GLOUCESTER, ON — A top 10 finisher in the freshman Grassroots program, Ernest V makes his return to provincial competition when the three-year-old trotting colts converge on Rideau Carleton Raceway this Sunday, June 15.

Sunday’s $20,000 Grassroots contest will mark Ernest V’s sixth start of the season over his local oval, and Robert Carss is hoping the Malabar Maple son jumps up with a strong performance against his Ontario-sired peers.

“He’s had to race here in Rideau, and with the amount of money he made last year he’s had to race against five and six year olds,” explains Carss, who bred, owns and trains the gelding.

In his sophomore debut, Ernest V delivered a strong third-place performance against older horses, but has failed to hit the top three in his last four outings. Carss says the gelding has been aggressive at the start and hopes an equipment change will help driver John MacDonald manoeuvre the trotter from Post 4 in the second Grassroots division.

“He raced good his first start, but he got a little bully on us,” notes the Edwards, ON resident. “He wanted to go more than he was able to. We changed some equipment on him and he did race better his last start, two weeks ago now.

“He’s like me I guess, some days he feels better than others,” adds the 70 year old, with a wry chuckle.

Carss says Ernest V has trained well at his farm since the June 1 outing that saw him deliver a 2:02 effort over a Rideau Carleton surface rated one second slower than normal, but the veteran horseman adds that he won’t be getting his hopes up until the fourth race is over on Sunday.

“He’s trained good all week, but we’ll have to see what happens Sunday,” says Carss. “He’s looking like he should do, but like I said, I don’t get my hopes too high until I get the cheque.”

Ernest V amassed a freshman record of one win, two seconds, one third and one fourth in six Grassroots starts to finish seventh in the point standings last season, with Garth Gordon handling training duties while Carss underwent knee replacement surgery. The gelding’s season came to an end with a seventh-place finish in the Semifinal, and Carss picked the youngster up and headed for his winter base in North Carolina, where Ernest V qualified once before shipping north to make his sophomore debut at Rideau Carleton on May 4.

Carss says Ernest V is a pleasure to work around and train and notes that the trotter has been steady as a rock through his 12 race career.

“He’s pretty straightforward. He’s good here, he’s good for trucking, it’s only on the track with other horses that he’s a handful. He doesn’t want to relax,” says the horseman. “But he’s never made a jump as far as I know. All he knows is trot, but maybe not fast enough, maybe not fast enough.”

Ernest V will try and make a believer out of his owner in Sunday’s fourth race, facing off against a field of seven that includes three other top ten point earners from last season. Abe Linkin heads into the second sophomore Grassroots event off a win in the season opener at Western Fair Raceway on May 27 and will start from Post 2, while Norwell Incredable gets the advantageous Post 1 and Jack Man will be hampered by the outside Post 8.

Rideau Carleton Raceway’s Sunday evening program gets under way at 6:30 pm, with the three-year-old trotting colts squaring off for $20,000 in Races 1, 4, 6, 8, and 11.

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