Owning a racehorse is a lot of fun. Owning a stakes-winning racehorse is even more fun. Trainer John Pentland and the ownership group of Cheesy Smile definitely fall into the latter as they’ve been enjoying the ride their star freshman pacing filly has them on this season.
The daughter of Betterthancheddar is entered in the Ontario Sires Stakes (OSS) regular season finale on Thursday at Woodbine Mohawk Park as two $159,000 Gold Series divisions go postward -- one for two-year-old pacing fillies and one for three-year-old trotting fillies.
Pentland, a resident of London, Ont., co-owns Cheesy Smile with Cindy Molyneux (Sparta, Ont.), Peter Charlton (St. Thomas, Ont.) and Archie Leach (London, Ont.).
The veteran trainer has enjoyed his fair share of OSS and stakes success in his career, but Cheesy Smile’s triumphs this year to the tune of $164,697 and a pair of Gold wins are a new experience for the rest of the group.
“My partners haven’t been in that position before,” said Pentland. “It makes it that much more exciting to have people who haven’t been in that position before. It would be exciting regardless, but to see it from their perspective, it’s kind of new again, so I really appreciate that and I am having a lot of fun.”
Cheesy Smile has had tough sledding her previous two starts that included drawing an outside post position in the final of the Shes A Great Lady Stakes, but she showed plenty of heart, especially when pacing home in :25.4 in the final.
“She raced great in the elimination and the final. You couldn’t ask her to race any better than she did against that caliber,” said Pentland of the filly's Grand Circuit starts where she finished fourth in the elimination and seventh in the final. “She just couldn’t overcome the post position against those horses.”
On Thursday night, Cheesy Smile will have an outer post position once again, drawing post eight in the seventh race, with Bob McClure in the race bike. The 10-horse field contains Gold winners Big Big Plans, Starlight Dancer, Savethelastdance and Momentary Control.
“Even some of the fillies that haven’t won as much are really good fillies,” said Pentland. “It wouldn’t shock me no matter whose filly won the race. I don’t think any of them should be underestimated.”
The other OSS division goes in race five with nine sophomore trotting fillies challenging division leader and Grand Circuit stakes winner Adare Castle. The standout filly went over the $1 million mark in earnings in her last start with a runner-up finish in the Elegantimage Stakes for trainer/co-owner Mark Etsell and his partners, Robert Newton (Walkerton, Ont.), Graham Hopkins (Chesley, Ont.) and Peter Porter (Port Dover, Ont.).
Post time for Thursday's card is 7 p.m.
To view Thursday's harness racing entries, click the following link: Thursday Entries - Woodbine Mohawk Park.
(With files from Ontario Racing)