GLOUCESTER, ON — After an extended run at the Gold Series level, Wholly Louy returned to Grassroots action at Rideau Carleton Raceway on Thursday night and picked up right where he left off in June.
Reunited with driver Brad Forward, Wholly Louy stormed off the starting gate from Post 3 and hit the opening quarter in :27. Through the :55.4 half and 1:24.1 three-quarters the Camluck colt continued to extend his lead, reaching the finish line four and one-quarter lengths ahead of the field in 1:53.2. Sauble Ron and Who Dey followed fan favourite Wholly Louy across the wire.
A winner in the Grassroots season opener on June 18 at Western Fair Raceway before jumping up to the Gold Series, Wholly Louy now boasts a perfect record of two wins in two Grassroots starts for a total of 100 points. With only one regular season event remaining, the Camluck son now sits in a four-way tie for tenth in the race for a berth in the Grassroots Semifinal.
Robert Hamather of Exeter bred and owns Wholly Louy, and the winner of $103,047 is trained by Bill Elliott.
The win with his old partner Wholly Louy was one of three Grassroots victories Forward engineered on Thursday. The Newfoundland native also cruised into the winner’s circle with Hes A Lion and Whitesand Joker.
In Race 4 Forward opted to tuck Hes A Lion in behind pacesetter Mach It Paid as that colt rocked through fractions of :26.4, :55.4 and 1:24. The strategy paid off as Hes A Lion was able to fire out in the stretch and pull away to a two and one-quarter length victory in personal best 1:53.4. Totally Excellent also closed well to finish second, while Mach It Paid was forced to settle for third.
Also a winner in the Aug. 29 Grassroots event at Sudbury Downs, Hes A Lion now has two wins and two seconds to his credit through four Grassroots starts. The Mach Three son, trained by John Bond for Montana Racing Stable of Mississauga, edged up from sixth to third in the sophomore pacing colt point race with the win.
Forward went back to front end tactics to land Whitesand Joker his first Grassroots win of the season in Race 11. The Grinfromeartoear gelding hit the wire three-quarters of a length up on Mach Hula and Mats Havin A Ball in 1:55.
Joe Stutzman trains Whitesand Joker for Harness The Power Canada of Campbellville, Zeljko Bosnjak of Grand Valley and Paul Henderson of Ancaster. Through 10 starts this season the gelding now has four victories to his credit.
The other Grassroots divisions went to Whitesand Raider in 1:54.2, Cuban Seelster in 1:53.4, and Junior K in 1:54.4.
The three-year-old pacing colts wrap up their regular Grassroots season at Windsor Raceway on Oct. 3, their final opportunity to earn points toward a berth in the Oct. 18 Semifinal.
Rideau Carleton Raceway’s next Ontario sires Stakes event goes postward on Friday, Sept. 21 when the three-year-old trotting colts arrive at the Ottawa oval for their second last Gold Elimination skirmish.
For complete results please go to:
http://www.standardbredcanada.ca/results/data/rridcfth.html