The 11th race at Northlands Park was also the final race to be run in Canada in 2015.
The $4,800 conditioned pacing event went off minutes before midnight on the east coast.
Trained and driven by Ryan Grundy, Senga Shaganappi brushed to the lead heading to the three-quarter pole and held off a late challenge from Rare Breed to take the nightcap, an $8,000 conditioned claimer for non-winners of $35,000 lifetime, in 1:56.3. Sent off at 5-2, the three-year-old bay gelding by Brandons Cowboy out of the Enfield Hanover mare Senga Seychelle obtained his sixth win in 39 starts and equaled his lifetime best of 1:56.3, set at Northlands Park. The gelding is owned by Kenneth Gunn and Ashlee Slugget and returned $7.20 to win.
The featured race on the card was a claiming handicap for tags between $10,000 and $15,000 going for a purse of $8,300. Leaving as the 1-5 favourite, Outlaw Gunpowder stalked the top trio for the first half of the mile. Entering the final half, owner-trainer-driver Travis Cullen pulled him first over to pursuit pacesetter Justabitcrazy. Edging to the front at the top of the stretch, Outlaw Gunpowder extended his lead from a head to nearly four lengths in his 1:53 lifetime best.
Paying $2.30 to win, Outlaw Gunpowder is a four-year-old bay horse by Smart Shark out of the Richess Hanover mare Fox Valley Cherish.
To view results for Thursday's card of harness racing, click the following link: Thursday Results – Northlands Park.
Great to see the handle for
Great to see the handle for this last day of racing at Northlands for the winter meet, being over $227,000. Hopefully Century Downs (a few miles out of Calgary) can get their handle into the 6 figures on a regular basis, once their meet starts up in mid February. I am thinking they will, if the media picks up on it, racing is competitive, and Century carries on with some decent marketing.