CAMPBELLVILLE, ON — Ontario’s talented three-year-old trotting fillies are headed back to Mohawk Racetrack Thursday evening for their third Gold Series event. Joining the province’s brightest lights is former Grassroots winner Whatthehecklavec, who earned her way into the top tier with an impressive upset in the July 30 Canadian Breeders Championship Final.
“That’s the first time she’s beat 1:58 and she handled it really good. She could’ve went around again, she felt that good,” says trainer Randy Fritz of the filly’s 1:57 victory. “Once she experiences high speed like that I think she’ll get accustomed to it.
“We’ll try her in the Gold and see how she makes out,” he adds. “If she does all right in there we’ll likely continue racing her in the Gold, but if she puts in a bad start we’ll maybe go back to the Grassroots and take another run at the Gold later.”
Fifth in her Canadian Breeders Championship elimination, Whatthehecklavec was lightly regarded by Mohawk fans in the Final, but the filly was flawless, cruising under the finish wire two and one-quarter lengths ahead of Ja El Ginger and elimination winner Fan Favourite. The 1:57 clocking was almost five seconds faster than the filly’s former personal best, taken in a Trillium event at Hiawatha Horse Park on June 16, where she started to show the ability that would eventually earn her the Canadian Breeders title.
“She impressed me most in Sarnia,” recalls Fritz. “She left out of there and wouldn’t let another horse get up to her.”
Fritz shares ownership on the talented young trotter with breeders Jennifer and Gwendowyn Unger of Caledon East. A daughter of Mr Lavec, she is out of the Unger’s mare Go Get Kathy — a half-sister to $2 million winner Goodtimes — who has also produced $231,936 winner Mr Blaze. While the trio was hoping to race the filly last season, they opted to wait for her three-year-old campaign when a series of health issues slowed her up late in the season.
“I was getting her ready for the last two stakes races, Grassroots, and she got on one line on me. A little sore in the feet I think,” explains Fritz. “Then she got sick on me and we got talking it over, me and Jen, and we decided to shut her down.
“You can’t rush them and she is such a good gaited filly we didn’t want anything to mess her up.”
Their patience has been amply rewarded this season as Whatthehecklavec has posted a record of five wins and two seconds in nine starts for earnings of $107,505. In addition to her Canadian Breeders and Trillium victories, she posted a pair of overnight wins in the first two starts of her career and then captured a division of the Grassroots season opener on May 23 at Dresden Raceway.
While Fritz always thought Whatthehecklavec showed Gold Series talent, the Carlisle resident was concerned that her lack of racing experience would handicap her through the early season events. He thought that starting in the Grassroots would allow the filly to develop her skills and confidence before she tackled the tougher division.
“You know how fast they go right off the bat, these fillies. I thought, we’ll give her a start in the Grassroots and see how she makes out,” he says. “Then I realised some of these Golds haven’t really been going that fast, so I figured we’d take a stab at the Golds when we got her right.”
Fritz will pilot Whatthehecklavec from Post 4 in the first race on Thursday and will be keeping an eye on former Gold Final winner Erotica from Post 7. The first race rolls up behind the gate at 7:20 pm, with the other two eliminations scheduled as Races 2 and 6. The top three fillies from each Gold Elimination, plus one fourth-place finisher drawn by lot, will return to Mohawk Racetrack on Aug. 18 for their third $130,000 Gold Final.
For a complete list of entries please go to:
http://www.standardbredcanada.ca/entries/data/emohsth.html