Three-year-old trotting fillies made their way to Georgian Downs on Tuesday evening to do battle in five OSS Grassroots divisions, and it turned out to be a solid night at the office for the tandem of driver Chris Christoforou and trainer Mark Steacy.
The duo joined forces to win with Swishnflick in coast-to-coast fashion, and they went their separate ways to secure another stakes victory on the same program. Swishnflick chopped out fractions of :28.3, :58.1 and 1:27.3 over a track rated ‘sloppy’ before firing home in :29.1 en route to a half-length victory over Muscle Magic in a time of 1:56.4. Race favourite I Like My Kaddy rounded out the top three finishers.
Landmark V Racing Stable, Diane Bertrand, Rick Karper and Conrad Leber share ownership on the daughter of Kadabra-Village Babe, who now boasts a 3-4-2 record from just 11 trips to the track this season. The four-time winner has stashed away close to $50,000 in earnings this year and more just shy of $70,000 to date.
Juliet also nabbed a stakes victory for trainer Steacy, and she did so in gate-to-wire fashion for driver Mike Saftic. The filly lead the field through intervals of :27.4, :56.4 and 1:26.4 before tacking on a :29.4 closing panel for good measure. She held on to win by a half-length over Moms Apple Pie in 1:56.3. Race favourite Legzy had to settle for the show dough.
Sent off as the third choice in the wagering at odds of 3-1, Juliet won for the second time in 10 tries this season. Despite going winless in nine starts as a freshman, the filly has managed to bank nearly $40,000 for Landmark V Racing Stables, David Reid, A K Malik Stable and Salt Hill Farm Ltd.
As for Christoforou, his other stakes winner was Fathers Amiga. The daughter of Amigo Hall-Fathers Daughters rallied to win in 1:57.2 at odds of 13-1 for trainer Ed Peconi, Jr. The filly drew away to win by 3-1/2 lengths over Ms Warkentin, with Atalanta taking home third prize.
Patricia Wall of Omemee and James Patrick Wall of Youngs Point, ON own the maiden-breaking winner, who started the season 0-for-10 after an 0-for-7 rookie campaign. The sophomore has banked $22,237 to date.
Wind Stroll extended her winning streak to three-in-a-row thanks to her 1:58 triumph for the tandem of driver Sylvain Filion and trainer Julie Walker. The daughter of Muscle Mass-Southern Senorita was parked every step of the mile before sprinting away to win by 4-3/4 lengths over longshot Bop Too The Top. Armstead Kyra, who was sent off as the 4-5 favourite, recovered from an early miscue to finish third.
Tony Holmes and Walter Zent of Lexington, KY bred and own the filly, who now boasts a 3-0-1 record in five starts this season. The four-time winner increased her overall cash stash to $54,900 with the win.
Eloise Eden took the final division, and she was in a hurry to get things done for driver Paul MacDonell. The daughter of Ken Warkentin-Princess Peri, who clearly has a mind of her own, tore through panels of :27, :55.2 and 1:25 before coasting home in :31.3 to win by 10 lengths over Katla. Massmanian Devil completed the Triactor ticket in the $18,000 affair.
Dan Creighton trains the speedball for owner Mark Bowser of Charlottesville, VA, and together they’ve watched her assemble a 1-0-2 record from nine starts this season. The four-time winner bumped her lifetime bankroll to $53,867 with the win.
To view results for Tuesday's card of harness racing, click the following link: Tuesday Results – Georgian Downs.