Meeting the Manitoba Drivers: Part 1

With the harness racing season closely approaching in Manitoba, this feels like a good time to meet the drivers in charge of getting the horses around the half-mile oval at Miami Fair and, eventually, the brand-new Loop in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Michel Rey

The St. Claude, Manitoba product has been driving on the Manitoba circuit since 2007. He has 1080 lifetime starts in the bike and has won 162 times. He has earned over $377,000 in earnings as a driver. His last big-time stake race win came with Millies Million (Ambro Baylor) in 2021. He drove the young filly at the time to a 2:07.1 mile time to win the Silk Lace Stake final. The tandem of Rey and Millies Million also won the 2021 edition of the Manitoba Great Western Stake.

Rey won eight times in 2022 in 43 starts. His UDRS was 0.390, and he finished in the top-three 67% of the time. He was one of the top drivers at the Miami Fair over the last couple of summers. Rey has three drives this Saturday during qualifiers and will look to shake the rust off before getting into the real-time races.

Paula Mason

Paula Mason is the newest driver on the scene. She started driving last summer and made 12 starts. She has yet to earn her first win as a driver, but with all the experience she gained last year, it won’t take too long for that to happen this year. Mason has been training since 2013 and added driving to her resume last summer. She has made 128 starts as a trainer and won 14 times.

Mason’s best finish on the bike was a third place she had done on four occasions last year. Two came with her entry, Inside Joke (Ambro Baylor). Inside Joke has been with Mason since he first started racing in 2021. The now five-year-old gelding also has yet to earn a win in 27 lifetime starts. There is an excellent chance the duo will break through together this year. Mason has one drive on qualifier Saturday, and it is with her Inside Joke.

Tyler Grundy

Tyler Grundy had his best year as a driver in 2022. He made 96 appearances and earned over $96,000. On 22 separate occasions, he visited the winner’s circle and finished in the top-three 60 % of the time. A couple of those wins were in big-time Manitoba Stake races. He won the MSSBA Juvenile and the Kindergarten Stake with Andys Treasure (Andreoli Hanover). Grundy took home the 75th Manitoba Great Western Stakes with Emmetts Buddy (In The Irons) with a mile time of 2:01.3. He also was in the bike with Ak Up N Attem when they won the MSSBA Golden Boy Final in 2:01.1.

Career-wise, Grundy has won 87 times and has earned $248,254. He has two starts scheduled on qualifier Saturday, one with Andys Treasure.

Qualifiers at Miami Fair on scheduled for July at 1:00 p.m. CDT. Real racing starts at Miami Fair the following Saturday at 2:00 p.m. CDT. The Loop is set to open on August 5. “Meeting the Manitoba drivers: Part 2” will be posted in the coming days.

by Trey Colbeck, for Harnesslink