Live standardbred cards in Summerside winding down
Tight races for top drivers and trainers
The standardbreds are starting to wind down at Red Shores Summerside, and there are only six weeks of racing remaining on the 2018 calendar at the local oval. The next live card is Sunday, and the action is set for 1 p.m. The driver and trainer races are really starting to heat up, and the standings have never been so close.
Driver standings
David Dowling leads all drivers at Summerside Raceway with 25 victories after a career five-win day last week. Corey MacPherson holds down the place spot with 23 winners, and Adam Merner is not far behind in the show spot with 22 triumphs. Kenny Murphy is well in contention sitting in fourth at 21 wins, and Jason Hughes rounds out the top five with 19 wins. Now that’s close! The top percentage driver with 50 or more starts is Dowling at .369. Gilles Barrieau is in second place with an average of .347. Marc Campbell, who has been the king of the Summerside ring for several seasons, is third at .334. Also in the top five are MacPherson at .310, and Merner at .303.
Trainers
North Wiltshire conditioner Earl Watts leads all trainers in wins at Summerside with nine victories. There’s a logjam in the place position with Austin Sorrie, Frank Banks, Ed Harvey and Terry Gallant tied at seven. If you think that’s a close race, four trainers also have six winners on the year in Summerside. On the percentage side of the standings, with 30 or more starts, Ed Harvey is in top spot at .336, Frank Banks is second best at .329 and Watts sits in the show position at .325. Blaine McKenna is in fourth place at .271, and Ralph Sweet rounds out the top five at .261.
84th P.E.I. Colt Stakes
It’s believed to be the oldest stakes’ event in Canadian standardbred racing, and the P.E.I. Colt Stakes will celebrate its 84th anniversary at Red Shores at the Charlottetown Driving Park on Saturday. The trotters were featured on Thursday night, and Island-sire Armbro Barrister swept all three divisions. Summerside-stabled Windemeredontuworry was very impressive, trotting to a new record of 1:59.3. The two-year-old pacing colts and fillies highlight Saturday’s matinee program in Charlottetown at 1 p.m. The second half of Saturday’s doubleheader will begin at 7 p.m., and will feature the three-year-old pacing colts and fillies. Woodmere Bolt (colt division) and Magical Mistress (filly division) will put their undefeated streaks on the line in the afternoon. Sock It Away will have his perfect season on the line in the three-year-old pacing colt division in the evening.
Struggles continue
Our harness racing friends in Saint John, N.B., once again, have fallen on hard times with the cancellation of Saturday’s program due to lack of entries. Horse Racing New Brunswick’s schedule is coming to an end, and may the rebuilding process be a successful one in the off-season. Vance Cameron is the track announcer in Summerside and Charlottetown. Comments and suggestions can be sent to Jason.simmonds@journalpioneer.com.