Caliban Hanover wore down pacesetter Dunmore Alpha to take home the lion’s share of the $1,400 purse in the Open Trot for trainer-driver Ronnie Gass Saturday afternoon at Charlottetown Driving Park
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Caliban Hanover, who was making his first start since January 30, got away six from Post 6, but was out and rolling after the :30.2 first quarter. As Dunmore Alpha (Edward Smallwood) directed the field past the half in 1:03.2 and three-quarters in 1:34.1, Caliban Hanover began to close in on the leader and those two hooked up at the top of the stretch. Caliban Hanover won the battle by three-quarters of a length for his second win in five seasonal starts. The Andover Hall-Crown Lavec gelding stopped the clock in 2:04.3. Fan favourite Flashy Image (Gary Chappell) followed Dunmore Alpha from the two-hole to pick up third.
The winning five-year-old pacer is owned by Wendell Macdonald of Cornwall, PE. For Caliban Hanover, the victory was his seventh lifetime and bumped his bankroll to $9,750.
Saturday’s top pacing event, worth $2,200, went to Roi De Coeur Bg and Brian MacPhee in 1:59.2. The seven-year-old gelded son of Passailed-Belle De Coeur Bg, owned and trained by Ken St John, won by half a length over Outlawpositivcharg (Terry Gallant) while Mighty And Strong (Ron Matheson) finished back in third.
Mike Stevenson enjoyed a productive afternoon at the Charlottetown half-miler steering five winners on the 12-race card. He earned his first win in the third race in line to his own pupil Clay Mater (2:01.3), a three-year-old Largo colt, before providing Duane MacEachern with a training triple aboard Life Savior (2:01.4), Porthill Alf (2:00.2) and Porthill Galaxy (2:00.1). Stevenson also won with Hutchinson Hanover (2:00) for trainer Jamie Smith.
To view Saturday's results, click here.