Irish pinto tremendous in Canadian debut win

Tkemetothebeach Ir (White Flame) dazzled not only with his pinto coat, but with his harness racing performance on Thursday (May 4) as the Irish import went last-to-first uncovered to win his first race in Canada at Flamboro Downs.

Brett MacDonald showed no urgency leaving the gate from post eight, dropping him back to eighth in a :28.2 first quarter. The stallion set in motion as the field turned for the stands, making headway past rivals as Catch The Spark (Travis Henry) led to the half in :59.

Tkemetothebeach Ir grappled to within half a length of the leader at three-quarters in 1:29.3 and kept climbing to go by on the final turn. He kicked clear midway through the bend and was too quick home for the chasing Fablo (Samuel Fillion), coming home a length-and-a-half the best in 1:59.1.

Fablo was second over Lyons Brushmarks (Anthony Haughan). The winner was sent away at odds of 9-1.

TKEMETOTHEBEACH IR REPLAY

Tkemetothebeach Ir was bred in Ireland by Michael McCormac and raced twice with one victory in the country in 2019. In April 2023, the stallion qualified twice in Canada at Woodbine Mohawk Park. He moved to trainer Richard Moreau for the second qualifier on Apr. 28 before his debut on Thursday. Henry Smith of the Cayman Islands owns the horse, who sports white patches on his mane, neck, rear, and legs. His sire, White Flame, is a noted producer of pintos and set the world record for a pacer of his coat in 2015.

Flamboro Downs will return to racing on Saturday, May 6 at 6:35 p.m. EDT.

For complete race results, click here.

by Nicholas Barnsdale, for Harnesslink