At the track
Cheverie returns to sulky
Veteran track announcer Vance Cameron is back for his 20th season penning a harness racing column for the Journal Pioneer. In his first column of 2017, Cameron takes a trip down memory lane, and remembers a beloved harness racing ambassador.
The 2017 season is off and racing on Victoria Day as live racing returns to Red Shores at Summerside Raceway on Monday.
First-race post time for the 10-dash card is 1 p.m., and the afternoon’s top class is a wideopen affair.
The $2,000 feature lines up in Race 9, with newcomer Mando Fun handicapped with the outside in the five-horse field. Mando Fun was claimed for $6,500 on Jan. 21 at Flamboro Downs in Ontario by new coowner and trainer Paul Biggar of Tyne Valley and co-owner Donald Callbeck of Kensington. He was impressive winning his qualifier at Summerside Raceway in 1:58.1. The winner of 11 lifetime races has a career-best 1:53.3 clocking at Scioto Downs in Ohio, and gets the services of Dale Spence in his East Coast debut. Pictonian Storm drops from the preferred ranks at Red Shores Charlottetown and will leave from Post 4 in the feature. Gary Chappell will catch-drive for trainer Wade Sorrie. D Bs Rosco, with Kenny Arsenault in the bike, has Post 3 while Sporty B Skipalong (Norris Rogers) and Machinthesand (Ken Murphy) round out the field.
Back-up pace
The back-up pace goes in Race 3 for a $1,500 purse. Tipsy Mcstaggers makes her Island debut from Post 2 for Rogers, co-owner and trainer Jay Noye and co-owners Mary Jean Noye of Pleasant Valley and Bill and Denise Andrew of Alberta.
The five-year-old daughter of Badlands Hanover was racing between Western Fair Raceway in Ontario and Northville Downs in Michigan, before making the move east. Her new rivals will include Howmac Missy (Marc Campbell), riding a two-race win streak, and Lexis Mandy (Chappell).
The program will also feature the pari-mutuel return of driver Walter Cheverie, who last drove in a race on Aug. 28 in Summerside, before taking a hiatus from the sulky due to health reasons.
Cheverie has five drives on the card, including the morning-line favourite in three of those events.