The inaugural edition of the Meridian Trotting Series, sponsored by Standardbred Canada and Meridian Farms, will headline the Saturday harness racing program at Red Shores at Charlotteown Driving Park
. The series is for aged mares that are Canadian sired and/or 100 per cent Canadian owned.
Five-year-old Diana Car will star in the first of two $2,525 opening leg divisions, set for Race 4 on the 12-race program. Assigned the outside post position in a field of six, the Marc Campbell trainee will look to score her fifth Red Shores win while making her eighth start on the East Coast with Kenny Arsenault in the sulky. The daughter of Pistols N Spurs was purchased in early May by Michael Bailey and Ambrose Laybolt of Morell, P.E.I. and took her mark of 2:01.3 in the Open Trot at Charlottetown on June 16, and then equalled that time in her last start in the top trot on July 14. She has been assessed as the 5-2 morning line favourite.
Dusty Lane Shelby will tackle five other foes in the second division, slated for Race 6, as the early 5-2 favourite. The nine-year-old daughter of Imperial Angus, who has five top three finishes in nine starts so far this year, will be looking for her first win of the season with Corey MacPherson at the helm. The Mitchell Tierney trainee has been a consistent competitor amongst the Open ranks at Charlotteton for years. Jaime Lynne Tierney of Cornwall, P.E.I. owns the veteran mare.
Trainer Stacey Lund will send a pair of starters in the first leg with 8-1 longshot K Ys Snow Meadow looking to break her maiden from the rail in the first division and 3-1 second choice Flashys Image tackling the second split from Post 5. Gary Chappell will drive both mares.
First race post time is 7 p.m.
The second leg of the series will be held on Saturday, August 13 with the $2,700 (added) final slated for the following Saturday, August 20.
To view Saturday’s harness racing entries, click on the following link: Saturday Entries – Charlottetown Driving Park.
For free, printable TrackIT program pages, click here.