You Mach Me Crazy finished third in her elimination and is an underdog in Sunday’s $63,400 Kin Pace Final, but her connections are still looking forward to competing in Clinton Raceway’s signature event.
“The owner, Clinton and Hanover, those are his two favourite tracks. He’s a real fan of the small tracks,” said trainer Andrew McCabe, who conditions the three-year-old pacing filly for Rob Schlegel’s Glenview Livestock Ltd. of Wallenstein, Ont. “And I imagine my family will be in attendance.”
McCabe grew up within steps of Clinton Raceway’s backstretch and was introduced to harness racing by his uncle, Jim Watt of Clinton, before going on to work with local horseman Paul Taylor. Among the first horses he trained after joining Schlegel’s operation was You Mach Me Crazy’s mother, Lady Terror, who earned $88,840 in her racing career before joining Glenview Livestock’s broodmare band.
“She’s probably my favourite mare that I’ve ever trained,” recalled McCabe. “She was justly named because she was a terror and her offspring so far are right on track, they take after their mother, that’s for sure.”
You Mach Me Crazy, who McCabe said is equally well-named, is the mare’s first foal from leading Ontario pacing sire Mach Three. This season the filly has tallied four wins, one second and two thirds in seven starts, earning $35,775. She captured two legs and finished second in the final of the Alliance Series at Georgian Downs in June and won the City Of London Pacing Series Final on May 27.
“It might have been the most exhilarating win I’ve had in my training career,” said McCabe of the filly’s City of London victory. “It just wasn’t entirely expected, I mean, we kind of hoped that she was capable of it, but in the same sense if she had of went out and finished fifth we would have probably though that she raced well.”
You Mach Me Crazy will start from Post 2 in Sunday’s Kin Pace Final, lining up alongside elimination winner and early favourite Cracklin Rosie, who gets Post 3. Phil Hudon will steer the filly for the first time and McCabe is hoping the Guelph, Ont. resident can carve out a trip for You Mach Me Crazy.
“She’s been kind of driven always up near the front this far, so if she could get a trip maybe she can get a piece of it,” said the horseman, whose wife Lacey shares caretaking duties on the filly.
“She seems to be slick-gaited enough that she maybe excels on a half-mile as opposed to a larger track” he added. “A lot of horses have difficulty getting around a half, and she’s not one of them.”
The other two elimination winners, Icthelight Hanover, who bested You Mach Me Crazy, and Killean Finale, will line up at Posts 6 and 8 respectively.
The Kin Pace Final goes postward as Clinton Raceway’s tenth race on Sunday, wrapping up a weekend of PlucKIN’ Fest activities sponsored by the local Kinsmen and Kinettes. The Kin Pace is named in honour of the Clinton Kinsmen, who introduced pari-mutuel wagering to the raceway in 1970 and operated the track for 14 years.
In addition to Sunday’s outstanding program of racing, Clinton fans also have an opportunity to win a Backyard BBQ Bash with Pineridge BBQ and can enjoy a few tasty treats from the bake sale in support of the Boyd Devereaux Scholarship Fund.
To view the entries for Sunday's card, click the following link: Sunday Entries - Clinton Raceway.
(with files from Clinton)