Top Distaffers tangle Thursday at Red Shores

CHARLOTTETOWN, PE – A pair of champion pacing mares will square off Thursday night at Red Shores Racetrack and Casino at the Charlottetown Driving Park in the first mid-week harness racing program of the season.

The Thursday evening card gets underway at 6:30 P.M. with 10 dashes on tap including a $2,000 class in the finale featuring seven hard hitting pacing mares. Former Maritime Champion Malabrigo is saddled with the outside post 7 in the event for trainer-driver Marc Campbell and co-owners Darryl and Gordon MacLean and Natasha Campbell of Winsloe and co-owner Meghan MacDonald of Charlottetown. The nine-year-old daughter of Western Paradise was second on the opening card of the season after a nearly six-year hiatus from racing. She will have more handy competition Thursday evening including 2017 Atlantic Aged Pacing Mares Series champion Brodys Leona with Corey MacPherson at the controls from post 6 for trainer Kerry Taylor. One Hot Camshaft has also stepped up her game considerably so far in her five-year-old season snapping together a two-race win streak to be undefeated in 2018. Ken Murphy has steered the daughter of Camshaft Hanover to a pair of 1:57.4 romps this season at Charlottetown for Tyne Valley horseman Frank Hansen.

Race analyst Les MacIsaac views the red hot Hansen trained One Hot Camshaft as the one to beat in the deep field.

"One Hot Camshaft earned a new speed badge two starts back, tied it last week and barely broke a sweat either time," MacIsaac said. "This is her toughest opposition to date but her form might just be good enough to overcome it."

Other entries include Julep Hanover (Driven by Wade Myers), Good Luck Kathy (Earl Smith), Hurricane Hill (Adam Merner) and Outrageous Spirit (Gordie Hennessey).

A field of six top pacers battle in race 9 on the card with Tobinator the morning line choice in the $2,100 event from post 5 for driver MacPherson, trainer Trevor Hicken and owner William Hicken of Montague. Other top entries include Confident Fella (Campbell) and Winter Blast (Jason Hughes). Pictonian Storm has post 3 in the race with rookie driver Austin Sorrie behind his own trainee as the 18-year-old searches for his first career victory in the race bike. Sorrie has three drives on the program.

For free race programs, top picks and live broadcast go to www.redshores.ca

By Nicholas Oakes For Red Shores