O'Reilly On His Lifetime Dream Charges

Trainer Frank O’Reilly will be looking to make the most of his trip to Woodbine Racetrack this coming Monday evening, as he will be sending out a pair of entrants in the $75,000 final of the Lifetime Dream Trotting Series

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Sashay and Maplegrove Shaelyn have each won preliminary divisions of the series for O’Reilly. Sashay will start from Post 4 with driver Sylvain Filion, while Maplegrove Shaelyn will line up in Post 6 for pilot Mike Saftic.

“I think they both have a good chance to win,” O’Reilly said. “Last week, Sashay was 'okay,' but not great, and she still finished second. If she’s on her game, she’s the one to beat, in my opinion.”

Sashay, a four-year-old daughter of Yankee Glide, has banked $123,870 for owners Steve Stewart and Randall Day.

“She’s such a big, powerful mare,” said the resident of Guelph, Ont. “She doesn’t do anything wrong in the barn and is a true professional. She’s just a sweetheart to have.”

Maplegrove Shaelyn has been in the O’Reilly stable for three starts and is a welcome edition. The daughter of American Native has banked $109,373 for breeder/owner Joseph Mullins.

“She’s also a nice mare to have in the barn,” O’Reilly said. “She has Post 6 and she’s very versatile, so [that] plays into her favour.”

The veteran conditioner has admitted that he didn’t expect to be training Maplegrove Shaelyn.

“To be honest, a friend of mine put me in touch with Joe,” O’Reilly said. “He was sending the mare up to Canada for the Lifetime Dream Series and my friend recommended me. I guess it’s better to be lucky than good.”

Last season, charges from O’Reilly’s stable raced to $485,445 in purse earnings from just 96 starts.

“I tell everyone that I have better luck with four-legged females than two,” O’Reilly laughed.

The series is for four and five-year-old trotting mares in 2012, that are non-winners of $200,000 in lifetime earnings as of midnight, October 31, 2011

First-race post time is set for 7:10 p.m.

To view the harness racing entries for Monday at Woodbine, click the following link: Monday Entries - Woodbine Racetrack.

(WEG)