INNISFIL, ON — When Blue Ribbon Beauty arrives at Georgian Downs for Tuesday’s Grassroots event, the three-year-old trotting filly should be able to pick out her saddle pad without any help from trainer Rob Fellows.

For the third straight week the filly will sport the yellow saddle pad that signifies Post 6, and Fellows is hoping familiarity with the sixth spot on the starting gate will work in her favour.

“She’s very immature,” explains Fellows, who trains Blue Ribbon Beauty for Aurora resident Edward James. “She needs another year to fill into herself mentally and physically.”

The daughter of Malabar Maple and Hawaiian Teaser has shown signs of promise through the first three months of her sophomore campaign, but she has also made her share of mistakes and struggled to maintain her health. In nine starts the young trotter has one first and one second to her credit, and finished fourth in her only Grassroots start at Hanover Raceway in the June 9 season opener.

“She’s been sick on and off this year, and she does make mistakes, because she’s a green filly,” notes Fellows. “Mentally, it doesn’t take much for her to make a mistake.”

The Rockwood resident is hoping that Blue Ribbon Beauty will continue to improve as she gains more experience and can step up her game through the second half of the Grassroots season. The fourth of six Grassroots events for the three-year-old trotting fillies, Tuesday’s event will see fierce competition among the fillies queuing for a berth in the post season.

“She’s a nice horse, hopefully she can turn it on in the last half of the year,” says Fellows of Blue Ribbon Beauty. “Hopefully with a little luck she can get a few more points and work toward the Semifinal.”

Blue Ribbon Beauty’s third Post 6 appearance occurs in the first of seven $15,000 Grassroots events and sees her square off against former winners Windsong Darling and Betty Rose from Posts 1 and 8.

With division leader Emerald Whisper making the leap up to the Gold Series, the door is open for rivals Hi Edith, Malahide, Trot Your Sox Off and Don Wan Misy. Hi Edith makes her bid for a third victory from Post 4 in the fifth race, Malahide and Don Wan Misy go head-to-head from Posts 2 and 6 in the eighth race and Trot Your Sox Off gets the advantageous Post 1 in Race 9.

The three-year-old trotting fillies are featured in Races 2 through 5 and 8 through 10 on the Tuesday, Aug. 14 program at Georgian Downs. The Innisfil oval’s first race rolls in behind the starting gate at 7:35 pm.

For complete entries please go to:

http://www.standardbredcanada.ca/entries/data/egeodftu.html