Alexia Kehl is making the most of her time with veteran trotter Serene Hall, the horse that delivered her first pari-mutuel driving victory in late December.
Currently overseeing a stable of seven at the Cal Expo meet, Kehl has a particular soft spot for the nine-year-old son of Guccio out of Duchess Hall, who has more than $200,000 in earnings.
“He doesn’t have a big personality like some horses; he just goes out and does his job,” related Kehl. “He’s a pleasure to drive, which makes him the perfect horse for an amateur driver like me.”
That poise and reliability helped ease some nerves when Kehl climbed into the sulky on Dec. 28. Serene Hall was sent off as the heavy 3-5 favourite, adding extra pressure to the moment.
After a patient trip tracking the pace, Kehl made a sweeping move off the final turn and powered home in a five-length romp in 2:01.3 over a 'good' track.
“There’s even more pressure when the public expects you to win, but everything worked out perfectly that night,” she noted.
Beyond Serene Hall, Kehl also conditions the talented trotter Dylan The Great, a recent Open Trot winner who has finished second in his last two starts at that level.
Kehl plans to remain at the meet through May before returning to Minnesota, where she looks forward to working with a couple of promising young prospects.
Cal Expo Cards Contentious Main Event Saturday
Saturday night’s featured $6,500 USD Open III Pace at Cal Expo offers several intriguing contenders, including the classy veteran Allmyxsliventexas and the hard-knocking Love Your Work A.
A fan favourite at the track, Allmyxsliventexas boasts an impressive résumé with 65 wins from 215 starts, more than $385,000 in earnings and a 1:50 lifetime mark taken as a five-year-old. Now 12, the Hi Ho Silverheels-Annie Get Your Gun homebred races for owner Wayne Knittel, is trained by Bob Johnson and will have James Kennedy in the sulky.
Love Your Work A enters this race after competing in some of Cal Expo's toughest company, including last month’s Dave Goldschmidt and a pair of Open events. Owned by Sarah Solheid and Brian Detgen, the eight-year-old Western Terror-Billabong Girl gelding will once again be guided by driver/trainer Nick Roland.
Capt Jack Hanover steps up in class, aiming for his fourth straight victory. The seven-year-old Captaintreacherous-Current Hanover is co-owned by driver/trainer John MacDonald, Michael Kessler and Speed to Burn Racing Stable.
Also lining up in this competitive affair are Tommy Shelby, Albergo Hanover, Major Offense and Myartbelongstorock.
A co-featured Open III on the nine-race card has the streaking mare, Graceful Horizon, stepping up to challenge the boys. Graceful Horizon enters the race in top form, having won three of her last four starts for Set The Pace Racing. With Nick Roland handling both training and driving duties, all eyes will be on this talented seven-year-old daughter of Vertical Horizon-Gracie Montana to see how she stacks up against the boys.
First post is set for 6:35 p.m. under the Watch and Wager LLC banner.
(With files from Cal Expo)