by Sandra Snyder, for the Ontario Sire Stakes

Campbellville, ON — Marcella Hall heads into Monday’s (Aug. 5) Mid-Summer Challenge at Mohawk Racetrack as the top ranked 2-year-old trotting filly in Ontario, but six months ago she was at the bottom of trainer Jimmy Takter’s list of favorites.

“I could go back to February when Mr. Takter said anybody with $5,000 can have her,” says Wayne Giles with a chuckle. “He has a scale of rating them from two to nine and in February she was a two.”

Giles and his son Robert, who make up RAW Equine Inc., Takter’s wife Christina and brothers John and Jim Fielding had purchased Marcella Hall out of last fall’s Lexington Selected Yearling Sale for $30,000. And while the daughter of Deweycheatumnhowe and Margarita Hall was sorely trying Takter’s patience, Giles was unwilling to let him quit on the filly, whose full sister Ma Chere Hall had earned $162,064 as a 2-year-old in 2012.

“He said maybe he could wait a bit,” recalls Giles. “A month or so later he said well, she might be a four, four and a half. Then she was a six or seven, and by then we were racing and she won her first two starts in the Golds.”

After qualifying twice at the Meadowlands in New Jersey, in 1:59.4 on June 8 and 1:58.4 on June 22, Marcella Hall made the trip north for the July 5 Gold Series season opener at Mohawk Racetrack. Starting from post nine on the Campbellville oval the filly battled on the front end to a half-length victory in a sharp 1:58.1. In the second Gold Series event on July 23, Marcella Hall circled the Georgian Downs oval in 2:00.1, once again controlling the pace from start to finish.

Takter has piloted Marcella Hall in all of her outings thus far and will be back in the racebike for Monday’s C$150,000 Challenge. The duo will line up at post 10 in the talent laden field and Giles is hoping she can find her way to a paycheck.

“She’s been a pleasant surprise, better than we expected at the start,” says the owner. “So whatever we get, she’s already ahead of the game.”

Monday’s race caps off an action packed weekend of stakes racing for Giles and his partners. On Friday evening they will watch 2-year-old pacing gelding Pierce compete in a division of The Stallion Series at Harrah’s Philadelphia and sophomore trotting filly Drink The Wine battle in the Duenna at the Meadowlands in New Jersey. On Saturday afternoon 2-year-old trotting filly Struck By Lindy will be at the Meadowlands for the Merrie Annabelle final and on Sunday they will be hoping Adios winner Sunfire Blue Chip can make it three straight in eliminations for the 3-year-old pacing colt Empire Breeders Classic at Tioga Downs in New York.

“We’ve had remarkable luck so far this year,” admits Giles. “So far we’re happy.”

Should Marcella Hall extend her unexpected win streak from post 10 in Monday’s Mid-Summer Challenge it will be another opportunity for the partners to feel grateful for their current racing luck.

Post time for Mohawk Racetrack’s Monday evening program is 7:25 p.m., with the 2-year-old trotting fillies and colts competing in their C$50,000 Mid-Summer Consolation events in races two and three and C$150,000 Mid-Summer Challenges in races five and seven.

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