Live harness racing returned to Fraser Downs on Saturday afternoon for its 2012 meet with the stakes action starting right out of the gate.
Gotta Have Nukes and I Hear Voices took top honours in the first leg of the B.C. Breeders Stakes for three-year-old pacing colts and geldings.
Gotta Have Nukes, the 2011 B.C. Breeders Stakes divisional champion, converted from the pocket to win the first $7,500 split in 1:55.4 for trainer-driver Rick White.
Gotta Have Nukes' stablemate Thieving Magpie and James Burke cleared to command early on and led the way past fractions of :28.2, :58.3 and 1:26.4 while turning back first over challengers Getmethruthenite and Gord Abbott. Down the stretch, Gotta Have Nukes pulled the pocket and kicked home in :28.3 to prevail by one and a half lengths. Lightly raced Mr Prospector and Allan Molloy trailed the field for most of the mile before coming on for third.
Owned and bred by White and June Kauffman of Washington, the Kents On Nuke-Samantha Square gelding has won half of his 12 career starts while banking more than $60,000.
I Hear Voices also benefitted from a pocket trip in his division and stormed home to nab the victory in a career-best 1:55.3 clocking with four-time winning driver Jim Marino in the sulky for trainer Ty O'Neill.
Procrastinatinpeat and Dave Hudon fired to the top from post six ahead of insider I Hear Voices and led the way through opening panels of :28.3 and :58.2. Hector Protector, driven by Glenn White, was flushed first up past the half and battled head-to-head with the leader down the backstretch to the 1:26.3 three-quarters station. Hector Protector eventually cleared to command into the final turn with second over Austinlavistababy and Rick White in pursuit and I Hear Voices rallying out wide. Using a :28.2 final frame, I Hear Voices got up in the final strides to steal the glory. Austinlavistababy and Hector Protector finished three-quarters of a length behind in second and third.
The homebred Kents On Nuke-Gabrielle Hall gelding earned his third win in 17 career starts and bumped his bankroll to $21,913 for the J J J Stables of Aldergrove, B.C.
In regular racing action, Sunbury Stables' homebred mare Jans Rich Girl picked up where she left off at the end of the meet in May with a victory in the $12,500 Fillies & Mares Open Pace.
Trained and driven by Scott Knight, the seven-year-old daughter of Camluck fired to command from the outside post five and carved out fractions of :28.1, :56.4 and 1:24.3 en route to a 1:53.3 score. Favourite Village Janus and Rod Therres finished three-quarters of a length behind off a pocket trip while Jennas Pass and Gord Abbott rounded out the top three finishers eight lengths behind.
The victory was Jans Rich Girl's 29th lifetime and pushed her bankroll to $238,107.
Live racing will continue every Saturday and Sunday at 12:45 p.m. until after the Labour Day weekend. Racing then shifts to a Friday and Saturday schedule with first race post time at 7 p.m.
To view Saturday's harness racing results, click on the following link: Saturday Results - Fraser Downs.