by John Manzi, for the Billings Series

Monticello, NY — For the third time this season North America’s greatest traveling roadshow, the C.K.G. Billings Amateur Driving Series, has ventured to Canada, this time for races at Flamboro Downs on Sunday (Oct. 4) and at Woodbine Racetrack on Monday (Oct. 5).

At Flamboro Downs, Steve “You’re Never Too” Oldford visited the winner’s circle again when he guided Grandprix Seelster to a front-end victory in a time of 2:01.3 and at Woodbine “Racin’ Jason” Sgrignuoli won with E L Rock in a swift 1:56.1.

In his trot over Flamboro Downs’ double oval, Oldford hustled his trotter away from post four with hopes of finding a hole down along the pylons but when nothing materialized he kept Grandprix Seelster going forward.

“When I couldn’t find a hole on the first turn I sent my horse to the lead and after we made the front he was on cruise control the rest of the mile,” Oldford related by telephone after the race.

A soft early fraction of :31.1 helped Oldford on his quest for victory. Once on top his horse trotted nearly :30-second quarters the rest of the journey and cruised home an easy four length winner in 2:01.3 over Tymal Fireitup, driven by Jason Sgrignuoli. Despite making a break behind the starting gate, “Howie the Horse” Gelfand garnered the show dough with Winem.

The race winner, an altered son of Federal Flex, owned by Glengate Farms, Goldfinger Stables and his trainer, Patrick Hunt, paid $11.60 for win. And for Oldford, an automobile manufacturers rep from Croswell, Mich., it was his 12th seasonal driving victory and the 109th of his amateur career.

After a second place finish at Flamboro Downs “Racin’ Jason” emerged victorious at Woodbine, winning with E L Rock, which made the second time — in just two chances — that he won with the 7-year-old Yankee Glide gelding in Billings competition. He reined E L Rock to a Billings victory at Mohawk Racetrack in mid-September.

After a soft start where he got away in fourth position, Sgrignuoli moved for the lead but he was rebuffed by “Bullet Bob” Davis who was up behind Blush And Crush.

“I fell in fourth place in the early going and sat there until we passed the half. At that point I pulled my trotter and was looking for the front but Bob Davis wouldn’t let me go, so I tucked in behind him and in the stretch my horse out-trotted his and we won it by a length,” Sgrignuoli said via telephone.

Blush And Crush finished second and Strong Hope was third for Howie Gelfand.

E L Rock is owned by Mark Herlihy and Robert Lovett and trained by Herlihy. He returned a $5.90 win mutuel. For Sgrignuoli, an electrician by trade from Dorval, Quebec, it was only his eighth drive this year but his second victory and seventh in his career, which includes just 66 amateur drives since 2007.