Captain Tate tied the Inverness Raceway track record for a three-year-old pacing colt as he won his second straight $2,000 Winners Over Pace and extended his win streak to eight on Wednesday, Sept. 2.
Mcland (Zach Mullins) launched from the rail, forcing Walter Walker to duck the hustling Captain Tate into the two-hole to a :29 quarter. Mcland sped along to the half in :57.4, taking a 2-1/2-length lead, but came into the clutches of the field going to three-quarters in 1:27, with Captain Tate swinging out at the top of the far turn and Stay Pumped (Keigan Madden) joining them three-wide from third. Captain Tate dispatched the fatigued Mcland in the stretch and held off Stay Pumped by a half-length to triumph in 1:56.1. Mcland finished third.
The clocking tied the sophomore male pace mark previously produced by Rancousy in 2014 and Smilin With Lou earlier this year.
Captain Tate is 13-for-17 in his three-year-old campaign after a zero-for-five rookie season. He has risen through the conditions this season, from the non-winners-of-one class in May to the top level in the last week. Walker trains the Captain Crunch-Ginger Tree Nina colt, who has now earned $13,591, for James MacInnnis of Halifax, N.S. The win price was $4.10.
The card was the last Wednesday program of the season at Inverness after last week's was cancelled due to a power outage. Racing will continue at the track on Sundays until Oct. 25.
To view Wednesday's harness racing results, click the following link: Wednesday Results - Inverness Raceway.
(Standardbred Canada)