Fortune has not smiled on two-year-old pacing filly Quality Goods when it comes to post positions, and the Mark Steacy trainee finds herself back out in Post 8 for Sunday's Grassroots event at Rideau Carleton Raceway.
The filly scored her best result in four outings last week at Rideau Carleton when she finished second in her Trillium Series division. That result also came from the Astreos daughter's best post position draw - she started from Post 3. In her other three starts she was hampered by Posts 6, 7 and 8.
"I was happy with her last week," says Lansdowne resident Steacy, who also drove the filly to the runner-up finish. "In every start she's had she has raced good, but she's drawn bad posts so we've gone to the back with her, and it's hard to catch up once you're back there."
Making her racing debut in the July 31 freshman filly Grassroots event, Quality Goods paced to a fifth-place result over the Hiawatha Horse Park oval. Seven days later she finished third in an overnight event at Mohawk Racetrack from Post 7, and then logged another fifth from Post 8 at the Campbellville oval on August 18.
Last week's solid effort - a 1:58.4 mile over a Rideau oval rated one second slower than normal - was a confidence builder for the young pacer and Steacy says she seems to be settling into her role.
"She's one that's always been very eager to do everything," notes the horseman, who shares ownership on Quality Goods with breeder Peter Heffering of Port Perry. "Sometimes she can get a little aggressive, but in her last two starts she's settled down nice."
Gord Brown will step into the race bike behind the Astreos daughter on Sunday, and Steacy says the Newcastle resident will have to decide on a strategy to overcome the outside post once the starting gate swings away from the field.
"She can get out of there pretty good, so if there's not a lot of early speed, he could go for it a little bit," says the trainer. "If they're not moving along you'd have to fight with her a little to keep her in a hole.
"If she can get away somewhere in the middle and come second up, that would be the dream trip," adds Steacy. "Or if she ever fired up and got to the front, I think she could pace in 1:56 on the front, and that should get her very close."
Brown and Quality Goods face a field of newcomers to the Grassroots ranks. Only two other fillies have seen action on the circuit through the first half of the season.
Among the Grassroots veterans is former division winner Stonebridge Breeze, who also finished second in her Trillium division last week and will start from Post 5 in Sunday's fourth race.
The other Grassroots divisions are slated as Races 2, 6, 9 and 11 on the program, which gets under way at 6:30 p.m. A total of 43 fillies will make the trip to Rideau Carleton Raceway on Sunday, competing for a total of $100,000 in purse money, and points toward a berth in the Grassroots Semifinal.
(OSS)