Labour Day Pace headlines holiday card

SUMMERSIDE, PE – Labour Day Monday at Red Shores Summerside Raceway will celebrate both harness racing tradition and community remembrance with a stacked card featuring the $5,000 Labour Day Pace as the main event. The program also includes National Caretakers Appreciation Day presented by Standardbred Canada, Red Shores, PEI Harness Racing Industry Association and Prince County Horsemen’s Club. Caretakers will be recognized with merchandise and prize draws for their contribution to our industry.

The 16-dash holiday program gets underway at 1 P.M.

The Labour Day Pace in race 15 lines up six top-class horses, starting with Starship Glyde (To be driven by Marc Campbell) who has been razor-sharp in recent weeks. The Earl Watts trainee draws post 1 after a steady diet of top-three finishes all season, giving him inside control to try and deliver his sixth win of the campaign for owner Windemere Farms of Springvale.

Rose Run X Con (Norris Rogers) is the post 2 starter for trainer Nicholas Oakes with Pendleton Rodeo (Adam Merner) leaving from post 3.

Sauble Attack (Ken Murphy) holds down post 4 for trainer Paul Biggar and Mantario (David Dowling) has post 5 as the morning line favourite after pocket riding to victory in this class last week.

Brookdale Johnny (Paul Langille) completes the field from the Phil Sizer barn after a second-place finish in the $16,000 P.E.I. Colt Stakes Graduate Series Gold Final in his latest.

The Backstretch Beat sides with Pendleton Rodeo.

“Pendleton Rodeo has been facing top level company in recent weeks and draws into a field where his late kick could shine. Expect Merner to have him up handy to exploit that burst of speed.”

The back-up class of the day is the Graham Chappell Memorial in race 9 for a $3,900 purse. A deep group of pacers converge in the mid-card clash with Wind Blown (Langille) back on P.E.I. for trainer Sizer., after last racing at Woodbine Mohawk Park. His top challengers on Monday include Howmac Charmer (Corey MacPherson) and American Risk (Dowling).

Beyond those headliners, the Labour Day presentation is filled with memorial and sponsored races honouring Prince County’s harness racing community past and present. The day begins with the Henry–Philip–Marlene Doucette Memorial (Race 1), while the Garth Schurman Memorial (Race 3), John Stewart Memorial (Race 4), and Everett Stewart & Russell Quigley Memorial (Race 5) continue the theme.

The afternoon also features the Leon James Stewart Memorial (Race 6), Congratulations Brooke, Taylor & Bryce Pace (Race 7), and the Cecil James Stewart Memorial (Race 8), followed by the Isabelle & Ivan Cameron Memorial (Race 10) and the Pins & Needles Junior, Shirley & Linda Chappell Memorial (Race 11).

Later on, the Bob MacInnis Memorial (Race 12), Dick Walsh Memorial (Race 13), and the Frank Banks Memorial (Race 14) set the stage for the Labour Day Pace feature in race 15.

Fans can take in the Labour Day program live at the Prince County oval or wager from home through HPIBET.com. Full race programs, picks, and the Race Day broadcast are available at Redshores.ca.

For complete race entries, click here.

by Nicholas Oakes, for Red Shores