Sale. He took over past the opening quarter and coasted home in :28.3 on the end of a 2:00.3 mile. Trixton (Muscle Hill-Emilie Cas El) was the most expensive trotting yearling sold at auction last year, bringing a final bid of $360,000 from Brixton Medical and Christina Takter at the Lexington Select Sale. The half-brother to $500,000-earner Impressive Kemp won for the second time in 2:00, closing the mile with a :27.4 last quarter for Gingras.
Dottie Major won at first asking for trainer Nick Surick closing into a :27.1 last quarter to get up in 1:57.2 with Andy Miller aboard in the first pacing event. This Art Major-Jennifer G filly was an $8,000 bargain for owners Kerry Feuker-Weed and M. Kenneth Weed.
Put On A Display did just that for the team of trainer Chris Ryder and Florida owners Richard and Joanne Young. The $175,000 Lexington sale purchase led all way in 1:54.3 with a :28.1 final quarter for Tim Tetrick. She is sired by Somebeachsomewhere out of Rocknroll Hanover's full-sister BJs Canouan.
The colt pacers came next and Murder He Wrote went a nice trip for Tetrick, putting the finishing touches on a 1:56.2 mile with a :26.3 final quarter after a first over move. This colt by the ill-fated Kenneth J is owned by trainer Linda Toscano's Camelot Stables.
Winds Of Change took a mark of 1:55 next. The Brittany Farms/Val D'Or Farms homebred colt was impressive in defeat last week, recovering from interference to be a fast closing second. This time, Tetrick moved him to the lead up the backstretch and tacked a :27.4 close onto the mile in hand. The son of American Ideal is out of Arts Temptress, who is the half-sister to Wake Up Peter ($445,900, 1:51.1).
The best race of the day was the last of the two-year-olds where a couple of really nice colts hooked up for the length of the stretch. Stay Up Late (Artiscape-Dreamlands Jo Jo) is the half-brother to Real Nice ($1,262,406, 1:51.1) that cost West Winds Stable and Christine Calhoun $67,000, while Avalanche Hanover (Somebeachsomewhere-Anadarko Hanover) was a $200,000 buy for Brittany, Katz, Goldband, Libfeld, Sbrocco and Gural. This pair reached the three-sixteenth pole together and paced in tandem through the :27 and change end to a 1:58.3 mile with 'Avalanche' getting the nod. The team of Toscano and Tetrick closed out the baby races with this, their third consecutive winner of the day.
Closing out the day was world champion Check Me Out, who went her second qualifier of the season in anticipation of her return to the racing wars. She was a 1:54.3 winner with a :27.2 last quarter for Tetrick.
To view Saturday's complete qualifying results, click on the following links: Mohawk Racetrack / Meadowlands Racetrack.
(With files from Meadowlands Racetrack)