Real Live Woman the genuine article in Gold Final
July 14, 2004,by Sandra Snyder
Rexdale, ON — Real Live Woman demonstrated maturity to match her name, winning the C$130,000 Ontario Sires Stakes Gold Series Final at Woodbine Racetrack on Tuesday evening.
The two-year-old trotting filly and driver Steve Condren left from post two and swept up the outside to the lead heading toward the halfway marker.
The filly fought off a challenge from Keystone Leah at the three-quarter pole and never looked back, sailing home to the 1:59 win for trainer Greg Peck of Newton, Pennsylvania and his partner Gerald Bloch of Cote-St.-Luc, Quebec.
“I named her after the Trisha Yearwood song and that’s what she is, a real live woman,” said Peck after the race. “I’ve spent a lot of time with her. My family has been understanding and it has paid off I must say.”
Peck’s efforts began to pay off last week when the daughter of Angus Hall and Taurus Design finished a fast closing second to Lookit in her elimination, clocking a :273 last quarter to miss the win by a short neck.
Woodbine fans were impressed enough with that effort to send the filly off as their top choice in Tuesday’s C$130,000 contest and they earned $3.80 on a win ticket, $2.50 for a place wager and $2.10 to show. Elimination winner Erotica finished two lengths back in second and returned $6.20 to place and $4.50 to show, while Dream On Bernie returned $5.00 for her third place effort. The exactor was worth $25.70, the three filly triactor paid $160.60 and adding fourth place finisher Keystone Leah to the mix for a superfecta play netted fans $429.30.
A $43,000 purchase out of last fall’s Harrisburg Yearling Sale, Real Live Woman prepped for her Ontario Sires Stakes debut with a pair of June qualifiers at the Meadowlands in New Jersey. She finished fifth in the first after being interfered with at the quarter pole and captured the second by 12 lengths in 2:011.
“She was good from day one. She had a one, two, three, four gait from day one,” added Peck. “I thought she’d be good and I told people that she would be good. I went out on a limb and you’re always afraid of the jinx, but if you have a good one none of that stuff holds up, and she’s been one.”
Real Live Woman and her peers now head to Grand River Raceway on July 23 for their second Gold Series event, while Woodbine Racetrack wraps up its July Ontario Sires Stakes events on Monday, July 19 with the Gold Final for two-year-old trotting colts.