Trainer Arthur Rey and driver Tyler Grundy had quite the Sunday this past weekend at the Miami Fair in Manitoba, as the duo clicked for victories in both the $4,679 Golden Boy Stakes and the $4,724 Silk Lace Stakes.
The Golden Boy came first on the docket (Race 2), and three-year-old Whatayasay colt Racemup ($6.00) was the grittiest of all, as he persevered through an overland trip to record a head victory in 2:04.3.
The co-second choice at 2-1 left from Post 2 and was on the outer tier at each of the calls (:29, :59, 1:30.3). The brown homebred of Arthur Rey (of St. Claude, Manitoba) made the lead late in the third quarter and was a half-length clear at the top of the stretch. He had enough left to hang on for the narrow victory at the wire.
After having surveyed the scene from the pocket, the Dean Rey-driven Good Eye Hawkeye popped out of the garden spot late in the third quarter. He made a bid for the wire, but just fell short and finished second.
Reys N A Ruckus (driven by Michel Rey), who had stalked from the backfield, came on to finish third, five lengths in arrears of Racemup.
After having gone unraced as a two-year-old, Racemup has now won two of his three starts and has banked $4,037 in purses.
Rey and Grundy’s next stakes score came two dashes later (in Race 4), as the battery clicked with three-year-old Playboy Killen filly Release The Baby ($5.90), who recorded a wire-to-wire, 2:01.4 victory in the Silk Lace.
Release The Baby, who is also a Rey homebred, started from Post 2, cut all the fractions (:30.3, 1:02.2, 1:31.4), and came home with a 30-second final quarter. The winning margin was two lengths and the 2:01.4 clocking was a new life’s mark for the bay.
Mona Lisa Grit (Don Howlett), who sat a two-hole ride through the fractions, finished second. Dontchase Justpace (Dean Rey) had come first-up from third in the middle half, but ultimately had to settle for third.
Release The Baby has now won three of her six lifetime starts, and she has yet to finish off the board in her six-race career. Release The Baby has banked $9,245 in overall purses.
Rey completed a training triple during the program, as he also won with Connors Request ($2.40) in Race 7.
The ten-race program concluded with a $3,500 Open Pace, which featured a field of four. It was the Trevor Williams-trained and Don Howlett-driven Full Moon Dodger ($3.90) that was much the best in the tilt, as the seven-year-old Brandons Cowboy gelding went gate-to-wire in 2:00 and won by six lengths as the public’s odds-on choice.
Like Rey, Williams also recorded a training triple during the program, as in addition to capturing the Open, he also notched victories with Tahuyo Rico ($3.70, Race 3) and Blue Eyed Cowboy ($5.70, Race 8).
To view the harness racing results for Sunday at Miami, click the following link: Sunday Results – Miami.