Somebeachsomewhere qualifies in 1:51.1

by Greg Blanchard, media/communications, Woodbine Entertainment Group

Campbellville, ON — The much anticipated debut of star pacer Somebeachsomewhere took place Monday morning (May 5) at Mohawk Racetrack and the statuesque colt did not disappoint, turning in an effortless-looking 1:51.1 mile during the qualifying session.

WEG photo

A large crowd was on hand to watch Somebeachsomewhere in his first qualifier of the season.

Somebeachsomewhere had originally been slated to qualify this past Friday morning, but his trainer Brent MacGrath opted to bypass that engagement due to heavy rains and thick fog that morning in Campbellville.

Today, a large crowd of about 150 — easily three times a typical gathering for qualifiers — turned out to watch the much-hyped colt in action.

With regular pilot Paul MacDonell on board, the hulking son of Mach Three floated away from the starting gate and positioned himself in second through a :28 first quarter. At that point, MacDonell sent the pacer to the outside and took over the lead well before the first half in :56.2.

From there, Somebeachsomewhere turned on the afterburners and paced a final half in :54.4 to win by 10-3/4 lengths at the finish over fellow Pepsi North America Cup eligible Legacy N Diamonds.

“I just wanted him to be comfortable and well within himself this morning and he was,” commented MacGrath afterwards. “He wouldn’t blow a candle out after he came back into the barn. He has a great set of lungs and he was very strong at the end of the mile this morning.”

MacGrath said that Somebeachsomewhere’s first appearance of the season in racing action will be May 17 in an Ontario Sires Stakes Gold elimination at Mohawk. It is what he hopes will be the first of five straight weeks of racing at the Campbellville oval which would include the Gold final, Burlington Stakes and the elimination and final of the C$1.5 million Pepsi North America Cup.

Reg Petitpas, part of the Schooner Stables who own the pacer, made the trip from his home in Dieppe, New Brunswick, to watch the colt qualify and said the entire experience has been surreal to this point.

“I’ve been at this for 30 years and never expected to have a horse like this,” he admitted. “It really is a once in a lifetime thing. I know in my hometown there will probably be 300 people at the Horseshoe Pub to watch the replay of his qualifier. If he’s fortunate enough to make the North America Cup Final there will definitely be a couple of busloads coming up to watch. It’s very exciting.”

Somebeachsomewhere went undefeated in six starts as a rookie while banking $773,296. His biggest win came in the C$1 million Metro Pace at Mohawk where he set a world record of 1:49.3.

He was voted 2-Year-Old Colt Pacer Of The Year in both Canada and the U.S. and was named as a co-recipient of Horse Of The Year in Canada.

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