The first afternoon card of harness racing during 2019 Old Home Week took place on Saturday (August 10) at Red Shores Racetrack & Casino at the Charlottetown Driving Park, with three-year-old pacing fillies from the Atlantic Sires Stakes taking centre stage.
Saturday's leg of the ATSS featured three A $8,800 divisions and three B divisions each going postward for a $2,500 purse.
Howmac Sabrina picked up her second stakes win of the season with a ground-saving 1:58.1 score in the first A division. Driver Dave Dowling pocketed Howmac Sabrina behind Emilys Angel (Kenny Arsenault), who fronted the field of five through fractions of :29.2, :59.3 and 1:29.2. Unapologetically (Marc Campbell) applied pressure to the pacesetter through the last stanza of the mile and got to within a quarter of a length of the lead but could not press by on the outside. Dowling angled Howmac Sabrina to the passing lane in the stretch and just got up in time for the win and earned a new lifetime mark.
Emilys Angel finished second but was placed third for slipping inside two pylons at the head of the stretch and being lapped-on at the wire. So even though Unapologetically couldn't get by Emilys Angel, she still picked up place honours as Emilys Angel was second place third.
Mike Dowling trains Howmac Sabrina (Malicious - Howmacs Princess) for Brittany Watts and Windemere Farms of North Wiltshire, PEI. In 10 sophomore starts, Howmac Sabrina has hit the board nine times with a solid 2-3-4 summary to sport $17,153 in earnings.
Back In The Game made a splash on a soggy Saturday afternoon by lighting up the Red Shores toteboard and winning as the longest shot on the board in the second A division. Miss Dynamite D (Redmond Doucet) did all the early work in the front end by putting up uncontested fractions of :29.1, :58.2 and 1:29.1. Favoured Therealdeal (Walter Cheverie) started to pressure the leader around the final turn with Arsenault finding a seam to follow Therealdeal from fourth and into second-over striking position with Back In The Game. Arsenault wasn't second over for long, tipping three-wide around that far turn. When the field straightened for home, Back in The Game flew by her rivals and hit the wire a length to the good in a lifetime best 1:59 at odds of 22-1. The Devils Cut (Mike McGuigan) was a pylon-skimming second with Therealdeal rounding out the triactor.
After a winless rookie campaign, Back In The Game picked up her second win of the season in six starts for trainer Arsenault and owners Kevin Harvey of Hammonds Plains, N.S. and Charles Bowlin, Grand Barachois, N.B. She's banked $4,888 in thos six starts.
The final A division of the card was the most impressive performance of the three as Woodmere Oleksiak repelled all rivals in a wire-to-wire victory. Driver Dave Dowling landed on the lead early from post two, stole early splits of :30.1 and 1:00.1 before turning on the jets in the back half of the mile. After the three-quarter station was reached in 1:29.4, Woodmere Oleksiak sped home in :28.2 to hold off favoured Arc Light (Campbell) by three lengths, with the mile timed in 1:58.1 to give Dowling his fourth win of the card. Elm Grove Nellie (Dale Spence) completed the top three.
Trained by Earl Watts, Woodmere Oleksiak (Articulator - Oh Pretty Leigh) won her fourth race of the season to accompany her three place finishes in 11 starts and sports a solid seasonal bankroll of $18,349 for Hollis Newson of Cornwall,PEI, Debbie Denney of Brooklyn, N.S., Ric Mcnutt of Onslow Mtn., N.S. and Windemere Farms of North Wiltshire, P.E.I.
The three B divisions went to Glasgow Gracie (2:01.1), Fern Hill Delight (2:00), and Khitam Image (2:00.4).
Racing continues on Saturday night at Charlottetown with the first Trial of the 60th Guardian Gold Cup & Saucer. To view the results from Saturday afternoon, click the following link: Saturday Results - Charlottetown Driving Park.