BC Racebook Newsletter - November 8, 2022
Watch : Breeders’ Cup Classic Winner FLIGHTLINE
"He's just that rare horse that happens every 20 or 30 years. One of the best American racehorses we've seen in a long, long time. And I'm talking back to Secretariat, Seattle Slew, you go through the list.” - Trainer, John Sadler.
MYSTIC HUNTER, winner of 1st race on November 6.
Thrills Galore on BC Breeders Classic Day
By Greg Douglas – Dr. Sport
Sunday’s BC Breeders Classic Day was a big hit at Fraser Downs Racetrack at Elements Casino.
The phrase “big hit” aptly fits in baseball language with two of the four $100,000 Stakes winners Sunday being Mickie Mantle and Joe DiMagio, a play on the spelling of all-time New York Yankee greats Mickey Mantle and Joe DiMaggio.
To take the baseball theme one more step, owner/trainer/driver Kelly Hoerdt nailed a home run by having a hand in both the $100,000 Robert Millbank Memorial for 2-year-old colts & geldings and the Robert Murphy Memorial for 3-year-old colts & geldings.
Hoerdt is a part owner and drove favoured Mickie Mantle for trainer Chris Lancaster in the Robert Millbank Memorial. Also, he is part owner and trainer for Joe DiMagio, winner of the Robert Murphy Memorial driven by Michael Hennessy.
Jim Marino was trainer of record for the other two $100,000 Stakes winners, both driven by Brandon Campbell: Side Piece in the Betty Millbank Memorial for 2-year-old fillies and Shoot The Whiskey for 3-year-old fillies.
Standardbred racing resumes Sunday afternoon (1 p.m.) November 13 and Monday night (7 p.m.) November 14 at Fraser Downs.
November 6. BC Racebook at Fraser Downs.
Bailey on the Backstretch
By Bailey Williams
With a capacity attendance in the HomeStretch dining area and a mid-afternoon rainbow hovering over Fraser Downs Racetrack at Elements Casino Sunday, it was only fitting that our final handicapping contest of the season was deemed successful.
Like the four Stakes with $400,000 in purses creating excitement down to the wire, so was the BC Racebook Handicapping competition. Congratulations to all the winners on track and the top three contest winners: Tony, Harvey and Aaron.
The biggest Stakes payout ($17.30) came in the fifth leg of the contest with Joe DiMagio winning the Robert Murphy Memorial for 3-year-old colts & geldings. Mickie Mantle paced the field off their feet in the 2-year-old Robert Millbank Memorial boys’ division. (Our dear friend Dr. Sport explains the intriguing names of these horses in his adjacent article).
The fillies did not disappoint either with photo finishes at the wire. Trainer Jim Marino and driver J. Brandon Campbell teamed up to be victorious in both the 2 and 3-year-old Betty Millbank Memorial and Mary Murphy Stake races.
Thanks again for those racing fans who participated in the BC Breeders Classic Day Handicapping Contest. Live harness racing continues through December 12.
View from the Steward's booth at Hastings: Merv Peters & renowned jockey Johnny Longden. Ralph Bower Photo.
Passing of Merv Peters Ignites Fond Memories
By Greg Douglas – Dr. Sport
From copy runner to racing writer to sports editor with the Vancouver Sun, it was only a matter of time before Merv Peters would be recruited as a member of Jack Diamond’s thoroughbred racing team.
Mr. Diamond, legendary philanthropist and celebrated sports personality, has often been described as “the father of modern-day horse racing In British Columbia”. It was a title he wore proudly from his Hastings skybox suite during the spirited 1960-70’s era.
It was also a time when Peters, who succumbed to a lengthy illness October 25 at age 91, was at Diamond’s side every step of the way.
“Merv was great to work with,” recalls long-time Daily Racing Form correspondent Randy Goulding. “He was firm but fair. If you messed up, he’d let you know. But he would also work with you to make sure you didn’t make the same mistake again.”
Similar to his rise in the newspaper ranks, Peters was originally hired in 1961 at Hastings as an Associate Steward. He was soon promoted to Presiding Steward and Director of Racing and in 1975 was named General Manager.
“I worked with Merv for 11 years as the track publicist and enjoyed every minute of it,” says Brian Pound, a sportswriter at The Province when Peters was Sports Editor at The Sun. “Merv brought horse racing in BC into the 20th century with major improvements at the Hastings site. He oversaw the installation of lights for night racing, pioneered sweep six wagering and convinced the provincial government to reduce the pari-mutuel tax.”
Peters was inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame as a builder in 1993, one year prior to the provincial government taking control of the Hastings operation under the Pacific Racing Association.
In his retirement, Merv rarely missed returning to the track as a guest decorator for BC Derby Day, often in the company of sons Brent and Kelly as well as life-long friend Archie McDonald who covered racing for The Sun prior to a hall of fame career as a daily columnist.
A Celebration of Life honouring Merv Peters will be held Sunday, November 20 at the Hollyburn Country Club in West Vancouver from 1:00 – 4:00 p.m
