PEI Colt stakes kicking off at Summerside

Some of the top three-year-old Maritime sired or foaled harness racing horses will converge at Summerside Raceway this Sunday (May 28) for the PEI Colt Stakes, Canada’s oldest stake.

There will be three divisions for the three-year-old fillies Gold and two divisions for three-year-old colts Gold. The Gold division is for horses that have earned over $10,000 in their lifetime. Here are the fields and a quick rundown of what horses to watch.

RACE 3: PEI COLT STAKES 3-YEAR-OLD FILLIES (GOLD MORE THAN $10000 LIFETIME) – $11,600

1. ROSETOWN MARY (3-1)
2. SPEAKINGOFSHADOW (7-2)
3. OUR GIRL ANNIE (5-2)
4. GOSISTERSOULSISTER (6-1)
5. ITSUPTOYOU (4-1)

Our Girl Annie (Arthur Blue Chip) is a perfect one for one so far this year by winning the Donnie and George Turner Memorial last weekend at Truro Raceway. She paced a solid mile in 1:59.0 and will look to improve on that time as the season moves along. The 2022 ATSS Breeders Crown winner has a lifetime mark of 1:57.1. Our Girl Annie now travels to Summerside Raceway for the first leg of the PEI Colt Stakes and will look to add to her $50,349 in lifetime earnings. This week she will have Ken Murphy in the bike, who himself already has nine wins in 52 starts this year.

Itsuptoyou (Rollwithitharry) only has one top-three finish in two starts this year, but he has finished nine times in the top three in twelve-lifetime starts. She also has a lifetime mark of 1:57.1, showing she consistently knows how to finish near the top. Marc Campbell will jump into the bike for the first time with the filly since her inaugural qualifying pace last June. He has 28 wins in 94 starts as a driver so far this year, and this could be another one to his tally.

Gosistersoulsister (Arthur Blue Chip) is due for a top-three finish on Sunday. She had three wins as a two-year-old but has yet to make much noise this year. She will have Gilles Barrieau in the bike for the first time, and it could finally be time for sparks to fly for Gosistersoulsister. She enters the race as the morning line longshot, which could provide a decent price. She will need to pace a faster mile than her lifetime mark of 2:00.4 if she wants to have a shot. She has shown speed at various moments, and Barrieau will get the most out of her.

Trey’s Picks: 3-5-4

RACE 4: PEI COLT STAKES 3-YEAR-OLD COLTS (GOLD MORE THAN $10000 LIFETIME) – $14,500

1. HOWMAC CHARMER (8-1)
2. FISHERMANS SON (5-2)
3. WOODMERE XSPEEDIA (4-1)
4. NO BOATS ON SUNDAY (6-1)
5. MERAKI (7-2)
6. ELM GROVE RESTWIND (3-1)

Fisherman’s Son (Arthur Blue Chip) will make his 2023 debut and is the morning line favourite in this race. He won six of his nine starts last year, and his fast mile time was 1:55.4. Fishermans Son had a five-race win streak at one point, but that ended with a second-place finish in the Joe O’Brien Memorial. He followed that up with a third place in the ATSS Breeders Crown and was scratched for the Maritime Breeders. However, Fishermans Son will be looking to return to his top form, and I expect he will be the one getting his picture taken after this one.

Elm Grove Restwind (Stonebridge Terror) has a hot start to the season. He has a win and a second-place finish in his only two starts. His performance in the win was good enough to earn a new lifetime mark of 1:58.1. He will have to overcome the outside post position, but if he can find space, he should find his way near the top.

The resume of Woodmere Xspeedia (Arthur Blue Chip) has been minimal, but in that, he has shown some promise. His only win to date came last year in the Maritime Breeders, and he posted the lifetime mark of 1:57.4. He did not have the best of showings last week at Truro Raceway but should be due for a bounce back.

Trey’s Picks: 2-6-3

RACE 7: PEI COLT STAKES 3-YEAR-OLD FILLIES (GOLD MORE THAN $10000 LIFETIME) – $11,600

1. ROCK N ROLL CAYS (5-2)
2. SHADO ANGEL (4-1)
3. WOODMERE HEATHER M (6-1)
4. HOWMAC JULIA (8-1)
5. WOODMERE CLARA (3-1)
6. SINGING RAMONA (7-2)

It is hard to go against a favourite that also draws the rail. Rock N Roll Cays (Tobago Cays) comes into this race with three straight second-place finishes. She seems always close, but that only matters in horseshoes. She has three wins and seven second-place finishes in her ten-lifetime starts. Her lifetime mark of 1:56.4 should be enough to finish the job on Sunday if she can overcome her unfortunate streak of second-place finishes.

Woodmere Clara (He’s Watching) beat Rock N Roll Cays last weekend at Truro Raceway and will look to repeat. She earned a new lifetime best of 1:56.1 in the winning effort but, this time, drew the outside. If driver Clare Macdonald can find a good early position, there is no doubt that this one will be close heading down the stretch. Woodmere Clara is a perfect three for three this year and is currently riding on a four-race win streak. My gut tells me that will likely end at some point, possibly this week. However, she will make it close.

Shado Angel (Shadow Play) will get the nod to be my third choice. She finished second place in her only start this year. She has spent most of her young racing career in Ontario but now returns to the Maritimes, hoping to find more success. Shado Angel’s only two wins came at the five-eighth mile track at Georgian Downs, and her best mile time there was 1:55.0. She has spent some time on half-mile tracks, but the results have been minimal. However, I still expect something big out of her on Sunday.

Trey’s Picks: 1-5-2

RACE 10: PEI COLT STAKES 3-YEAR-OLD COLTS (GOLD MORE THAN $10000 LIFETIME) – $14,500

1. STARSHIP GLYDE (3-1)
2. TOBIN PROFIT (6-1)
3. BACONONABISCUIT (4-1)
4. SAULSBROOK IAN (5-2)
5. MALIGNITY (7-2)
6. THE MIDNIGHT TRAIN (8-1)

Saulsbrook Ian (Betterthancheddar) is a perfect two for two this season. He earned a new lifetime mark of 1:57.3 last weekend at Truro Raceway and will look to improve on that momentum. Saulsbrook Ian is another horse that has spent most of his time in Ontario. He raced at Woodbine Mohawk Park several times but needed more success. He has found success now that he is back in the Maritimes. This could easily be his third straight win.

Starship Glyde (Control The Moment) is also perfect in 2023, but only at one-for-one. However, that one win shouldn’t be overlooked as he paced the mile in an impressive 1:56.3. He has a bit to go to reach his lifetime mark of 1:55.4 but could quickly achieve that at some point this year. David Dowling draws the assignment with Starship Glyde and will look to add to his 16-win total.

Last week, I was very heavy on Malignity (Malicious) during the Donnie and George Turner Memorial at Truro Raceway. He had a seventh-place finish, but I believe he will bounce back this week. He came from the eighth post position last week, but this time comes in a bit to the five-hole. Malignity had a nearly perfect 2022 with nine wins in eleven starts. This could be the race he needs to regain that form.

Trey’s Picks: 4-1-5

RACE 11: PEI COLT STAKES 3-YEAR-OLD FILLIES (GOLD MORE THAN $10000 LIFETIME) – $11,600

1. HOWMAC JAZZY GIRL (6-1)
2. REDLAND MISSPRETTY (4-1)
3. WOODMERE JADE (8-1)
4. ELM GROVE REDWINE (3-1)
5. SAULSBROOK MABEL (5-2)
6. MARINA DEL REY (7-2)

Saulsbrook Mabel (Malicious) will be making her 2023 debut, and she is currently a perfect three-for-three heading into Sunday. She has the lifetime mark of 1:55.4, which should be more than enough to win if she could pull that out of her bag of tricks. She has to come from the fifth post position, but that has not stopped her. Gilles Barrieau will team up with the young filly and look to continue her hot streak.

Howmac Jazzy Girl (Pang Shui) and driver Ken Murphy will use the rail position to their advantage. She also drew the rail in her first start of 2023, where she won wire-to-wire and achieved a new lifetime mark of 1:58.2. She is surrounded by speed, but having the inside could be huge in a race like this. I expect her to be near the top at the finish line.

Redland Misspretty (Source Of Pride) was another horse I was heavy on last weekend at Truro Raceway. She ended up finishing third there, but that still leaves her with two top-three finishes in two starts this year. Her other start was a win at Charlottetown Driving Park. She paced that mile in 1:57.2, which is now her best time. So there should be no reason she can’t be near the top if she brings that effort to Summerside Raceway.

The remaining seven races on the card are for the Grassroots divisions.

Racing at Summerside Raceway kicks off at 1:00 p.m. ADT on Sunday.

For complete race entries, click here.

by Trey Colbeck, for Harnesslink