HANOVER, ON — Mythic Voyage stepped off the fastest win in nine Grassroots divisions at Hanover Raceway on Saturday night, halting the teletimer at 1:56.2.

With Anthony MacDonald at the lines, Mythic Voyage fired straight to the front from Post 1 and never relinquished control through fractions of :28.3, :58.4 and 1:27.3. At the wire the Grinfromeartoear son was one and three-quarter lengths ahead of Dreamluck and 10 lengths ahead of third-place finisher Englebert.

Millar Farms of Newmarket bred and owns Mythic Voyage, who boasts an impressive record of three wins and two seconds in six starts this season. The colt’s only off the board finish came in the $154,500 Clearwater Cup Final on June 24, where he finished fifth. Robert Atkin trains Mythic Voyage, who moved into a six-way tie for third in the division point standings with three regular season events remaining.

MacDonald made a second trip to the Hanover Raceway winner’s circle on Saturday, steering Matty McGee to a six and a half length victory in Race 7. Taylorlane Cruiser and Marcus The Brut paced into second and third spot in the 1:58 mile.

Stanley Atkinson trains Matty McGee for Val Spar Stables of West Hill and Kenneth Raspin of Goderich. Saturday’s outing was the Astreos colt’s second in Grassroots action and marked his first victory in the provincial program.

Trevor Henry and Scott Coulter also scored the Grassroots driving double on Hanover’s Canada Day program. Coulter kicked things off with a 1:59.1 mile aboard Golden Standard over a track that was rated one second slower than normal through the first two races.

Starting from the trailing Post 8, Golden Standard and Coulter worked their way toward the front on the outside, sprinting down the stretch to the one and one-quarter length victory over Armbro Dalliance and fan favourite Apaches Banker.

Richard Moreau trains Golden Standard for Ferme Davi of Saint-Didace, QC. The win was the Camluck son’s second of the season through six starts.

Five races later the track had been upgraded to fast and Coulter was back in front of the grandstand with Fantasy Beau, who sat tucked in behind pacesetter No Shoes before sprinting down the stretch to a 1:57.2 victory. No Shoes paced under the wire two lengths back in second, but the rest of the field could not keep up to the leaders, and third-place finisher Split The Sky trailed in 14 lengths to the rear.

Mark Harder trains Fantasy Beau for owner and breeder Andrew McLaughlin, Jr. of West Orange, NJ. The Island Fantasy son was also a Grassroots winner at Woodstock Raceway on June 10 and sits sixth, alongside Mythic Voyage, in the division point race.

Arthur resident Trevor Henry picked up his first Grassroots victory with Sauble Justy in the fourth race. The duo led the field from gate to wire to post their second straight Grassroots victory. Astro and Northern Tropics picked up the second and third-place finisher’s spoils in the 1:57.3 mile.

Ailsa Craig resident Fred Maguire owns and trains Sauble Justy, and Henry has piloted the Fit For Life colt to two wins and one fourth in the first three Grassroots events of the season, good enough for sole ownership of second in the point standings.

One race later Henry made it a double, steering Bend It to a 1:57.1 squeaker over Sudburysatrdaynite and Shadowwavekillean. Hanover Raceway judges needed a magnifying glass to sort out the order of finish as only a neck separated the top three colts.

The win was Bend It’s second in Grassroots action and, combined with his runner-up placing in the season opener, puts him in top spot in the division standings with 125 points. Ed Hayter trains the Camluck colt for Victory Hayter of Stratford. Through eight starts this season Bend It has accumulated four wins, three seconds and one third for earnings of $33,290.

The other Grassroots divisions went to Snap Out Of It in 1:58.2, Clean Cut Kid in 1:57.2 and Sauble Keith in 1:58.1.

The three-year-old pacing colts do not begin the second half of their Grassroots season until Aug. 11, when they will converge on Hiawatha Horse Park in Sarnia.

Ontario Sires Stakes excitement continues to build at Hanover Raceway over the next three weeks with Grassroots competition for the two-year-old trotting colts going postward on Wednesday, July 5 and for the two-year-old trotting fillies on Wednesday, July 19.

For complete results please go to:

http://www.standardbredcanada.ca/results/data/rhnvrsa.html