Two-year-old pacing colts The Eagle and Rebelforce turned in a pair of winning performances in their Joe O’Brien Memorial Gold divisions while freshman filly Acton Normal scored top marks in a single Gold division of the Lady Slipper Stake featured on Saturday’s program at Charlottetown
Driving Park.
Trained and driven by Gilles Barrieau, The Eagle advanced first up from fourth past the third quarter mark in the first colt division and sprinted home for the 2:01.4 victory by a length and a half. Longshot Roses Dream Boy (Kenny Arsenault) followed the winner’s cover to place and Pownal Bay Cooper (Danny Romo) rounded out the top three.
Michael Blanchard of New Glasgow, N.S. and Barry Blanchard of Kars, N.B. co-own the Justice Denied-Hot Asset colt, who now sports a record reading 3-3-2 in 12 starts with a previous victory in the first leg of the Joe O’Brien Memorial on Oct. 1 at Summerside Raceway. He has banked $18,221 to date.
Kevin MacLean’s Rebelforce and driver Marc Campbell trailed the field after leaving from the outside Post 6 in the next split, but picked up cover and then angled three-deep past the third quarter mark to come on for the one length score in 2:03.1. Pocket-sitter Tobins Fortune (Henry Smallwood) finished second and Fit The Bill (Brodie MacPhee) was third.
Rebelforce sports a record reading 3-2-4 in 11 outings with earnings totaling $12,328. The homebred son of Force Of Life-Karen Rebel was a winner in a Grassroots division of the Joe O’Brien Memorial at the start of the month.
Woodmere Digger (2:06.2) and Waterside King (2:05.4) picked up victories in a pair of $6,200 Grassroots divisions.
Acton Normal bounced back after making a break in the Maritime Breeders at Truro Raceway last weekend with a dominant victory on Saturday afternoon. The daughter of Toofunnyforwords-Call It Life left from Post 2 and wired the field of fillies in their single $20,400 Lady Slipper Stake Gold division. She stopped the clock in 2:01.3 with more than three lengths to spare. K D Go Onn (Gilles Barrieau) rallied off cover to place and Forthena (Clare MacDonald) came from the backfield to show.
Tom Weatherbie trains and owns Acton Normal, who has won nine of her 13 career starts including a Grassroots division of the Lady Slipper Stake on Aug. 25 at Summerside. The lion’s share of the purse boosted her bankroll to $26,852.
Kaileys The Name (2:05.2) and Sunnysidegal (2:05) won their respective $7,500 Grassroots divisions.
Kenny Arsenault scored a training triple during the 15-race card with stakes winner Waterside King, top class pacer Yankee Sun and three-year-old filly Meridian Magic, who bounced back after a close loss in her Lady Slipper Gold division on Oct. 20 at Summerside that ended her 25-race win streak.
To view Saturday's results, click here.