Horses from the barn of P.E.I.-based trainer Earl Watts hadn't made any starts over the half-mile oval at Northside Downs in 2024 before the stakes-packed card of harness racing on Saturday, Aug. 3.

If those horses could talk, they'd likely have high praise for the Cape Breton racetrack and ask to make a return in the not-to-distant future.

Watts sent out seven stakes starters on Saturday, and those starters posted a solid 3-3-1 summary.

The win parade started for Watts in the second race when his Windemere Joel ($6.30) delivered in his $12,300 Atlantic Sires Stakes 'A' division, going wire-to-wire for the maiden-breaking 2:00.3 score with David Dowling up. He was a half-length better than Here On Earth (Adam Merner) and Phil My Beer (Marc Campbell) just back of the front pair in third. 

Windemere Joel (Malicious - Someone Like You) is owned by Windemere Farms of Springvale, P.E.I., Hollis Newson of Cornwall, P.E.I., Clive Balderston of Moncton, N.B. and Michael Currie of Cardigan, P.E.I.

Dowling and Watts also connected for a second 'A' division, this time with pacing filly Saulsbrook Inferno ($2.40). Also a wire-to-wire winner, Saulsbrook Inferno was two lengths better than Tobins Dream (Campbell) and Jafetica (Myles Heffernan) in their $11,640 split, winning in 2:01.

A three-time winner in four appearances, Saulsbrook Inferno (Flameproof Hanover - Ainsleynoelle) completes for Windemere Farms, Hollis Newson, Sterling Buchanan of Bonshaw, P.E.I. and Jack Quinn of Charlottetown, P.E.I.

Watts's other win came in a $6,000 ATSS 'B' division for two-year-old pacing fillies, where Windemereontheline ($12.90) and Corey MacPherson edged out stablemate Windemere Fluster and Marc Campbell by a half-length in a 2:02.2 mile. It was the first win for the Windemere Farms homebred.

With the training triple, Watts now sports 602 career victories with more than $2.2 million in purse earnings.

The richest race of the day was a trotting event, a single ATSS event for three-year-old trotters. Not only did trotting filly Oceanview Daisy and Myles Heffernan best the boys, she etched her name in the Northside track record books with a 2:00 mile to best the old track standard by more than two seconds. Rocket Blast (MacPherson) was a solid second, just three parts of a length back, with Gettin Lit (Brodie MacPhee) best of the rest in third.

Now three-for-three as a sophomore, the Myles Heffernan Jr.-trained Oceanview Daisy (E L Rocket - Summerhill Hallie) is owned by Jackie Heffernan of Summerville, P.E.I. and Barry Peter Macleod of Cardigan, P.E.I.  As the second choice, she returned $7.20 to her backers. 

The track record for two-year-old trotting fillies wasn't broken on Saturday, but it was matched...not once, but twice. And twice by Mike McGuigan pupils.

Supreme Rockette ($5.10) was a gate-to-wire winner for McGuigan in the first $12,320 ATSS division for rookie trotters, winning by three over Dusty Lane Gus (Lenny Myers) in 2:03.4. 

Now two-for-three in her rookie season, Supreme Rockette (E L Rocket - Supreme Monarch) is owned by James Whalen Jr. of Vernon Bridge, P.E.I.

The only loss for Supreme Rockette came at the hands of her stablemate Oceanview Nikki, who echoed that 2:03.4 performance for McGuigan in the second $12,320 ATSS division two races later. Oceanview Nikki ($2.50) easily handled her rivals, besting Fire The Rocket (Adam Merner) by 1-3/4 lengths to remain perfect in three appearances.

Oceanview Nikki (E L Rocket - King Kong Kate) is owned by Blue Diamond Racing of Emyvale, P.E.I. and Josh MacDonald of Little Pond, P.E.I.

Sergeant Crowley ($5.50) did all the work in his $12,300 ATSS 'A' division for rookie pacing colts and geldings, cruising to a 2-3/4-length score for driver Marc Campbell over All My Lovin (Dowling) and Rosetown Eclipse (MacPherson). 

The win was the first career victory for Sergeant Crowley (Arthur Blue Chip - All Lace-Roll With Joe), on the board in all five his starts for trainer Sifroi Melanson and owner Ultimate Stable of Greater Lakeburn, N.B.

Woodmere Flojo ($3.20; pictured above) had all the mojo needed and more when she trounced her rivals in the final $11,640 ATSS 'A' division for two-year-old pacing fillies. Sent off as the 3-5 choice, she was 1-9 the best on the track after a 12-3/4 smackdown of her counterparts, winning in 1:58.4.

Trained by Jamie Smith for Gowiththeflo Racing of Charlottetown, P.E.I., Woodmere Flojo (Arthur Blue Chip - Persistent) earned a new lifetime mark with her second win from four outings.

There were two ATSS 'B' divisions for two-year-old male pacers on the card. Favoured Father Hughie D ($5.80) delivered in 2:00.4 for driver Clare MacDonald, trainer Gardner McCallum and owner Joe Janega of Port Hawkesbury, N.S. Bettim Special Cay ($14.60) was a confident first-up winner in 2:02.3 for driver Marc Campbell, trainer Ryder Matthews Rennison and owners Jeff Lilley of Charlottetown, P.E.I., Danny Purcell of Upper Burlington, N.S., Blair Maclauchlan of Charlottetown, P.E.I. and Douglas Lowthers of Inverness, N.S.

With two second-place finishes, Keith Legge emerged victorious in the Nova Scotia leg of the Gamester-Pinkney Memorial Drivers Challenge for pari-mutuel licensed drivers 30 years and younger with less than 100 lifetime wins as of May 31, 2024.

With 24 points, Legge bested his six rivals and punched his ticket to the Gamester-Pinkney final on Tuesday, Aug. 27 at Red Shores Summerside.

Joining Legge from Nova Scotia will be Brett Leblanc (21 points), Ryder Matthews Rennison (21) and Keigan Madden (11). The remaining four drivers will be determined on Tuesday, Aug. 20 at Summerside.

The full card of racing at Northside is available in the playlist below.

For the results from Saturday's card of harness racing in Cape Breton, click the following link: Saturday Results - Northside Downs.

(Standardbred Canada)