Top Alberta pacing colt Wrangler Betonme surfaced on track for the start of his sophomore campaign during Sunday's qualifying session at Alberta Downs
.
Reunited with regular reinsman Bill Tainsh Jr., the Glenda Smith trainee left from post two and cruised through fractions of :29.1, :59.2, and 1:27.3 en route to a two and a quarter length victory in 1:56.4 over older pacers Flak Jacket (Jamie Gray) and Barona Ferrari (Bobby Clark).
Wrangler Betonme won his last eight of nine races as a freshman including the Alberta Sires Stakes Super Final. His mark of 1:54, taken in sires stakes action at Alberta Downs on Oct. 2 was a track record and earned him a spot on the 2012 U.S. Hoof Beats/TrackMaster Predictive Top 25 Rankings for his division. The $97,710 earner was also named Two-Year-Old Alberta Sired Colt of the Year.
Wrangler Betonme is owned and bred by Leduc's Dr. Maurice Stewart and his wife Maureen. Friends and new racehorse owners Lyle and Sandy Reid of Sherwood Park also share ownership.
The As Promised-Ja El Shamrock colt is being primed for the upcoming stakes season, which begins in early June.
To view Sunday's qualifying results, click on the following link: Sunday Results (Qualifiers) - Alberta Downs.