The last time Storybook Love stepped onto a racetrack in a charted mile, she capped her O'Brien Award-winning rookie season with a thrilling Breeders Crown victory. Some six months later, the trotter returned to that scene of that triumph and delivered another winning effort.
A total of nine qualifying dashes went postward on Friday, May 8 at Woodbine Mohawk Park with the debuting Storybook Love starting the next episode of her already-impressive career. The daughter of Chapter Seven-Stirling Debutant stepped away from the gate swiftly for driver Todd Ratchford, fronted the field through fractions of :29.2, 1:01.3 and 1:31.2 and then closed confidently in :27.4 to trip the timer in 1:59.1. Cadillac (Trevor Henry) was next best, more than four lengths back, with The Green Gazoo (Louis-Philippe Roy) finishing third.
Trained by Matt Bax, Storybook Love sports a 4-4-1 summary from 12 appearances with a mark of 1:52.2 and earnings of $687,226. The award winner is owned by Al Libfeld of Pickering and Hall of Famer Brad Grant of Milton, Ont.
One qualifier earlier, sophomore pacing colt Sweet Lovin Lou clocked the fastest time of the session with a 1:53 effort in his second appearance of the season. Driver James MacDonald sat Sweet Lovin Lou in third during his prep mile as Major Miki (Trevor Henry) posted the first panel in :29, then right-lined the son of Sweet Lou - Lovers Dream down the backside to clear before the :57 half. After a 1:25.4 third station, Sweet Lovin Lou paced home in :27.1 to complete the mile in 1:53. Major Miki stayed for second, three parts of a length back, with Barracuda Hanover (Tyler Borth) next across the wire.
Dan Lagace trains Pepsi North America Cup-eligible Sweet Lovin Lou, a three-time winner with $249,312 in earnings, for Lagace Stables of Cambridge, Ont., Edwin Buhler of Wantagh, N.Y., Big Als Stables of Woodbridge, Ont. and Brittany Farms Micki Rae of Versailles, Ky.
The video stream will be available below. The first qualifier is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. and the live stream should start shortly before 9:30.
For results from the qualifying session, click the following link: Friday Results - Woodbine Mohawk Park (Qualifiers).
(Standardbred Canada)