Two-year-old trotters invaded Grand River Raceway on Friday evening, Sept. 6 for the fourth Gold Series leg of the Ontario Sires Stakes.
Marcus Melander's homebred Galen Erso, the leading colt in the Gold Series, kicked off the stakes action with a 1:57.1 victory in a $95,000 division for the local father and son team of trainer Gregg McNair and driver Doug McNair.
Returning to action after back-to-back Gold wins in July and a close runner-up finish in the Mid-Season Gold Final a month ago at Woodbine Mohawk Park, Galen Erso swept up from midfield at the :28.1 quarter mark to take command and never looked back. The Green Manalishi S-Wygant Princess colt clocked middle splits of :57.3 and 1:27 en route to the 1-1/4-length victory over early leader Shutter Green (Bob McClure), with Chicago Hall (James MacDonald) holding on for third.
While the colt was a dominant winner, Doug McNair noted he wasn't trotting at his best.
"I didn't like the way he was trotting, even scoring down," said McNair. "He was still good enough to win and hopefully they get him sharpened up for the Super Final.
"I think he is one of the best or the best in the division. He got beat in the mid-season's challenge there. Sylvain [Filion's] horse [winner You Got It Kemp] raced great. He got a better trip than mine; I had to remove mine to the front again and he just got picked off at the wire. I think he's got lots of trot, he's just got to get there."
Having hit the board in his first five career starts, Galen Erso has already banked $166,168.
He paid $2.90 to win as the 2-5 favourite.
The second and fastest division for the male trotters was won by that Mid-Season Gold Final champion, You Got It Kemp, in 1:56.3 with Hall of Fame reinman Sylvain Filion working out a third consecutive winning trip for the Dan Lagace trainee.
Filion and the quick-leaving You Got It Kemp gave way to Lookatmegoamigo (Louis-Philippe Roy) at the :28 quarter pole and tracked in the two-hole through a half in :57.2 and three-quarters in 1:26.2 while the leader fought off a forceful challenge from Manforce (Jody Jamieson) to the final turn. That's when Filion slipped out of the pocket with the 3-5 favourite and defeated Lookatmegoamigo by three-quarters of a length, with the wide-rallying Rising Interest (Tyler Borth) just to their outside in third.
You Got It Kemp's 1:56.3 winning time equalled the Canadian record for a freshman trotting gelding on a five-eighths-mile track and was three-fifths of a second off the overall male record held by colt Windsong Espoir.
"The two-hole trip is his cup of tea," commented Brady Lagace, the winner's caretaker and co-owner and an up-and-coming driver. "He loves to just get out and shoot late. So that's what we like, that's what he likes as well."
A $12,000 yearling purchase at last fall's Standardbred Horse Sale, You Got It Kemp missed by a just a neck in his career debut before winning a Gold division on July 25 and the Aug. 5 mid-season event last time out. Scratched sick from his next scheduled start in the William Wellwood Memorial Stakes eliminations, he returned to winning form, paying $3.50 as the bettors' choice.
Picking up his third straight stakes win, the Muscle Mass-Speed Titan gelding boosted his bankroll to $158,167 for the ownership group of Brady & Brooke & Daniel Lagace and Suojalampi Stable.
Medley Seelster also turned in a 1:56.3 victory in the fastest filly division, getting her second Gold win with Jody Jamieson in the bike for trainer Blake MacIntosh.
Jamieson sent the 8-5 favourite to the front from the outside post six through a :28 opening quarter and set subsequent fractions of :57.3 and 1:26.4 on the way to a 1-1/2-length victory over pocket-pursuer Lil Sweet (Doug McNair) and a first-up Sprite Seelster (Tyler Borth).
"My filly is really professional. She's getting better each and every start. She's shown talent right from the get-go and tonight was no different," commented Jamieson.
Medley Seelster is now three-for-nine in her career with earnings totalling $141,010. Owned by Glenn Dyke, the daughter of Wheeling N Dealin out of Daylon Melody was a $24,000 yearling purchase from the London Classic Sale.
She paid $5.30 to win.
Foxy Amee stepped into the spotlight with her first Gold Series win in 1:57.4 for Hall of Fame driver Paul MacDonell, who also trains the filly.
Leaving from the outside post, Foxy Amee crossed to command into the first turn and cruised unopposed through opening fractions of :28.1 and :59.1. The challengers came during the second half, but the 3-5 favourite fended off a first-over Supergirl Molly (Trevor Henry) through three-quarters in 1:28.4 and held off the pocket-sitting TH Monica (James MacDonald) up the passing lane by a neck. Supergirl Molly finished 1-1/2 lengths behind in third.
"I wasn't sure what was going to play out, but looking at the horses on the gate when we left, she had her nose right up there and I thought I better just get her in play and she reponded to it, so I was happy with her effort," said MacDonell, noting she finished well in hand. "There's some nice fillies in there and when you put $95,000 on the line, they come to race so you've got to be prepared."
A Grassroots winner in her career debut, Foxy Amee stepped up to take on the division's best, finishing second in the Gold leg on July 25 at Mohawk and the Mid-Season Gold Final on Aug. 5, both times behind point leader Monalishi, who went on to win the Peaceful Way Stakes and skipped this leg.
A $48,000 London Classic yearling buy, the Muscle Mass-Highland Foxytrotr filly now has three wins in five starts with $122,575 banked for owners Chris and Michael Storms.
Foxy Amee paid $3.20 to win.
The final preliminary leg of the Gold Series for the two-year-old trotters is scheduled for Sept. 30 at Woodbine Mohawk Park with the season-ending Super Finals on Oct. 12.
To view Friday's harness racing results, click the following link: Friday Results - Grand River Raceway.
(Standardbred Canada; Photo of You Got It Kemp winning on Sept. 6)