LONDON, ON — Western Fair Raceway hosts an outstanding night of harness racing this Saturday, featuring Ontario’s top two-year-old trotting fillies and two-year-old pacing colts in a pair of $130,000 Gold Finals, and four $48,000-plus Finals for the Middlesex County Pacing Series’.
After making an early break in the elimination round and storming back to be second, freshman pacing colt Grin For Money will be looking for a smoother trip around the London half-mile in Saturday’s tenth race.
“He kind of got pinched out, I really didn’t fault the colt for making that break,” explains London resident Tom Brodhurst, who shares ownership on the colt with his partners in the Grin For Money Stable. “He spotted the field 15 lengths and still came back to be second.”
The colt’s elimination come back is just the most recent in a series of roller coaster-style ups and downs Brodhurst has had to interpret for the members of the Grin For Money Stable. Part of the Standardbred Breeders of Ontario Association (SBOA) New Owners program, the Grin For Money Stable consists of nine newcomers to Standardbred ownership, and Brodhurst as their mentor.
Started by the SBOA in 2005, the New Owners program offers those interested in Standardbred ownership an opportunity to be mentored by an experienced owner and a top ranked trainer through the selection, purchase, training and racing of a yearling. Each member, including the mentor, invests $4,500, and the SBOA contributes $15,000, giving the group a total of $60,000 toward the purchase of a yearling and the first year’s training fees.
Last fall Brodhurst and trainer John Kopas were matched up with nine enthusiastic newcomers to ownership, and Kopas purchased Grin For Money for $20,000 out of the Canadian Open Yearling Sale on their behalf. As the colt learned his early lessons, Kopas would give regular updates to Brodhurst, who would then inform the members of their proteges progress.
“John was high on this colt right from January on,” recalls Brodhurst. “I remember him calling me one day and saying he thought we had a special colt — and this was well before he had really shown what he could do.”
As a result, the group looked forward to Grin For Money’s freshman debut with great eagerness, and the young pacer did not let them down. After a third in the Bud Light Stakes at Flamboro Downs on July 5, Grin For Money swept to victory in his July 12 Gold Elimination and the July 19 Gold Final at Mohawk Racetrack. Off the impressive Gold Final victory, which saw him sprint home in :26.3 to a 1:53.1 victory, there was even talk about pointing the colt at the $1 million Metro Pace at Mohawk in early September.
However, instead of preparing for a shot at North America’s top colts, Grin For Money found himself at the University of Guelph’s Veterinary Hospital battling for his life.
“It’s been a roller coaster,” admits Brodhurst. “He actually had pneumonia and spent a week at Guelph.”
Fortunately, Grin For Money bounced back from his brush with pneumonia, and was able to return to the Gold Series program in October. He seemed to have fully recovered his form with a 1:54.3 victory in the elimination, but came up short in the final — finishing fifth after carving all the fractions — and tests following the race indicated another infection.
“He won his elimination, but didn’t do too well in the Final,” recalls Brodhurst. “He scoped sick again.”
Grin For Money responded well to treatment for the sickness, and buoyed by his come back in last week’s elimination, all of the Grin For Money Stable members will be on hand this Saturday.
“To my knowledge, all the owners are going to be there,” says Brodhurst. “We are looking forward to it. We’re very pleased to have a colt like this.”
Given past experience, Brodhurst is reluctant to look too far in to the future, but he does say that if Grin For Money makes an appearance in the Nov. 14 Super Final at Woodbine Racetrack, there will be a few extra fans on hand to cheer the colt home.
“One of the owners who lives in the Wingham area has booked a 24 seat bus and has let his neighbours know the first 24 people can jump on the bus,” says the owner. “So I expect we’ll have a large crowd for the Super Final, but that’s a week off yet.”
Grin For Money and driver Sylvain Filion first have to tackle the Gold Final field on Saturday, starting from Post 7. Elimination winners Stonebridge Tonic and BP Chimo will start from Posts 4 and 6 in the tenth race.
The two-year-old trotting fillies will square off for their $130,000 Gold Final in the fifth race on Western Fair Raceway’s Saturday evening program, which gets under way at 7:05 pm.
For complete entries please go to: http://www.standardbredcanada.ca/racing/entries/data/e1107lonn.dat.