A horrific eight-horse accident marred Monday night’s $55,400 Ontario Boys Pacing Series final
for four-year-olds at Woodbine Racetrack.
The event went to Windsun Twister who overtook Dinner Guest in the stretch to score in 1:56. They were the only two horses to finish the race.
The mishap occurred as the field approached the half. Warp Speed, who was sitting in third position, took a bad step and tumbled suddenly to the track. This caused a chain reaction as none of the other seven horses were able to avoid the fallen pacer.
Drivers Roger Mayotte (Shiny Mach) and Robert Shepherd (Rust Belt) were transported to local hospital and the extent of their injuries is not known at this time. Mario Baillargeon (Warp Speed) was also sent to hospital with a suspected broken ankle.
Chris Christoforou (Hemingway Hudson) was able to leave the track under his own steam but did book off his remaining drives.
Warp Speed, who got up without his driver following the spill, ran off the racetrack and into the paddock barn. He suffered several lacerations but appeared alert afterward in the paddock.
The victory was the third in seven starts this season for Windsun Twister who is trained by Alvin Hamilton. He co-owns the pacer along with the Black Walnut Stables and David McNabb of Ontario.
The lion’s share of the purse boosted his earnings to just over $90,000 lifetime.
(WEG)
To view Monday’s results, click here.
What a terrible accident for
What a terrible accident for all involved.....just so glad that there were no worse injuries!! After a bad accident like this there should be more drivers thinking of wearing back protectors....as hockey & NFL players use all that padding all the time...why not them...when going at those speeds behind a moving horse...& others are falling around you!!?? It ALWAYS takes an accident to raise awareness of anything!! Dare i say maybe shorter reins would maybe...just maybe...help those to be able to steer more quickly out of trouble...every second counts in a bad incident!! I know i.ve been there too!! The older style of driving maybe doesn.t LOOK so 'COOL'...but hey....safety first eh!!?? Who knows one day with people starting to pay more attention to the unnecessary whipping of horses etc. etc...& turning to look at safety issues for horses & people...the sport could get back to it.s proper position in the peoples eyes...this is a great sport & we should all try to make it better.