Flowing Tribute set a 1:55.2 track record for a two-year-old trotting filly, and The Green Gazoo equalled the local and Canadian standard for a rookie gelding trotter in Ontario Sires Stakes Gold Leg 4 action on Wednesday, Sept. 3 at Grand River Raceway.
Flowing Tribute’s record mile came in the second $90,000 freshman filly trot division with Bob McClure at the reins. Sent off as the 1-5 favourite, Flowing Tribute led the field through fractions of :27.2, :57.3, and 1:27.1 and defeated two-time Gold winner Bingo Night (Tyler Jones) by 2-1/4 lengths. Barbara May (Doug McNair) was third in the field of six.
Flowing Tribute paid $2.60 to win. Her mile lowered the Grand River record by more than a second and was two fifths off the Canadian divisional record of 1:55 set by Hall-of-Fame mare Bee A Magician at Georgian Downs in 2012.
The win was the third in the Gold Series this year for Flowing Tribute, a daughter of Green Manalishi S-Watch The Show trained by Paul Reid. The filly is now 5-4-1-0 with earnings of $165,600 for owners Patrick Dillon of Port Hope, Ont., Laurie Rooney of Deleon Springs, Fla., Brian Kleinberg of Madison, N.J., and Richard Beinhauer of Venetia, Pa. Bred by Diane Ingham of Mount Pleasant, Ont. and Brenda Barnim of St. George Brant, Ont., Flowing Tribute was purchased for $30,000 at the 2024 London Classic Yearling Sale.
In the first $90,000 Gold division for freshman trotting males, The Green Gazoo got up from the pocket to upset in a record effort with Trevor Henry in the sulky. Trouble With Names (McClure) led the field of seven through the first three stations with fractions of :27, :57.1, and 1:26.1, but 18-1 longshot The Green Gazoo shot up the inside in deep stretch to win by a neck over Trouble With Names in a career-best 1:56.3. Tavern Onthe Green (Louis-Philippe Roy) finished third.
The Green Gazoo now shares the Grand River record with You Got It Kemp and Pierre In Paris. The three geldings jointly hold the national record for a two-year-old gelded trotter with Dream Nation.
The son of Green Manalishi S-Tommi My Girl was bred by Dustin Jones Stables Inc. of Hamilton, Ont. and Hebert Horses Inc. of Montreal, Que. The Green Gazoo, owned by Coyote Wynd Farms of Oakville, Ont. and the gelding’s trainer, Clark Beelby of Campbellville, Ont., was purchased for $76,389 at the 2024 Harrisburg sale. The win improved The Green Gazoo to 2-1-0 in five career starts and upped his bankroll to $80,950. He paid $38.60 to win.
In the first division for filly trotters, Hp Crystaline (Louis-Philippe Roy) posted her first career victory, notching a 1:57.1 triumph in the five-horse field. She was on top through fractions of :27.4, :56.2, and 1:27.4 and was 2-1/4 lengths clear of Timeless (Todd Ratchford) at the line. Social Wizard (Tyler Borth) was third.
The winning homebred daughter of Alarm Detector-Hp Bruxelles, owned by Claude Hamel of Orford, Que. and Jean Denis Pelletier of Shefford, Que., is trained by Chantal Mitchell. Hp Crystaline improved to 1-2-1 in five career starts and increased her bankroll to $69,848. She paid $10.10 to win.
In the second trotting male split, Strobe Lite (James MacDonald) broke his maiden, cruising to a three-length win over previous Gold winner Mike Me Up (Roy) in 1:57.3. Mike Me Up led the field through the :28.2 first quarter, but MacDonald had Strobe Lite on the move past the tote board the first time and on top before the :58.4 half. The son of Alarm Detector-Shine Bright rolled through the 1:28 three-quarters and on to an eased-up victory. Notatthetablcarlos (McClure) was third in the six-horse dash. Sent off at even money, Strobe Lite paid $4.10 for the win.
Strobe Lite is now 1-2-3 in seven career starts and has earnings of $148,310 for owners Glengate Farms of Erin, Ont., Ben Baillargeon of Guelph, Ont., Hamel, and Nunzio Vena of Bolton, Ont. Baillargeon trains the Glengate Farms-bred $16,000 London Classic Yearling Sale purchase.
The final Gold legs for two-year-old trotters of each sex are set for Sept. 29 at Mohawk.
P L Ozzy also got in on the track record action, blitzing the Elora, Ont. oval in 1:50.2 to become the track's fastest aged pacer ever. In a $9,000 second-leg Pop-Up Series event, he quickly distanced himself from the field and put on a show, creating fractions of :26, :54.1, and 1:21.3 for Samuel Fillion. He was 10 lengths clear of the rest at three-quarters, and he extended the margin to 11-1/2 lengths as he closed out the victory. Prestige Seelster (Daryl Thiessen) was best of the rest, followed by Written In Stone (Borth).
The performance displaced the previous 1:50.4 record for an older pacing stallion, and overall aged pace mark, which was set by Ideal Perception in June 2024. P L Ozzy was still more than a second off the overall record of 1:49 held by Allstar Maniac.
P L Ozzy picked up his fifth win of the season in 15 attempts. The seven-year-old has now won 30 times and has earned $358,127 in 105 career outings. Amanda Riley trains the son of Sunshine Beach-Taylorlane Action for Bryn Campbell of Port Hope, Ont. and Barry McClennan of Cavan, Ont. The win price was $2.10.
The other Pop-Up Series winners were Sauble Ace ($2.70) in 1:54 and Howyouplay Thegame ($4) in 1:53.1. The series is for pacing horses and geldings that started for a purse of $6,000 or less in their prior start, with leg-one starters also eligible.
To view Wednesday's harness racing results, click the following link: Wednesday Results - Grand River Raceway.
(Ontario Racing & Standardbred Canada; photo of Flowing Tribute winning on Sept. 3)