Two $26,000-plus divisions of the Maine Sire Stakes for three-year-old filly pacers closed out the harness racing at Windsor Fair on Labour Day Monday (Sept. 2) when top filly Gowestyounggrace picked up her seventh straight victory.
Scoring from post two, driver Dave Ingraham never had an anxious moment with the talented daughter of Western Maverick. The pair set comfortable fractions of :29.4 and 1:00.3 while pacing effortlessly to the opening half through an eerily unique silence.
The silence of the crowd and the announcer was not due to any technical malfunction, but as a tribute to the late Bill Ellis, the former track announcer for many of the Maine Fairs and president of the New England Chapter of the U.S. Harness Writers. Mike Cushing proclaimed after the ‘silent half’ that Bill Ellis was perhaps “calling that race from up above.”
With Gowestyounggrace calling all the shots, and Mike Cushing back calling all the action, the rest of the field was feverishly trying to catch the 1-5 pacesetter. Pocket-sitting Emma Rozze (Heath Campbell) was well positioned at the 1:30.2 third panel with Ghost Of You (Kevin Switzer Jr.) moving first-over.
As the field turned for home, the top filly was asked for a little more and responded with a :28.3 final quarter to win by 2-1/2 lengths in 1:59. Emma Rozze finished second and Whos Perfect (Aaron Hall) was third.
Gowestyounggrace is trained by Fred Ward Jr., who co-owns and bred the illy with his wife Sharon Ward. The win was the eighth this season from a dozen starts for Gowestyounggrace and marked her 13th victory overall, lifting her bankroll to $157,917.
She paid $2.40 to win the first division.
In the second division, My Sweet Revenge exacted retribution against her colleagues as she took matters into her own hands and scored from off the pace.
When the gate sprung, Walter Case Jr. sent 4-5 favourite Mrs Foxy Roxy right to the top from post two and set a :29.4 first quarter, with Pembroke Red (Heath Campbell) giving chase in the pocket. The field raced in single-file as the sophomore fillies passed the stands the first time and clocked 1:00.4 to the half.
With Case looking for his third win in a row with the pacesetting bettors' choice, he increased the tempo to a 1:30.1 with My Sweet Revenge moving first-over and challenging with stablemate Animore Sass (Andy Harrington) right behind them second-up.
Round the turn they paced with My Sweet Revenge gaining ground with every stride to cause a mild upset and prevail by two lengths in 1:59.3. Animore Sass was a fast-closing second and Mrs Foxy Roxy hung on for third.
Trained by Marc Tardif for owner Leighton Property, the daughter of Western Maverick took a new lifetime mark while winning her second race of the season. My Sweet Revenge was bred in Maine by Laurie Harding and Reginald Duguay.
She paid $5.80 to win.
The Maine Sire Stakes returns to Bangor on Wednesday, Sept. 4 for the two-year-old male pacers and continues on Saturday, Sept. 7 for all four divisions of trotters and Sunday, Sept. 8 with the two-year-old filly pacers.
(With files from Maine Sire Stakes)