Trot Insider has learned that trainer Casie Coleman has been forced to scratch two of her stakes horses from Saturday's card at Mohawk Racetrack.
The scratches include unbeaten two-year-old Summer Travel and Battle of the Belles champ Play The Bell, both scratched sick. Summer Travel was favoured in his Nassagaweya division while Play The Bell was the fourth choice in her Eternal Camnation split.
"Just a virus in the barn," Coleman told Trot Insider. According to Coleman, Summer Travel "trained like a killer this week" but then he and Play The Bell started showing signs of sickness two days ago, turning into a cough this morning.
"Both have high temperatures, obviously have to scratch."
Coleman's other three Saturday entrants -- older pacer McWicked and two-year-olds Street Boy and Delaney R -- are thus far unaffected by the virus and will compete on Saturday night.
"We'll pull blood Monday and see where we're at," noted Coleman. "There's been a lot of sickness going around and I've been lucky not to get it then, bam, it hits me right at stakes time. Lots of races left though and you can't race them when they're not right."
Saturday evening’s card includes two $40,000 eliminations for the Canadian Pacing Derby as well as two divisions of the Eternal Camnation and the Nassagaweya. To view the entries for Saturday's card, click one of the following links:
► Saturday Entries - Mohawk Racetrack
► Saturday Program Pages - Mohawk Racetrack (courtesy TrackIT)