When it comes to racing two-year-old trotting fillies, manners are essential and Juho Ihamuotila is hoping Massive Babe has hers packed and ready to take to Grand River Raceway on Wednesday.

“If she stays calm, if she doesn’t get too hot, then we are okay,” says Ihamuotila. “I hope she stays calm. We’ll see what happens.”

Through her first three starts Massive Babe has had two flawless performances and one that disappointed her owner-trainer. Ihamuotila and then trainer Riina Rekila opted to start the filly in the June 28 Gold Series season opener at Kawartha Downs, and Massive Babe delivered a steady effort to finish fifth. The filly then competed in an overnight event at Hanover Raceway on July 14, but a pair of breaks derailed her efforts and left her well back of the leaders in fifth.

Sickness kept Massive Babe out of a July 25 overnight event at Grand River Raceway, but the filly was back in action in the August 7 Grassroots event at Georgian Downs and delivered an impressive five length victory, halting the teletimer at 2:00.

“I was really scared about what would happen at Georgian Downs because we were not racing for a long time, but she was good,” says the Grand Valley resident, who offered up $18,000 for the daughter of Muscle Mass and Andover Babe at last fall’s Harrisburg Yearling Sale.

Massive Babe will make her third Grassroots start from the trailing Post 9 at Grand River Raceway on Wednesday — her first experience in the trailing post — but Ihamuotila is confident that driver Chris Christoforou will not have any problems behind the starting gate.

“I don’t think it’s a big problem,” says the trainer. “She’s pretty good behind other horses.”

Among the fillies that Massive Babe will face in the third race are two-time Grassroots winner Stormont Hotplate from Post 6 and former Gold Series regular Muscle Magic from the outside Post 8.

Another trainer hoping his protégé minds her manners is Ted MacDonnell, who also visited the winner’s circle at Georgian Downs with Eloise Eden. The Ken Warkentin daughter will be handicapped by the outside Post 8 in the tenth race.

“She’s very fast and I think she can overcome the post position,” notes MacDonnell, who conditions Eloise Eden for owner-breeder Mark Bowser of Charlottesville, Virginia. “The biggest thing is if she minds her manners, the post doesn’t concern me as much.”

The Allenford resident recently added trotting hopples and a closed bridle to Eloise Eden’s equipment bag, and those changes resulted in the 1:58.1 victory at Georgian Downs.

The filly had made breaks in both the Grassroots season opener at Kawartha Downs on July 5 and the July 21 Grassroots contest at Hanover Raceway.

Among the fillies Eloise Eden faces in the 10th race is Grassroots division winner Orderingin, currently ranked fourth in the division, who will start from Post 7.

The two-year-old trotting fillies compete for Grassroots glory in Races 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 9 and 10 on Wednesday, kicking off the Grand River Raceway program at 7:05 pm.

To view Wednesday's harness racing entries, click on the following link: Wednesday Entries - Grand River Raceway.

(OSS)