WINDSOR, ON — With only two Gold Series events remaining on the two-year-old trotting fillies’ schedule, the competition will be intense at Windsor Raceway on Sunday evening.
Twenty-two fillies will compete in three Gold Eliminations with a top three finish a priority for moving on to the Sept. 28 Final and ensuring a spot in the season ending Super Final. Among the fillies hoping to land a position on the starting gate for both is Meadowview Marion, who currently sits fifth in the division standings.
“That’s our goal, to get her to the Super Final,” says trainer and part owner Paul Shakes. “And I think Windsor is where she has to do it. She needs a strong finish there.”
With three Gold Series events under her belt Meadowview Marion’s season has been somewhat frustrating for Shakes and his partner Charles Reid of Orono. The filly just missed the Final in the season opener at Rideau Carleton, finishing third when second or better was required, and came up slightly sick soon afterwards. Healthy for the second event at Elmira Raceway she finished second in her elimination and captured the Aug. 4 Final by a nose. Then, at Flamboro Downs on Aug. 20, she struggled with the footing and finished third when, once again, only the top two finishers moved on.
“I thought maybe we had a lameness problem, something that we had overlooked, but we took her over to Georgian Downs the week after and she got around there fine,” explains the Stayner resident. “Flamboro just didn’t suit her.”
Meadowview Marion will make her bid for the fifth top three finish of her career from Post 5 in the sixth race on Sunday and Shakes does not expect the draw will have any impact on the versatile young trotter.
“She will race either way. I think she probably is better from behind, but if she had to go to the lead that would not bother me a bit,” he says. “I feel very good going in. She seems real good physically, she’s done everything we’ve asked her to, so the rest is up to her.”
The Incredible Abe daughter heads into Sunday’s contest off a Sept. 9 start at Georgian Downs where she was interfered with heading to the three-quarter pole.
“We put her in a conditioned race at Georgian Downs and she was going to be really good. She was trotting real strong around the last turn, but a fellow broke on the rail and came out into her,” says Shakes, adding that the filly came out of the mishap without any problems and has trained well during the last two weeks in preparation for the fourth Gold Series.
Regular driver Dave Wall will steer Meadowview Marion on Sunday and the duo face a diverse field of seven that includes several Gold Series regulars and a few fillies jumping up from the Grassroots.
Among the other top ranked fillies competing Sunday is reigning Gold Final champion Flirting Lavec, who rides a three-race win streak into the eighth race. Trevor Ritchie will steer the Mr Lavec trainee from Post 7 for trainer Stephen Bossence of London and his newly minted partner Warren Waxman of Dundas.
Windsor Raceway’s first race parades onto the five-eighths mile oval at 6:30 pm on Sunday, with the two-year-old trotting fillies taking centre stage in Races 4, 6 and 8. The top three finishers from each elimination will return to Windsor on Sunday, Sept. 28 for their fourth $130,000 Gold Final.