FRASERVILLE, ON — Local trainer John Bax helped wrap up the Ontario Sires Stakes season at Kawartha Downs on Saturday night by harnessing one winner and one runner-up in Trillium Series action for the two-year-old trotting fillies.
The Peterborough resident and driver Jason Woodward teamed up to get Yankee Dakota across the line on top in the third of four Trillium Series divisions, hitting the wire in 2:02.1. The Balanced Image lass controlled the race from the quarter mile marker on, digging in down the stretch to hold off a charge from runner-up Incredible Mother. Favourite D Js Magic rounded out the top three in the $18,456 contest, two and three-quarter lengths behind the leaders.
Bax trains Yankee Dakota for partners Bob Anderson of St. Thomas and David Willmot of King City. A US$130,000 yearling acquisition, the filly has a record of two wins, two seconds and one third in nine starts for earnings of $48,205.
One race later Doug Hie piloted Bax trainee Victory Bouquet to a hard fought runner-up finish behind Summerhill Hallie, who hit the wire just a half length on top in 2:03. Chloe K crossed the wire 10 lengths to the rear in third.
Ron O’Neill trains Summerhill Hallie for Debi Martin of Freelton, Daniel Harper of Toronto and Paul Larrabee of Freelton. The Angus Hall daughter was making just her fourth start of the season and recorded her first win.
Raising The Bar clocked the quickest win of the four Trillium divisions, cruising to a 2:01.2 victory over the Kawartha Downs oval, which was rated one second slower than normal. Jocelyn Seelster picked up the second-place finisher’s share, while pacesetter and fan favourite Ima Sweetie Too settled for third.
Puslinch resident Tom Durand trains Raising The Bar for his partners Diane Ingham of Mount Pleasant and Ron Durand of Paris.
The other division went to American-bred filly Yoko Hanover and Hall of Fame horseman Ron Waples in an impressive come-from-behind effort. Waples sent the Donerail filly up the outside heading to the halfway marker and sat there until the fillies straightened out for home, when the duo accelerated away to the one length victory over Emerald Tortilla and Carla in 2:02.3.
Waples shares ownership on the young trotter with the Yoko Motion Stable of Woodstock and the partners are looking forward to a successful late season with the filly after Saturday’s victory and a 2:00.4 qualifying win at Mohawk Racetrack on Oct. 7.
The freshman fillies wrapped up an outstanding season of Ontario Sires Stakes racing at Kawartha Downs and the provincial program looks forward to returning to the Fraserville oval in 2004 with a fresh crop of trotters and pacers eager to make their mark in the track’s history books.