The two featured races on Flamboro Downs' 2015 opener -- a $11,000 Preferred 2 Trot and a $7,000 Preferred 3 Fillies & Mares Pace -- were each captured by six-year-old Standardbreds.
Northern Escort was making just his fifth start since winning the OSS Grassroots Final for three-year-old trotters in 2012. His form has been consistent since returning in November 2014, as evidenced by his second straight win at Flamboro.
A winner on Sunday in the Preferred 3 Trot, Northern Escort jumped up a level and knocked off the Preferred 2 class with a 2:00.1 score. Jean-Bernard Renaud guided the Kadabra-Tease Please horse to victory for trainer Stephane Larocque and owners Les Ecuries JYJ Inc. of St-Andre-D'Argenteuil, Que. Kremlin (Mike Wassilyn) and Can I Say (Mike Whelan) completed the top three.
Eat Me Up was a tasty treat for the chalk players in the $7,000 Preferred 3 Fillies & Mares Pace, a gate-to-wire 1:57.3 winner over Machleen (James MacDonald) and Regal Luck (Scott Young)
A six-year-old daughter of Mach Three-Presidentialintern, Eat Me Up is owned by Dave Ratchford of North Sydney, N.S. Alfie Carroll was in the sulky for trainer Richard Moreau.
The night got off to a scary start as an accident marred the second race. As the field passed the three-quarter mark, Sweet Dasher got rough-gaited and fell. That incident prompted a collision that unseated Sweet Dasher's driver, Billy Davis Jr., and also included Pic Your Flight (Anthony MacDonald) and Hes A Ramblin Man (Dave Duncan). Reports indicate that all drivers and horses came out of the accident in decent condition, with Davis booking off the remainder of his drives as a precaution.
To view the charts and payouts from Thursday's card of harness racing at Flamboro, click the following link: Thursday Results - Flamboro Downs.