The Guardian (Charlottetown)

Model of consistenc­y

Freddie named aged trotter of the decade in poll of Atlantic Canadian officials

- Nicholas Oakes Nicholas Oakes' column appears in The Guardian each Friday. He can be reached at nicholasoa­kes@hotmail.com.

In a singular move that upped the stakes in the open trot class forever, the purchase of Freddie has been a game changer for aged trotters on the East Coast.

Freddie being named aged trotter of the decade is part of an ongoing series in The Guardian of top horses in the 10-year span that just passed after a polling of the Atlantic harness racing industry.

The Kingston conglomera­te of the Three Wisemen stable, consisting of Fred MacDonald, Kent Scales and Ray Murphy, purchased Freddie from the Ontario-based Colin Johnson stable in early 2016. At that time, Freddie had just nine lifetime victories to his credit, but that number would quickly grow with Marc Campbell doing the training.

The Majestic Son trotter would tangle with Frill Seeker, Osprey Impact and Thunderawa­y in the open ranks in 2016 then come back in 2017 for a miraculous mile in 1:56.3 to shatter the Red Shores at the Charlottet­own Driving Park (CDP) track record and become the fastest trotter in the history of Atlantic harness racing. That record still stands.

All told, Freddie has won 51 races since coming east, to give him 60 lifetime wins. One of those victories came at Plainridge Park in Massachuse­tts in later 2018, when the ownership group sent the horse to Robert Marston near the end of the Island season.

His chief rivals have changed but Freddie continued to be a force in Island racing in 2019 with 13 wins from 24 starts and $19,313 in earnings while winning in 1:58.3 over the CDP. No matter how the race plays out, Freddie has proven he can leave hard at the start or get away last and either way has a large chance of landing in the winner’s circle.

 ?? GAIL MACDONALD/SPECIAL TO THE GUARDIAN ?? Freddie, with Marc Campbell in the bike, in the stretch drive at Red Shores at the Charlottet­own Driving Park in December.
GAIL MACDONALD/SPECIAL TO THE GUARDIAN Freddie, with Marc Campbell in the bike, in the stretch drive at Red Shores at the Charlottet­own Driving Park in December.
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