WOODSTOCK, ON — Woodstock Raceway wraps up its 2005 Ontario Sires Stakes season this Saturday, with nine Grassroots divisions for the talented two-year-old pacing colts.
Hoping to earn some of the $135,000 up for grabs is local horseman Scott McNiven, who will start Shadowwavekillean from Post 7 in the first division and Lotto Killean from Post 6 in the third $15,000 contest.
“They’re just really nice horses to work around. They’ve been a pleasure to train all along,” says the Putnam resident. “Now all we hope for is racing luck.”
Shadowwavekillean comes into Saturday’s contest with a record of one win, one second and one third in six starts. The Run The Table son, bred by Ingersoll nursery Killean Acres, started his season at the Gold Series level where he logged a fifth and a tenth-place finish in the first two Gold Eliminations.
“He’s just not quite good enough for the Gold. In the first one he was only beat a couple of lengths and in the second one he ended up leaving and let a couple go, the only two that had won in 1:54, and they both kind of stopped in his face,” recalls McNiven. “It’s just so tough this year.”
After an uncharacteristic miscue in a July 22 overnight at Grand River Raceway, Shadowwavekillean came back the next week to post an impressive 1:57.4 victory at Hiawatha Horse Park. A strong second-place finish at Grand River on Aug. 12 caused McNiven to reconsider his decision to move the colt down to the Grassroots level, but the advantages of racing at his local oval persuaded him to stay the course.
“It’s right in my back yard,” says McNiven, who trains Shadowwavekillean for Someday Stable of Putnam, Douglas Dunbar of London and Brad Dunbar of Ilderton. “I think we’ll go to the last couple of Grassroots, they’re on bigger tracks, and then put him away for a couple of months and bring him back for next year.
“He hasn’t made a lot of money yet, but he’s going to make money. He’s a big, strong horse; three-year-old wise he’ll definitely be a better horse.” Shadowwavekillean and driver Ricky Forgie will start from Post 7 on Saturday, but the outside position does not worry McNiven.
“I’m not disappointed with the draw. It gives him a little bit of room,” says the trainer. “But I see him maybe not being in too long. He’s the kind of horse that can rough it on the outside.”
While Shadowwavekillean may benefit from starting on the outer half of the starting gate, McNiven is not as confident in Lotto Killean’s ability to overcome Post 6.
“I really liked the family — I had Bankshot Killean ($77,586), Winning Killean ($196,491) and Killean Sweep ($140,236) — and that’s why we went after him,” recalls McNiven. “He hasn’t panned out the way we’d hoped, but at the same time he hasn’t done a lot wrong. He’s a really good gaited colt, he just maybe needs a winter. He can’t quite carry his speed yet.”
Unless Lotto Killean jumps up and scores his first victory on Saturday, it may be the colt’s last appearance on a racetrack this season.
“We’ve gone maybe a little longer than I expected with him,” notes McNiven, “But again, Woodstock being in our back yard, if you draw the rail maybe you get some of your winter training money back.”
McNiven’s wife Kimberley McNiven of Putnam, Thomas Brodhurst of London, George Griffin of St. Thomas and James Kirk of Ingersoll share ownership on Lotto Killean, another Run The Table offspring from Killean Acres who was a $37,000 yearling at last fall’s Forest City Yearling Sale.
McNiven’s colts and their peers are the highlights of Woodstock Raceway’s Saturday afternoon program, which gets under way at 1 pm. The two-year-old pacers will battle in Races 3 through 8 and 10 through 12.
For a complete list of entries please go to:
http://www.standardbredcanada.ca/entries/data/ewodsksa.html