The Saturday (Aug. 5) card of harness racing at Century Downs featured eliminations for four lucrative stakes finals, with Virtual Horizon continuing his dominance over his division to run his win streak to double digits.
Virtual Horizon has been untouchable this season, winning nine straight coming into Saturday's card for trainer-driver Brandon Campbell and owners Jodi Loftus, George Rogers and Raymond Henry of Calgary, Alta. Sent off at 1-5 odds in his $14,000 Ralph Klein elimination, Virtual Horizon was sent on a front-end speed mission for Campbell. After a :28.1 first quarter and :57.1 half, Campbell tried to bottom out the field with a sizzling :27.2 third panel to reach three-quarters up by six lengths in 1:24.3. Over The Horizon started to made a dent into that lead for Nathan Sobey, but Virtual Horizon found the line just in time to win by a neck in 1:54.4. Mickie Mantle (Kelly Hoerdt) and Staythirsty De Vie (Phil Giesbrecht) finished third and fourth to punch their tickets to next week's $75,000 Klein final.
A son of Vertical Horizon - Saucy B, Virtual Horizon ($2.40) now boasts a lifetime summary of 13-1-2 in 17 career appearances with $229,438 in earnings. The win with Virtual Horizon was the third win in a training triple for Campbell on the card.
The second Klein elim was won by the Pick 6 Stable's General Custard, a 1:53.4 winner for trainer-driver David Kelly who returned $3.40. The son of Custard The Dragon - Grinandchaseit was a length better than Handsome Dan (Giesbrecht) with Blue Star Mercury (Mike Hennessy) and Lumber Baron (Hoerdt) best of the rest. The race was marred by an accident when Mercedes (Campbell) made a break in stride that caused interference to Opulent Dragon (Tyler Redwood), Five Star Dragon (Sobey) and Jus Ched (Logan Gillis). Sobey drove in the next race, but the other drivers were taken to hospital for further evaluation. All horses involved walked off the track under their own power. Trot Insider will provide updates on the drivers once they are made available.
Next week's Gord & Illa Rumpel Memorial for three-year-old pacing fillies appears to a match-up pitting two of western Canada's best against each other for the first time. Side Piece ($2.40) has seen more qualifying action than starts in 2023, but the filly has been perfect in her three pari-mutuel appearances this season. Her Rumpel elim win on Saturday in 1:55 gives her six straight scores. She was four lengths better than Riskofthunderstorm (Kelly), with Iris Seelster (Sobey) and Short Sell Hanover (Hoerdt) completing the advancing quartet. Brandon Campbell was at the controls, and he's handling the filly's conditioning in Alberta for owners J J J Stables of Prince George and Jim Marino of Surrey, B.C. Side Piece (Shadow Play - Queen Otra) is now seven-for-nine lifetime with $110,100 in earnings.
Her main competition looks to come in the form of G Ts Skyla, a Rumpel elim winner by more than 10 lengths in a lifetime best 1:53.4 over Caviar N Crackers (Giesbrecht), Dear John Im Gone (Campbell) and Bee Bop A Lula (Kelly). Logan Gillis handled the lines on the daughter of Mystican - G Ts Selene for trainer Scott McGinn, who co-owns with Gerald, Marjorie & Terry McGinn of Stony Plain, Alta. With Saturday's win, she pushed her career summary to 8-2-0 in 11 appearances with a bankroll of $121,125. She returned $2.70 on a $2 win ticket.
Both the Klein and Rumpel finals are set for next Saturday, Aug. 12.
The two $12,500 ASHA Filly elims featured a pair of maiden-breakers, with Outlawguns N Roses and Foothills Magic each making their winner's circle debuts.
Outlawguns N Roses (Captive Audience - Gunslingin Gal) was a wire-to-wire 1:56.2 winner by more than three lengths for driver David Kelly, besting Dragon Dancer (Hoerdt), Byby Baby Byby (Hennessy) and Long Gone Lover (Campbell). The winning filly is trained by Rod Starkewski, and he co-owns with Clauzette Byckal of Onoway, Alta. Outlawguns N Roses paid $5.80 to win.
Foothills Magic was a 1:59 winner for trainer-driver Jamie Gray in the second ASHA Filly elim, popping the pocket on pacesetter Sandras Mystery (Campbell) to win by two lengths. Delta Sunrise (Kelly) and Heart Of Art (Sobey) rounded out the top four. Gray also co-owns the daughter of Captive Audience - B C Fantasy with J J J Stables of Prince George and Paul Sanders of Surrey, B.C. She paid $11.80 to win.
Gray has a solid shot at sweeping the two-year-old stakes finals on Aug. 16, as he also piloted Come On Santana to a dominant win in the first $12,500 Century Casinos elimination. The son of Santanna Blue Chip - Sealedwithapromise was nearly 10 lengths better than his rivals, with the official margin at 9-3/4 lengths over One Hot Minute (Campbell), HF Winknat Shadows (Hoerdt) and One More Rocky (Hennessy) in a 1:57.1 effort. Gray bred and co-owns the gelding, who paid $2.40 to win on Saturday, along with Max Gibb of Millarville and Riley & Brie Gray of Sturgeon County, Alta.
Grey Horizon ($2.30) will have something to say about that. The son of Vertical Horizon - Panagler has been perfect for trainer-driver Campbell and owners Jodi Loftus, George Rogers and Raymond Henry of Calgary, Alta. thus far in his three-start career, winning his Century Casinos elim in 1:57. He was a neck better than HF Winknat Jenna (Kelly) with Cenalta Gunfire (Hoerdt) and Rememberthecustard (Hennessy) more than a dozen lengths in arrears.
The finals of the ASHA Filly and Century Casinos are slated for a special midweek card of harness racing at Century Downs on Wednesday, Aug. 16.
To view the results of Saturday's card at Century Downs, click the following link: Saturday Results - Century Downs.
(photos, clockwise from top left: Outlawguns N Roses, Grey Horizon, Virtual Horizon and G Ts Skyla)
Virtual Horizon
Virtual Horizon is the only standardbred in North America that has raced 10 or more times in 2023 and is undefeated.