FRASERVILLE, ON — Abies Gone came up with a big effort to post the fastest of five Grassroots miles in three-year-old trotting filly action at Kawartha Downs on Saturday night.
The Incredible Abe daughter and driver Mike Sumner landed on the rail from Post 3 and were five lengths back of early leader Athens at the :28.3 opening quarter. Abies Gone had narrowed the gap to two and a half lengths by the :58.2 half, but the pair found themselves four lengths back at the 1:28.1 three quarters after favourites Parkhill Yuriskit and Erwin Stewart made a bold move to the front and put some air between themselves and the field.
As the fillies turned for home Parkhill Yuriskit was starting to fade and Sumner had shifted Abies Gone into high gear. At the 1:59.4 finish Abies Gone was three-quarters of a length ahead of Parkhill Yuriskit and third-place finisher Tulipsandanose was seventh lengths behind them.
The win was the Ray Bunn trainee’s second straight and the first in a consistent Grassroots campaign that has seen her finish first, second, third and fifth in four starts for a total of 92 points and eighth spot in the division standings. Neil McRann of Lucan bred and owns Abies Gone, who boosted her earnings to $21,992 with the victory.
Aspasia kicked off the Grassroots event in the second race on Kawartha’s Saturday evening program, going gate-to-wire in 2:01.4 for owner-trainer Charalambos Christoforou of Freelton. The Earl daughter also captured a Grassroots division at Hiawatha Horse Park on July 13 and moved into sixth spot in the division race with the additional 50 points she earned Saturday.
Early Covenant hit the wire three and three-quarter lengths back in second and Kilcurry Circle beat Lukes Francesca to the wire to claim the third-place share of the $18,966 purse.
Terra Cotta Bye made her Grassroots debut a winning one with an impressive 2:00.2 victory in the ninth race. A veteran campaigner, Terra Cotta Bye had tried her hand against the Gold Series fillies earlier in the season before trainer-driver Robert Robinson of Hull, QC opted to make the move down to the Grassroots on Saturday. Robinson shares ownership on the Mr Lavec filly with Louis Lecuyer of Ottawa and Jacqueline Dinelle of Hull.
Fan favourite Our Pleasure picked up the second-place cheque and early pacesetter Crown Lavec held on for third.
Ultra consistent Summertimedreams scored her second Grassroots win and increased her point total to 150 with a 2:02.1 triumph over John Bax trainee Gramolas Image and Ava Hall in the seventh race. Veteran reinsman Ross Battin drove the Earl daughter to the win for trainer Frank O’Reilly and owners John Jesson and John Lessif of Tillsonburg, Duane Hicks of Aylmer and Ronald Lee of Dundas.
The other division went to trainer-driver Dennis Morrissey and Ja Mar Princess, who wired the field in 2:01.2 for Richard Hunter of Oil Springs and Dale Hunter of Petrolia. Armbro Wildfire and Sing Out Hanover sprinted up the Kawartha stretch, but had to settle for second and third.
The three-year-old trotting fillies make their final Grassroots start at Georgian Downs on Oct. 12 before moving on to post season action at Windsor Raceway Oct. 27 and Nov. 3. Kawartha Downs hosts the final Grassroots event for the two-year-old pacing fillies on Friday, Oct. 18.