Track record set at The Loop

Grit N Grace (Im The Pied Piper) defeated Choozetocruise and dismantled her week-old harness racing track record at The Loop in the Silk Lace first leg for Manitoba-sired three-year-old fillies on Saturday (Aug. 17).

Grit N Grace quickly seized command from post two and brought the field through :28.2 and :59.1 first-half fractions. Choozetocruise (Glen Le Drew) took her shot first-over approaching three-quarters, hounding the leader into the stretch, but Grit N Grace fended her off and paced home to score in 1:59.4 by a length-and-three-quarters.

Chasin Rainbows (Blake Piwniuk) got by Choozetocruise down the stretch for second.

The winning time was the first sub-2:00 mile by a three-year-old ever at The Loop. Choozetocruise became the second to pace in exactly 2:00 a week ago, tying Westward Angels’s record.

Grit N Grace has now won four straight, including victories in the Lady Crocus and MSSBA Futurity. Lorraine Rey of St. Claude owns, trains, and bred the filly who has now earned $16,798.

Lookinlikeamillion (Armbro Baylor) battled to victory in the first leg of the Golden Boy for Manitoba-sired sophomore colts and geldings. Richard Remillard got the gelding into the pocket through a :30.3 first panel set by Cartoon Kid (Marc Fillion) before moving out to attack approaching the half. Those two exchanged blows for the full final lap, with Lookinlikeamillion rallying back in the stretch to prevail by a half-length in 2:02.4.

Cartoon Kid finished a hard-fought second with Tough Crowd (Don Howlett) two further lengths back in third.

The win was Lookinlikeamillion’s fourth lifetime in nine tries. The Tara Isman-conditioned three-year-old won the MSSBA Kindergarten at two and placed in the Futurity on Aug. 3. Isman co-owns the gelding with Dr. Valerie Isman and George Isman of Gladstone and Garett Isman of Calgary.

Armycaptin Hanover (Captaintreacherous) took the afternoon’s Open. The gelding commanded the pace for Michel Rey and went all the way in 2:00.4, his 10th victory in 20 starts on the year. Chazmichaelmichael (Remillard) was a length-and-three-quarters back in second, followed by Litizor (Howlett). The winner, trained by Richard Rey for Laverne Turnbull, is now 46-for-156 lifetime with $322,726 in earnings.

Racing will resume at The Loop on Saturday, Aug. 24.

For complete race results, click here.

by Nicholas Barnsdale, for Harnesslink