Dreamfair Eternal Lowers Canadian Record

Ontario-sired pacers and trotters returned to Georgian Downs for Saturday’s Gold Rush program featuring four Ontario Sires Stakes Gold finals for sophomores and two Masters Stakes for aged pacers, in which Dreamfair Eternal set a new Canadian and track record

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Three-year-old trotting fillies kicked off the stakes action in the first $130,000 Ontario Sires Stakes Gold final, which saw Peach Martini make a quarter pole move and duel with Oh Sweet Baby to the wire.

L A Freeway (Stephen Byron) worked her way to the lead ahead of the Rick Zeron-trained and driven Peach Martini and Oh Sweet Baby (Mario Baillargeon) during a 27.2 opening quarter. That lead was short-lived though as Peach Martini took over command with Oh Sweet Baby rolling up on the outside in front of the grandstand.

Peach Martini showed the way to the half in :57.2 and three-quarters in 1:26 with Oh Sweet Baby looming on the outside and favourite Lukes Sophie (Mark MacDonald) making a break while attempting a three-wide move.

Elimination winners Peach Martini and Oh Sweet Baby battled down the stretch, with Peach Martini hanging on for the career-best 1:55 score. Oh Sweet Baby was second with Eagle Canada (Doug McNair) following for third.

Prior to pulling off a sweep of the second Gold event, Peach Martini finished second in her first Gold elimination and the final at Western Fair Raceway at the end of May and was third in the Casual Breeze Stakes on June 3 at Mohawk Racetrack.

“I think the big difference is I didn’t race her in the Peaceful Way," said Zeron of his filly’s return to the winner’s circle. "We took her to London and raced her in the first Gold elimination and final and we brought her back and we raced her in the Casual Breeze and I said, ‘You know what, she’s an Ontario Sires Stakes filly so let’s just race her in the sires stakes.’ My partners agreed with me so we kind of shut her down for a couple of weeks and brought her back and her first race back in a month was last week.

"She’s professional through and through. She knows what she has to do and she takes her time," continued Zeron. "She rests a lot in the barn and when she goes out to race she knows what to do when she goes in behind the gate and she just does everything I ask her to do. She was tired coming to the wire fighting off Mario’s filly -- Mario and Benoit [Baillargeon] have a great filly -– but she wouldn’t let her get to her. She left everything out on the track tonight.”

Peach Martini paid $9.30 to win as the 7-2 second choice. The Striking Sahbra-Armbro Martini miss is owned by the Rick Zeron Stables of Oakville, Ont., the Rojan Stables of Wilmington, Delaware, Michael Katz of Thornhill, Ont. and Stephen Waldman of Toronto, Ont.

Reigning Horse of the Year Dreamfair Eternal blazed around the Innisfil oval to claim full rights to the track and Canadian record with her 1:50.3 mile in the $111,000 Masters Stakes for aged pacing mares.

Lady Latte (Scott Zeron) fired to command from Post 6, but inside starter Warrawee Koine (Rick Zeron) brushed out and around that foe during a 26.4 opening quarter. She was stuffed back into the pocket though as Dreamfair Eternal advanced from third and took over control in front of the grandstand.

Reunited with driver Randy Waples, Dreamfair Eternal raced past the half in :54.4 and three-quarters in 1:23 while Western Silk (Mark MacDonald) advanced first over. Rubuffing that challenger, Dreamfair Eternal kicked away to score the 1:50.3 triumph, lowering the track and Canadian record for aged pacing mares that she shared with Invitro by one-fifth of a second. Warrawee Koine and Lady Latte finished second and third.

“I wanted to win. That’s all I was thinking [turning for home],” said Waples. “I just wanted her to race good. It was nice to sit behind her again. I can go on and on about her but we’ve got a race coming up.”

“I wanted to give her a chance,” said Waples in regards to his decision to put Dreamfair Eternal on the front end tonight. “I have a lot of respect for Casie’s filly [Western Silk]. I just didn’t want to be coming at her and for her to be getting things her own way. It just worked out, it really did.

"She [Dreamfair Eternal] was so good tonight, she was right on her toes jogging around and I scored her out and she was just so sharp. She got away real good for her -- sometimes she kind of lags a little bit on the gate but she was chewing on the steel wanting to get out of there. She got away third and I just thought if I took a shot on the straightaway Ricky would let me go and draft and that’s what he did. She’s raced good on the front, she races great from behind, she races good first over. She’s just a great mare and she proved it again tonight.”

Dreamfair Eternal paid $3.40 to win as the 3-5 favourite. The seven-year-old daughter of Camluck-J Cs Nathalie is trained by Pat Fletcher for owner-breeder John Lamers of Ingersoll, Ont. The victory was her third in six outings so far this year and lifted her earnings to $158,240 for 2011 and $1,866,975 lifetime.

“It just keeps on coming,” commented Lamers. “We don’t like to race her in the winter time and with the five months off we just kept her fresh. We just kind of rubbed on her a bit and jogged her every other day and gave her five months off. And I think she’s as good or better than she ever was.”

Dreamfair Eternal will follow a similar stakes schedule in 2011 as she did last year with the Roses Are Red Stakes, Lady Liberty, Golden Girls, Milton Stakes and Breeders Crown on her radar.

Look Cheap rallied off cover to score a career-best 1:51.2 triumph in the next $130,000 Ontario Sires Stakes Gold final for three-year-old pacing fillies.

Elimination winner Village Janus (Scott Zeron) was the first to fire from Post 6 but found herself in third place by the opening quarter in :27.1 as Monkey On My Wheel (Rick Zeron) and the other elimination winner and favourite Modern Connection (Mark MacDonald) rolled to the top.

Village Janus went after the lead during the next interval and edged ahead at the half in :55.3 with Modern Connection trying to regain control as they raced to three-quarters in 1:22.1.

Meanwhile, Look Cheap and Robert Shepherd rallied three-wide around the final bend and kicked home in :28.4 to score the 1:51.2 victory. Mondern Connection finished second and Waasmula (Anthony Haughan) came on for third.

"I think after last week they put a headpole on the outside - she kind of gets a little sideways when she tries to go fast," said Shepherd of his filly's progress. "That's her problem, she's such high speed. Whenever you ask her to go she just tries to go as fast as she can all at once and gets all mixed up."

"She's a really nice filly, very high speed and she's very smart too. When she gets it together she will be a really nice filly."

Look Cheap, who was third-placed-fourth in his elimination, paid $20.10 for the 9-1 upset. Rod Boyd trains the Geartogear-Chimi Hanover filly for owner Tom Hill of Lancashire, Great Britain. After going winless in three starts as a freshman, Look Cheap has earned three wins with two seconds and one third in nine outings this year to bank $126,550.

Tamarind made a quarter pole move and held off the pocket-sitter to prevail in the next $130,000 Ontario Sires Stakes Gold final for three-year-old trotting colts.

Leaving from Post 7, Imperial Count (Scott Zeron) fired to command ahead of Money Max (Trevor Ritchie) with Tamarind and driver Sylvain Filion moving into third place after Mr Joe Sixpack (Rick Zeron) broke stride.

As Imperial Count his the first quarter in :27.1, Filion sent Tamarind to the top. The Angus Hall-Spicegirl Kosmos colt led the way past the half in :56.2 and three-quarters in 1:25 while Sim Brown (Randy Waples) advanced first over and the popular elimination winner Daylon Magician (Trevor Henry) went three-deep. Sim Brown jumped it off at the third quarter mark causing interference to Daylon Magician and some of the trailing horses.

Meanwhile, Tamarind came under attack by the pocket pulling Imperial Count in the stretch, but managed to hold him at bay for the career-best 1:54 victory by a neck. Daylon Magician finished third despite being bothered by the breaker.

"Last week after he made that break he came last half in :56 I think so I knew if we could keep him on his feet he would be tough to beat," said Filion in the winner's circle.

"He was kind of getting tired [in the stretch]. They came at us and he had to work hard, but he likes to win. He fought hard right to the wire."

Tamarind, a sixth-place finisher in the single elimination, paid $11.30 to win as the 9-2 third choice. Mark Steacy trains the winner of four races in seven starts this year and $108,000 for Landmark Iii Racing Stable of Elginburg, David Reid of Glenburnie and Stan Klemencic of Trenton, Ont.

Fresh off a record setting performance in his elimination, Watermelonwine delivered a front-stepping score in the $130,000 Ontario Sires Stakes Gold final for three-year-old pacing colts while his stablemate also cracked the top three.

Mystician (Mark MacDonald) fired off a :25.4 opening quarter before Watermelonwine and driver Scott Zeron advanced to the top from third. The Life Sign-Arukiddinme colt carved out the remaining fractions of :54.3 and 1:22.2 and opened up two and a half lengths on the field before halting the teletimer in 1:50.1. Mystician finished second with Watermelonwine’s barn buddy Prodigal Seelster (Randy Waples) third.

"I'm pretty happy with both colts in the barn," commented Menary. "I think we'll see 'Prodigal' bounce back. If he had of gotten away second he would have been second. He still had his ear plugs in at the wire. He's rounding back into form, but Watermelonwine is ultra sharp right now. He loves Georgian and I'm looking forward to racing him on a half."

Watermelonwine paid $3.90 to win as the 4-5 bettor’s choice. Dave Menary trains the winner of four races in six starts this year and $124,500 for owner Brad Gray of Dundas, Ont.

Strand Hanover went wire-to-wire to earn the final stakes victory of the night in the $119,000 Masters Stakes for older pacers, providing driver J.R. Plante with his biggest thrill yet.

Plante sent Strand Hanover to the top from Post 2 while elimination winner Ideal Race remained parked out through opening fractions of :26 and :54.3. With Ideal Race beginning to fade during the third quarter, Keystone Horatio (Randy Waples), who tipped out on his back, went wide. Strand Hanover hit three-quarters in 1:22 with a healthy two length lead on the field and charged home in :28-seconds for the victory in 1:50 flat, equalling his lifetime mark. Keystone Horatio finished one and three-quarter lengths behind with the popular pocket-sitter Alexie Mattosie (Dave Boughton) third.

"I was worried a little bit - it was a big half - but my horse felt strong," said Plante. "This is my biggest win in my career so far."

Strand Hanover paid $9.30 to win as the 7-2 third choice. The five-year-old son of Modern Art-Suntan Cathy is trained by Rene Allard, who co-owns with Brenda Selwyn Waxman of Dundas, Aaron Waxman of Burlington, Ont. The win was his third in 16 seasonal starts and pushed his earnings to $167,370 for 2011 and $312,790 lifetime.

"We were watching this horse when he was three years old and we bought him as a four-year-old," explained Allard. "He always showed some talent. We had some issues with him and had to give him some time off, but he always had lots of speed. He's been coming really strong as a five-year-old."

Saturday's racing action also included a $25,000 Preferred Trot, which went to wire-to-wire winner Kashs Caviar, in a career-best 1:54.2. The four-year-old son of Sjs Caviar-Ocala Kash won by six and a half lengths in rein to Sylvain Filion. Ben Baillargeon trains for Slaughter Racing Stable LLC of Prospect, Kentucky and Wayne Zollars of Mt. Vernon, Ohio.

For results from Saturday’s harness racing card, click on the following link: Saturday Results - Georgian Downs.