WOODSTOCK, ON — Village Blush scorched around the Woodstock Raceway oval on Saturday afternoon in a track record 1:56.4 to capture the eleventh of 14 Grassroots divisions.
Leaving from Post 5 driver Ray McLean, Jr. fired the Grinfromeartoear daughter to the front and led the field of three-year-old pacing fillies through fractions of :28.3, :58.1 and 1:27.2 before rocketing across the finish line one-fifth a second faster than former record holder Im Half Nukes.
Mike Keeling trains Village Bush for Charles Armstrong of Brampton and P C Wellwood Enterprises Inc. of Cambridge. The win was the filly’s first of the season and marked her 2004 debut in the Grassroots program after butting heads with the Gold Series fillies at Western Fair Raceway in May.
Village Blush hit the wire two and a half lengths ahead of Risque Business and Whitesand Nurse.
Local favourite Putnam Fantasy also enjoyed success dropping into the Grassroots Series. Mike Saftic piloted the Island Fantasy miss to an impressive 1:58.3 victory from Post 8 in the sixth race, besting Cassidys Grin and Electra Dreamer.
Bill Budd trains Putnam Fantasy, who was a third-place finisher in the May 22 Gold Eliminations at Western Fair, for Putnam Training Centre Ltd., of Putnam, Jamie Bardoel of London and Martin and Alex Hossack of Thamesford.
Heading into Saturday’s contest Ingersoll resident Don McElroy was in a dead heat for top spot in the Ontario Sires Stakes driver’s standings with young reinsman Jody Jamieson. And while Jamieson kept the battle alive with a smart 1:57 victory behind Warrawee Flare, McElroy edged into the lead with a pair of trips to the winner’s circle.
The veteran reinsman scored his first victory of the afternoon with Themaneattacktion in Race 7. The Pacific Rocket daughter took full advantage of Post 1 and led the field at every station en route to the 1:59.2 score, three lengths ahead of favourite Paradise Of Grins and five up on Run Lynn Run. Barbara MacDonald of Orleans bred, owns and trains Themaneattacktion.
Two races later McElroy was back in front of the grandstand with Josee Rocket, owned by Susan Downey of St. George and Jim Kellites of Hamburg, NY and trained by Ian Downey.
Soutine Hanover, owned by Tony Aarts of Putnam and Mervin Smith of Dorchester, finished second in teh 1:58 mile and Temptation Island picked up the third-place finisher’s share.
Also posting a pair of driving victories was Dan Clements, who opened the program with a win aboard Joe Stutzman trainee Itsnowornever. The duo sprinted down the stretch to snatch the 1:58.3 victory away from favourite Patty Ben Beau and force Fits Of Laughter to settle for third-place. Prince Lee Acres of Stouffville bred and own the Albert Albert daughter.
Clements completed the driving double with a 1:57.4 romp behind Sentbytheangels in Race 3. The Run The Table daughter, trained by Brett Robinson for Gerrie Tucker of Montreal, QC, breezed home eight and a half lengths ahead of Armbro Bell and Leslies Star to record her second straight Grassroots victory.
The other divisions went to Curb Appeal in 1:59.1, Viva La Diva in 1:58.2, Pauls Peanut in 1:59, Keltic Sarah in 1:59.2, Blue Ides in 1:59.3, Shes A Blast in 1:58.2 and Illusionist in 1:58.4.
The three-year-old pacing fillies make their third Grassroots start June 22 at Georgian Downs, while Ontario Sires Stakes excitement returns to Woodstock Raceway Saturday, July 3 with Grassroots action for the two-year-old trotting fillies.