Western Canada’s top sophomores will be on display Saturday at Century Mile

Century Mile will be giving out $393,610 over 13 dashes on Saturday, and the feature event is one of the biggest on the Western Canada harness racing calendar.

Nine sophomore colts & geldings will battle for the crown in the Western Canada Pacing Derby. Ten fillies also have their chance to see who is the best in the Century Casino Filly Pace.

RACE 12: WESTERN CANADA PACING DERBY – $110,710

1. Blue Star Mercury (7-2)
2. Over The Horizon (3-1)
3. Opulent Dragon (20-1)
4. General Custard (10-1)
5. Matts Gem (15-1)
6. Handsome Dan (20-1)
7. Mickie Mantle (12-1)
8. Virtual Horizon (8-5)
9. One Major Hottie (20-1)

My Picks: 6-8-7

I predict a massive upset, and Handsome Dan (State Treasure) will win big on Saturday! He heads into Saturday at 20-1, but that could grow once the betting windows open. The Manitoba-bred gelding led in his elimination last week until he was passed down the stretch by Over The Horizon and General Custard. Handsome Dan usually likes to come from off the pace, which could give him an advantage if the favourites all battle early for the lead.

If everything goes according to Brandon Campbell’s plan on Saturday, Virtual Horizon (Vertical Horizon) will cruise to a wire-to-wire victory. However, with the talent and speed in this field, Virtual Horizon will have to battle for the early lead. This is the first time he will come from post-position-eight as well. Once the light turns green to pass all seven horses, he will have to floor it, but that will risk his long-term game.

Blue Star Mercury (Mystician) was the one who gave Virtual Horizon his first loss of the year. He got his third win of the year and did it in 1:53.4. The Saskatchewan-bred gelding upset the field last week at 32-1. He has been gaining form as he had two second-place finished before heading into the elimination. He showed he has speed and can use it when needed! Now, the gamble is on if he can do it for the second week in a row.

RACE 10: CENTURY CASINO FILLY PACE – $134,300        

1. Outlawabovenbeyond (10-1)
2. Roulette Hanover (8-1)
3. Beep Bop A Lula (20-1)
4. Side Piece (7-5)
5. Moonstruck (15-1)
6. G Ts Skyla (8-5)
7. Iris Seelster (20-1)
8. You Promyst (15-1)
9. Caviar N Crackers (20-1)
10. Ima Beach Diva (20-1)

Side Piece (Shadow Play) makes her return to Alberta after a brief trip to Fraser Downs. She has six wins this year, and her only blemish is a second-place finish in the Gord Illa Rumpel Memorial. The one loss came from G Ts Skyla, and Side Piece will be looking to inflict some form of revenge this weekend. Her lifetime mark is 1:52.4, which she did in September at Fraser Downs. This will be her second start on the full-mile oval after she made her Edmonton debut last week. She paced that mile in 1:53.3, which is still faster than most of the rest of the field.

The only horse to beat Side Piece this year is G Ts Skyla (Mystician), and the two will go toe-to-toe once again. G Ts Skyla has taken a few weeks off and has yet to race since Sep. 30, when she won the ABSS Princess Final. She paced the mile in 1:54.2, but her lifetime mark is 1:53.2, but she did that at Century Downs. This is her third consecutive start on the mile oval in northern Alberta, so she is more familiar with the track size.

The Pennsylvania-bred filly, Roulette Hanover (All Betts Off), comes into the race with back-to-back wins. She has the speed to compete against the field as she paced the two wins in 1:53.3 and 1:54.4. She has been racing in southern Ontario before moving to Alberta. She only had two wins before making the trek west, but she has shown she can compete. Phil Giesbrecht has put her in the proper position so far.

My Picks: 6-4-2

RACE 2: ROCKY MOUNTAIN BOYS TWO-YEAR-OLD COLTS & GELDINGS FIRST DIVISION – $22,500

1. Come On Santana (3-5)  
2. Big N Shiny (8-1)
3. Hf Winknat Jenna (6-1)  
4. Sharkasaurus (4-1)  
5. Nevada Dragon (10-1)  

Come On Santana (Santanna Blue Chip) has the most wins and top-three finishes out of anyone in the field. She only has finished outside the top three once in his six career starts. His lifetime mark is 1:55.4, which she achieved at Track On 2, but her best win time at Century Mile is 1:58.0. Come On, Santana will likely receive most of the money at the betting windows, but it is well deserved.

Sharkasaurus (Prince Sharka) is the only other horse in the first division to have a win. He won in the Norm Kennedy and paced the mile in 1:59.3. He has back-to-back third places heading into the Rocky Mountain Boys but can capitalize on the short field.

HF Winknat Jenna (Wink N Atcha) has three second-place finishes this year’s five starts. He has been the definition of just falling short in his young career. He will have another opportunity to change his fortune; anything can happen when two-year-olds hit the Track.

My Picks: 1-4-3

RACE 3: ROCKY MOUNTAIN BOYS TWO-YEAR-OLD COLTS & GELDINGS SECOND DIVISION – $22,500

1. Blueline Bruiser (10-1)  
2. Cenalta Gunfire (8-1)  
3. Hf Winknat Shadows (12-1)  
4. Matteuse (7-2) 
5. Grey Horizon (2-5)

Grey Horizon (Vertical Horizon) has been almost perfect in his first six career starts. He has five wins and one second-place finish. The one blemish came during his one and only start at Track On 2. Since then, he has returned to his top form and made a new lifetime mark of 1:55.2 his last time out. Grey Horizon has shown he can win from almost any post position, so drawing the five-hole shouldn’t be an issue.

Matteuse (Custard The Dragon) is coming off a big 35-1 win last week, earning him 7-2 morning line odds. He put up a 1:56.2 mile time, which makes him have the second fastest time after Grey Horizon. He had never finished in the top three before last week, but the taste of victory might be enough to get him on the right Track.

It is wide open for third place, but the odds maker gives the slight edge to Cenalta Gunfire (Custard The Dragon). His best finish in his six career starts is a pair of thirds, and the latest came just a week ago in the ABSS Lonestar. Grey Horizon and Hf Winknat Jenna were the only two better than him last time out. He has shown that if he can get the front end early, he is usually close when the field hits the stretch.

My Picks: 5-4-2

RACE 5: BRAD GUNN, TWO-YEAR-OLD FILLIES FIRST DIVISION – $22,500

1. Y V Larceny (6-1)  
2. Orchids Of Asia (20-1)  
3. Cf Faline (12-1) 
4. Born A Spy (2-5) 
5. Caughtstealinghome (15-1)  

One of the hottest two-year-old fillies this weekend must be Born A Spy (Smart Sharka). She has three wins in five starts and has never finished outside the top three. Her lifetime mark is 1:57.0, the fastest and the only sub-2:00 win time out of anyone in the first division.

CF Faline (Westwardo Hanover) has never finished better than third place in six career starts, but her last she only lost out to Byby Baby Byby and Outlawguns N Roses. Those two are the heavy favourites in the second division, and CF Faline won’t have to deal with them on Saturday.

The most race-tested filly in the first division is Caughtstealinghome (Captive Audience). She has made seven starts, but her best performances have been a handful of third-place finishes. In her last start, she finished fourth behind CF Faline in the ABSS Starburst.

My Picks: 4-3-5

RACE 6: BRAD GUNN TWO-YEAR-OLD FILLIES SECOND DIVISION – $22,500         

1. Baby Baby Byby (1-1)  
2. Outlawguns N Roses (6-5)  
3. Foothills Magic (15-1)  
4. Dragon Dancer (20-1)
5. Delta Sunrise (10-1)  
6. Sandras Mystery (8-1)

Byby Baby Byby (Vertical Horizon) has shown she has an immense amount of speed as she posted a 1:52.2-mile time last week. She also has three straight wins heading into this weekend and has proven challenging to beat.

Outlawguns N Roses (Captive Audience) has had a great start to her racing career. She also has three wins to her name, and her lifetime mark currently sits at 1:53.2. However, in her last start, she finished just behind Byby Baby Byby when she went 1:52.2, so the speed is there.

Another race where it is a wide-open chance for third, but I will go with Sandras Mystery (All Bets Off). She only has one win on her record, and she paced the mile in 1:56.3. She has finished in the top three all but once, which was her last start, so she will be looking to bounce back.

My Picks: 1-2-6

Century Mile kicks off at 6:15 p.m. MDT on Saturday.

For complete race entries, click here.

by Trey Colbeck, for Harnesslink