A pair of $105,000 Ontario Sires Stakes Gold Series events for three-year-old pacing fillies were staged on Monday night (August 4) at Mohawk Racetrack, and Skippin By and My Secret Belle were victorious.
A Filly Affair (Sylvain Filion) was in the lead at the :26.2 opening quarter in the first division, but 1-5 favourite Lady Shadow (Doug McNair) popped out of the pocket and took command before the :54.4 half. Skippin By (Randy Waples), who was sent off at odds of 10-1, then wheeled first-over out of third on the far turn, but she had three lengths to make up on Lady Shadow as she flashed through three-quarters in 1:22.4.
Skippin By cut into Lady Shadow’s margin in the stretch, and by the time they reached the eighth pole, the two fillies were head-and-head in a pitched battle. Lady Shadow tried her best to keep her rival at bay, but Skippin By was relentless and got up to win by half a length in 1:51. Sectionline Aqua (Mike Saftic) finished in third.
Corey Johnson trains Skippin By, a daughter of Shadow Play, for owners Wall Bros Stable of Marion and Bruce Soulsby of Powell, Ohio. Skippin By has a trio of victories from nine trips behind the gate this year, and this was her seventh career win. A three-time winner in Ontario Sires Stakes Grassroots competition last year, Skippin By has earned $83,450 in 2014 and $126,948 in her life.
The other Gold split saw public choice Brookdale Shadow (Chris Christoforou) show the way through stations of :27.2, :56, and 1:24.2. My Secret Belle (Joe Hudon) tracked Brookdale Shadow from the pocket and when first-over challenger Justabit Mean (Jonathan Drury) dropped back in the lane, Hudon wheeled My Secret Belle to the outside of the pace-setter. My Secret Belle had pace to go with the space, and she would get around Brookdale Shadow en route to a one and a half-length victory in 1:52. Brookdale Shadow held second ahead of Porsche Seelster (McNair).
In addition to handling the driving assignment, Hudon of Acton, Ontario, also bred, owns, and trains the victorious daughter of Mach Three. My Secret Belle was winless in a pair of attempts as a rookie, but is six-for-19 in the win column this year, including a pair of OSS Gold Series triumphs. She has banked $162,409 on the campaign and $163,909 lifetime.
Ontario Sires Stakes Gold Series action for three-year-old pacing fillies resumes next Tuesday (August 12) at Georgian Downs. For full results and charts of Monday night’s contests, please visit � http://www.standardbredcanada.ca/racing/results/data/r0804mohsn.dat.