A change of scenery might have been just what the doctor ordered for Surrealist, who returned to his regular place of business on Saturday afternoon and dominated his rivals.
After a trip to Summerside last week, Surrealist was back in action at Northside Downs as one of six horses entered in the $1,100 Winners Over pace. With Ryan Campbell at the controls, Surrealist was nestled into fourth as Chapter clicked off a :28.4 first panel and :58.2 half. Campbell has Surrealist advancing first over and forged to the front before the 1:27 third station. A lead that was less than two lengths with a quarter of a mile to go became a four-length margin at the head of the stretch and widened to a near seven-length cushion when the timer was tripped in a seasonal best 1:57. Last week's Winners Over winner Im A Sumbunnie (Kevin Bailey) was the runner-up with Accelerator (Keith Dicks) completing the triactor.
Surrealist (Modern Art-Keeping Secrets) now sports 60 lifetime wins and more than $283,000 in purse earnings for trainer-owner Dana Getto of New Waterford, N.S. The 11-year-old war horse has posted an impressive 6-6-2 summary from 15 seasonal starts.
An accident marred the sixth race on the card, sending driver Russell MacDonald to local hospital. MacDonald's horse Grandtacular was pacing in the pocket and fell just past the three-quarter mark, with Pictonians Cyrus (Greg Sparling) and Eastern Eden (Adam Lynk) unable to avoid the fallen horse.
MacDonald was conscious after the spill and taken to Cape Breton Regional Hospital with undetermined injuries. Adam Lynk and Greg Sparling both suffered bumps and bruises but didn't require further medical treatment. The extent of injuries to the horses isn't known at this time but Trot Insider has learned that Grandtacular suffered a number of scrapes and cuts after the fall.
UPDATE: MacDonald's son informed Trot Insider on Saturday evening that the horseman suffered a broken hip and is waiting to go to surgery.
Further updates will be posted when available.
For the charted results from Northside's Saturday card of harness racing, click the following link: Saturday Results - Northside Downs.