The highlights of the card on Saturday, June 15 at Century Downs were the lucrative stakes finals for three-year-old pacers, but the star of the card was driver Brandon Campbell.
With 11 dashes contested, Campbell clicked in six to win more than half the card, with four of those winners coming from his own barn.
Grey Horizon delivered the biggest score on the night for Team Campbell with a convincing win in the $90,000 Moores Mile Breeders Stakes for three-year-old male pacers. Sent off as the 1-5 choice, Grey Horizon sat the pocket for Campbell behind Rum N Custard (Kelly Hoerdt) through opening fractions of :27.1, :56 and 1:24.2. Once that third station was reached, Campbell tugged on that right line and asked Grey Horizon to accelerate, and accelerate he did but clearing Rum N Custard through the far turn. With a :28.4 final quarter, Grey Horizon finished nine lengths the best and stopped the clock in a lifetime best 1:53.2. Rum N Custard was all by himself in second with Nevada Dragon (Nathan Sobey) best of the rest in third.
A roan son of Vertical Horizon - Panagler, Grey Horizon picked up his second win this year and seventh lifetime to establish a career summary of 7-5-0 from 13 starts with $144,550 in purses for Jodi Loftus, Raymond Henry and George Rogers of Calgary, Alta.
Grey Horizon ($2.40) provided Campbell with his fourth training win of the card, connecting earlier with Promising Shadow (2:00.2; $6.30) in Race 3, Skys Little Spunk (1:56.1; $3.50) in Race 6 and Yenoh Who (1:57; $4.10) in Race 9.
Campbell's other catch-driving wins came courtesy Two Fingers Gold (1:57; $17.50) in the fifth race and Fillies & Mares Preferred winner Stash The Cookies ($2.80), a wire-to-wire winner in 1:55.4 for trainer John Chappell and owner Derek Gilbert.
The co-feature of the day was the $118,000 Shirley McClellan Breeders Stakes for three-year-old pacing fillies. Outlawguns N Roses had the majority of the public support in this one, bet down to 1-4. But Mike Hennessy and Byby Baby Byby hit the opening turn of that dash on a mission to make Outlawguns N Roses earn the front end and control of the race. Parked through a sharp :26.3 opening quarter, driver Dave Kelly ratcheted back the speed after clearing Byby Baby Byby with middle fractions of :55.4 and 1:25.2. But the damage had been done.
Hitting the stretch, Byby Baby Byby took her shot at the softened favourite and forged past to win by a length in 1:54.1. Outlawguns N Roses stayed for second with longshot Foothills Magic (Phil Giesbrecht) rounding out the triactor.
Trainer Rod Hennessy would likely agree that it was a great time for Byby Baby Byby (Vertical Horizon - Ba Bye Ceia Later) to pick up her first win of the year and fifth lifetime for breeder-owners Bryan Brook, Leduc and Diane Hennessy of Strathmore, Alta. The lion's share of the purse pumped the filly's earnings up to $148,160 lifetime. She paid $8.60 to win as the 3-1 second choice.
Live harness racing returns to Century Downs with a special Father's Day card on Sunday, June 16.
For results from Saturday's card of harness racing, click the following link: Saturday Results - Century Downs.
(Standardbred Canada)