Valerie Grondin to Represent Maine In International Competition

VALERIE GRONDIN TO RESPRESENT MAINE IN INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION
By Paul Verrette

Corinna's Valerie Grondin will represent the state of Maine this coming Saturday in the North American Women's Driving Challenge. Hosted by Georgian Downs in Barrie, Ontario, the competition will feature twenty of North America's leading female drivers and is a fund raising event for the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation. Every horse on the eleven race program will be handled by a female driver, and the first ten races will determine the field for the eleventh race, which will decide the championship. The competition, which hopes to raise $20,000 for the charity, is co-sponsored by the Ontario Harness Horsemen's Association.

Grondin is not the only driver in the competition with Maine connections. Though technically representing Florida, where she now spends much of the year, Kelly Case is a Maine native from a prominent racing family. With more that seven hundred lifetime wins, she ranks second among all participants in Saturday's competition.

Bangor Raceway moves into the second week of its 2005 season this weekend with racing action on Friday and Saturday evenings along with Sunday afternoon. On Friday two divisions of the second leg of the Sid Hansen Memorial Pacing Series go to post. Ebsen Hanover, owned by Reginald Dugay of Winslow, is the pre-race favorite in the first division, while Bangor native Bill Varney's Whata Big Ticket is the early choice in the second division. Both horses, who have each won four races thus far in 2005, won their respective divisions last week, and the two seem destined to meet in next week's final event.

Late closing action continues on Sunday afternoon when Bangor hosts the $2,500 first leg of the Clayton Dickison Memorial Series. The horse population at the track has been buoyed by the return of the Mike Cushing stable, which has been competing in Massachusetts, New York and Pennsylvania during the past few months. Post time at Bangor is at 7:30 P.M. on Friday and Saturday and is at 1:30 on Sunday afternoon.

The richest race in Maine this weekend takes place Saturday evening at Scarborough Downs, where Landmark Honor seeks his third consecutive victory in the $3,700 feature pace. The veteran pacer took last week off after scoring back to back wins in 1:57.4 on May 14th and May 21st. He faces stiff competition this week from several sharp pacers. Sam Francisco Ace, owned by Gaetan Cloutier and Mary Jane Parker of Leeds, has won three consecutive races at Scarborough. Doug Beckwith's Perfect Trick, winner of seventeen races during the last two seasons, ships to Scarborough this week after defeating the top class at Bangor last week. The Boy N, an impressive 1:55.4 winner last weekend over Freehold's half-mile oval, is a new comer to Maine for owner Brian Bickmore. Diann Perkins' Baxter heads into Saturday's contest off a victory, and the Searway stable's William and Harry has been on the board in five of his nine starts this season.

On Friday Scarborough hosts a trotting event which features the first local start of the season for Current Cast. From the powerful Don Richards stable, Current Cast was among the top trotters in the state last season, and faces a pair of sharp horses in his 2005 Maine debut. Both Lew Hayden's Classic Andy, who won the top trot at Bangor last weekend, and Bruce Bridgham's Snap Dancer, who did the same at Scarborough, also figure prominently in the $3,700 Winners Over event. The remainder of the field in Maine's feature trotting class of the week includes Bratgirl, owned by Robert Holden of North Bridgton; Bill Varney's Dark Lady, and One Time, owned by Kevin McDonald of Scarborough.

Post time at Scarborough Downs is at 7:00 P.M. on both Friday and Saturday, while the Sunday afternoon post is now at 3:30 P.M.