CLINTON, ON — For the next two weeks trotters will be centre stage at Clinton Raceway as the popular half-mile oval hosts Grassroots action for the two-year-old trotting colts this Sunday, Sept. 3 and the three-year-old trotting colts on Sunday, Sept. 10.

Freshman trotter Dream On Ernie makes his Grassroots debut at Clinton Raceway and trainer George Zirnis would love to see the young trotter turn in a solid performance in owner Nancy Holmes’s hometown.

“Some of the people that own him with me are from Clinton, Jack and Nancy Holmes,” says Zirnis. “It’s always nice to do a little good in your hometown.”

Dream On Ernie started off his season in the Gold Series — and Zirnis expects the young trotter to bounce back to the upper levels later in September — but when a pair of physical ailments cropped up through the month of August the trainer chose to drop the gelding into the Grassroots Series for his seventh start.

“He missed the Gold at Flamboro (Aug. 13) because in the Final at Grand River (Aug. 7) he stepped on himself and cut himself open, so it took a little time for that heal,” explains Zirnis. “Then I raced him in the Bridger Series at Mohawk (Aug. 17) and he finished fifth.

“He trotted real good and could have made the final, but instead of going in the final I decided to take this two week period to get that splint cleaned up.”

Zirnis says that since the cryosurgery to fix the splint on his front leg, Dream On Ernie has been showing steady improvement during his daily work-outs and should be on top of his game at Clinton. The only problem the Elmira resident foresees is that the gelding will start from the outside Post 7 in Race 4.

“He is jogging way straighter and more quiet,” notes Zirnis. “I’m happy with everything, the way it is progressing, except for the seven-hole.

“When I entered him I said to the owners, �Geez, I hope I get anything but the seven-hole,'” he adds. “I have to blame the computer for that I guess.”

In addition to Holmes, Zirnis shares ownership of Dream On Ernie with Janet Fairall of Windsor and Tanya Martin of Elmira. The homebred gelding is the son of Berndt Hanover and Dreamfair Tierra, who earned $223,185 for the group racing in the Ontario Sires Stakes program in 1998 and 1999.

With two runner-up finishes in Gold Elimination action in his first six starts, Dream On Ernie has already started to follow in his mother’s footsteps, and Zirnis is confident the gelding can add to his resume through the final weeks of the season.

“He’s going to have three weeks in a row here — Clinton this Sunday, the Balanced Image Trot at Hanover next Saturday, and, if he makes the final, back to Hanover the next week,” explains Zirnis. “Then the week after that would be the next Gold.

“Hopefully we can make some money in the next few weeks. We’ve got to get some money in the coffers before the yearling sales start.”

Zirnis will pilot Dream On Ernie from Post 7 on Sunday, facing off against former Gold Series rival and Grassroots division winner The Midas Man, who starts from Post 4.

Clinton Raceway’s Sunday matinee gets under way at 1:30 pm and features the two-year-old trotting colts in Races 1 through 4 and 10 through 14.

For complete entries please go to:

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