“You don’t know until the race is run, we never look at the race for who we’re going up against because every race is a race, you never know the outcome. That’s what makes racing so exciting. Sure, we’ll be the underdog, no question about it but we will be competitive.”

For Wayne Whebby, the Gold Cup & Saucer has always been a family affair. His father, Eric Whebby, was one of the most influential individuals in developing harness racing in Atlantic Canada. Over a period of five decades, he built a powerful racing stable in the Maritimes and travelled across North America with talented horses in tow.

“We’ve been in it since 1956; my father first started buying horses then. We had a lot of horses until the 1990s; we used to keep twenty-two, usually eleven two-year-olds and eleven three-year-olds. We’ve raced all over the United States but never went any further west than Ontario in Canada.

“We were in the first race at the Meadowlands in 1976 with Quick Baron and had the track record for five races. We’ve had nice horses and it’s hard to get a good horse, so when you do get one, you have to appreciate them.”

Andys Son, a purchase from the Ohio sales, went on to become a superstar in the Whebby barn, winning 35 races as a three-year-old -- the most by a three-year-old pacer in modern day harness racing -- and producing the first ever 2:00 mile on the East coast. He remains the only horse to ever win the Gold Cup & Saucer on three separate occasions, first back-to-back in 1965 and 1966, and then as an aged horse in 1971. Inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame in the Builder category in 1999, Eric Whebby played a paramount role in creating the industry we see today.

“We worked side by side in the construction business and then in racing. The first horse I owned and drove was in 1969. I was training horses with all different types of trainers, the Pinkneys, the Dohertys, even Billy O’Donnell. Most people from here went through our barn at some point in time. In 1972 I started driving full time with the stable and I drove from seven years; after 1979 I just trained from there on in.

“I think the biggest moment in my time in racing was with a horse named Waveore. My father wasn’t really well at the time, he had a hard time getting around, but Waveore was one of the nicest horses we ever owned. He beat Boomer Drummond and he came down to the Monctonian to race in July of 1985 and we set a Maritime record.”

Maritime legend Waveore set a new standard, pacing the first sub-1:55 mile, tripping the timer in 1:54.2 to capture the $50,000 Monctonian at Champlain Raceway. He went on to win a $60,000 invitational in Quebec City shortly after, one of his 39 wins in 75 starts with $376,280 in earnings.

This year, Wayne hopes to add the famed Whebby name to the Gold Cup & Saucer record books again, this time with Im Drinkin Doubles. A $32,000 purchase as Dark Revival at the Harrisburg Yearling Sale in 2012, partners R G McGroup Ltd. and Whebby will be looking to shoot for the stars, drawing the rail in the first heat.

“I was at the sale with Ronny McLellan. He liked the colt, we both looked at him but I liked another one. Basically, when this one went through, I said to Ronny, ‘why don’t we go splits?’ It was in the spur of the moment, he asked ‘you sure you mean it?’ and I told him sure. Then the horse I liked, Play It Again Sam, came through, we went splits again and formed a nice partnership.

“He was hard to break as a youngster, he didn’t know too much when we first got him, he hadn’t been led or handled much. We gelded him right off the bat because we thought there was a problem there. He wouldn’t eat much, he was a nervous horse on the inside even if he didn’t show it much, but as far as training goes he trained down super as a two-year-old.”

The Shadow Play gelding posted several strong starts at Truro Raceway before his connections decided to try their hand on the Ontario circuit, sending him to Dr. Ian Moore. He posted twelve starts at Mohawk Racetrack and Grand River Raceway between his two and three-year-old seasons, but he didn’t seem to show the same focus that had been displayed early on.

“We were really impressed with him, but when he went to Ontario, he didn’t seem to handle his environment. We never really figured out what the problem was. Ronny had horses with Ian at the time and Ian was doing well, so we sent him down to Ian. Basically he looked after him from there on in. We expected him to be really, really good and my son actually drove him a few starts but he didn’t fire. He didn’t seem to have any go to him but he seems to have come around since.”

With nine starts to his 2015 season so far, he has posted a record of 3-3-1, with a tight second in 1:53.1 in his last start at the Charlottetown Invitational with Whebby’s son, Marc, in the bike.

“(Trainer) Emmons MacKay and I work together; we’ve been doing this for quite a few years. It’s become a partner kind of thing, a group that works together. My son Marc shoes and drives, Emmons looks after the horse in Truro and when we go and train, I go up to train the horse.

“I think after the last race on Saturday he showed he can do it, he’s been coming along really well and we figured there’s no other races for him. The Premiers Pace was cancelled and the only option was the Gold Cup and Saucer, knowing full well that there would be some bearcats coming. We didn’t expect they’d be quite as good as they are, there are nice horses coming on Saturday and the following Monday.”

Im Drinkin Doubles will start from the rail and is listed at 7-2 on the morning line with trainees from the formidable barns of Ron Burke and Rene Allard also in his field. The top four horses in each heat will receive a berth to the final and a shot at the glory that comes with the Gold Cup & Saucer.

“It all depends on the draw on a half mile track. If you’re on the outside, it can be a hard go. We’ve lucked out in the elimination; hopefully we have similar luck if we make it into the final. Now that he’s four years old, he’s happy as a lark, bright eyed and seems to have really come around. He had some issues with ulcers and now they’re gone and he’s a happy horse. I think he’s grown up a lot.

“We’ve won the Gold Cup & Saucer five times with my father and we’ve been runner up a couple times. We haven’t had those kinds of horses in recent years. We never kept horses after [age] three but this one, we thought we’d try him and he’s just been improving every start and seems to be at his peak now. We’re just hoping that he can at least get in the final and go from there."

Sobeys Gold Cup & Saucer - Trial 1

1. Im Drinkin Doubles - M. Whebby - 7/2
2. All Turain - C. MacPherson - 6/1
3. The Rev - D. Romo - 4/1
4. Modern Xhibit - R. Shepherd - 8/1
5. Crombie A - B. Forward - 3/1
6. Atta Boy Dan - Ma. Campbell - 5/2

To view the entries for Saturday's night card at Charlottetown, click the following link: Saturday Entries - Charlottetown Driving Park.

(A Trot Insider Exclusive by Hannah Beckett)