While eating a banana can be a part of a healthy daily diet, trainer Kim Matthews is quite happy to have Nobananas. Matthews’ Nobananas is not a fruit, but is in fact an eight-year-old trotter that is thriving

since she acquired him close to eight weeks ago.

Matthews, along with Murray Cox of Rockwood, ON made a private purchase of the Earl gelding from former owner/trainer Barry Clarke of Dundalk, ON in the third week of February.

“I was well aware that Nobananas was a former track record holder at Western Fair (a 1:57.3 tour of the London oval on May 15, 2006) and I was really pleased that Barry Clarke and his wife offered me the chance to buy him” Matthews says. “They’d seen me feeding carrots and taking care of another trotter I’ve had for a long time, Gonnabe An Ottlaw. They said they wanted to find Nobananas a good home once they made the decision to sell him.”

In five starts for Matthews, Nobananas has amassed a second-place finish and his current four race win streak for this return to London. He’s been ordered to the outside in the elite field of six starters by Director Of Racing and GM Ian Fleming in the fifth race Preferred Handicap trot on the Monday afternoon program at Western Fair.
The career winner of 30 races and $317,000 is propelling Matthews to one of her best years ever in the business. From 53 starters in 2009 to date, 10 have come back winners for purse earnings of over $111,000.

“I’m a small stable operator with a maximum of seven horses at a time that my 23-year-old son, Jesse, helps me out with” Kim observes. “We’re expecting a big showdown with Trottin Troy again in Monday’s race; he tried us hard twice last time we met on April 6. Nobananas isn’t like a lot of trotters I’ve cared for. He isn’t fussy or high maintenance and he’s a real pleasure to take out for his final warm-up in just a happy bridle. I’ve only had Nobananas for two months but he’s sure looking a lot like the best private purchase I’m likely to make for my career.”

Those Monday Mares

The $15,200 purse Mares Preferred Handicap pace will close out Monday afternoon’s program at Western Fair.

Call Me Yours has been ordered to start in the outside post seven. The four-year-old Your Nemesis mare is trained by Steve Coulter and driven by Dave Wall for owner/breeder Stephen Gillard of Tavistock, ON. Call Me Yours has won three out of four appearances in the top weekly distaff class in London thus far in 2009.

In this event she’ll be facing the Casie Coleman-trained, OSS graduate A Fiesty Affair, Chris Haskell’s high-achieving, former claimer Headpoles R US, Alberta invader Doober Hoozzitz and last week’s winner in this class, Shami Cami.

Through June, post time at Western Fair each Monday and Tuesday afternoon is at 3:35 p.m. and every Friday evening at 7:05 p.m. The track’s marquee annual event, the 37th edition of the Molson Pace, is quickly approaching. This year’s $280,000 Molson Pace features eliminations on May 22 and a final on May 29.

(Western Fair Raceway)