Red Shores’ weekend of live racing is all set. Maritime Breeders eliminations will be in the spotlight at the Charlottetown Driving Park on Saturday evening, and action will shift to Summerside Raceway for an afternoon program on Sunday.
Trotters Compete in Maritime Breeders Eliminations
Red Shores at the Charlottetown Driving Park will play host to the Maritime Breeders eliminations for two and three-year-old trotters on Saturday. First-race post time for the program is 6 p.m.
Wicked Nick will hit the dance floor first. He has drawn Post 3 in Race 4 for trainer-driver Gary Chappell and the ownership team of Peter Buchanan, North Wiltshire, PE and Cameron Trail, O’Leary, PE. The favourite and son of Tad The Stud has $23,077 in his bank account this season.
The next two-year-old elimination has been carded as Race 8. Pappy Go Go has been installed as the morning line favorite at 5-2. Marc Campbell will handle the training and driving duties for Grayland Farm, Pugwash, NS. Race analyst Les MacIsaac says the Breeders Crown champion is back on form. “Rebounded from a couple of sub-par performances to come within a tick of his career best mark last week. If he stays on the straight and narrow it looks like a race for place (second).”
The three-year-old eliminations have been carded as Race 6 and Race 10. Glencove Zani, who captured the Atlantic Breeders Crown for driver Len McGuigan and trainer-owner Edward Smallwood, Stratford, PE, will start from Post 6 and will be appearing in his 11th race this season. “Teddy can get them ready, that’s all I know,” McGuigan said last week after the colt’s winning performance and new record of 2:01.2. The second three-year-old elimination will see Oceanview Pancho (to be driven by Corey MacPherson) and Oceanview Lefty (Michael McGuigan) try to knock-off stakes star Mr Bower (Kenny Arsenault). The favourites will also see pressure from Mile Hill Bunnie (Paul Morrison), Time Warp (Danny MacDonald) and Howmac Gyspy (Jack Panting).
The evening’s top class will feature Big Surf in search of his third win in a row in Race 13. Corey MacPherson, who competed at the National Driving Championship along with Jason Hughes at The Raceway at Western Fair District in London, Ont., is back to drive the son of Somebeachsomewhere for trainer Trevor Hicken and his owners Robin, Perry and Luke Burke. The pacer has been rock-solid with his last two trips in the 1:54 range. Hicken’s other stable star, All Turain, has drawn the rail for Len McGuigan, while the only girl in the field, Drivingthedragon N, will put her five-race win streak on the line. Starcastic (Gordie Hennessey) and Smiley Bayama (Adam Merner) complete the line-up.
To view the harness racing entries for Saturday at the CDP, click the following link: Saturday Entries – Charlottetown Driving Park.
Motorino, Machinthesand and OK Galahad Ready for Showdown in Summerside
The stage is set for Sunday’s feature event at Red Shores’ Summerside. The 13-dash card will get underway at 1 p.m. sharp. The top class will be called to the gate at roughly 4:08 p.m.
OK Galahad has been listed as the favourite from Post 7 for Jason Hughes and Foxyhall Racing, Summerside and Robi Hughes, Stratford, PE. The pacer heads into the contest off of a fourth-place, 1:56 charted mile. Hughes will have work out a trip from the outside with horses like Motorino (Terry Gallant) starting from Post 3. Motorino has been hot at both tracks, with back to back trips to victory lane. Machinthesand (PP6), who will be reunited with Norris Rogers for the match-up, sports 14 top-three finishes from 25 starts this season. Then there’s Rash B Havior. The Michael Peters trainee also has the ability to overpower the contenders after posting a 1:56.2 second-place performance on October 9. The other entries include J Rs Hurricane (Dale Spence), Minor Wisdom (Wade Sorrie) and Painted Desert (Ryan Desroches).
The Stewart family will host two memorial races on the program. The Cecil Stewart Memorial has been set for Race 6. Bugtown Superstar has been installed as the race favourite for trainer-driver Lloyd Hannah and owner Brian Walsh, Albany, PE. The filly has a win and a third in her last two outings. The Leon Stewart Memorial has Jetster as the top choice from the Ralph Sweet stable.
Customers can purchase two Pick-5 ballots on the 13-dash card. The first ballot has been earmarked for Races 1 through 5, while the traditional Pick-5 remains on Races 6-10. The ‘Wild Horses’ tags will also feature jackpots of $50 per race with the final race of the night showcasing a $100 jackpot. The Wild Horses tag is a $2 triactor instant pick. If the Wild Horses tag matches the winning triactor, the winner gets the payout and the jackpot assigned to that race.
To view the harness racing entries for Sunday at Summerside, click the following link: Sunday Entries – Summerside Raceway.
(With files from Red Shores)