Hanover's Saturday Pick 4: Who to Watch Out For

The Catch Driver Pick 4 is back for a second week at Hanover Raceway (15% Takeout, $2,000 Guaranteed Pool) starting in Race 1 at the usual Saturday 2pm Post Time. We caught up with the trainers of two horses in the sequence: Shark Idea (Race 3: #8) and Ladies from Hell (Race 4: #7).

Ladies from Hell - Race 4: #7

6 year old, Bay Mare

Paul Davies(Driver, Trainer, co-owner): I’ve had her since April 2019. I bought her privately at the end of the Fraser downs meet. For a mare, she is very nice to have in the barn, she's really friendly and she loves attention. She is very versatile and can race anyway you want her to- on the front, first up or off a trip. I actually drove, and won a lot of races catch driving her, at Fraser downs before I bought her. She’s a tough, gritty mare that loves to race. She has such a good attitude, I’m hoping to hang onto her for a broodmare down the road. We usually call her ‘Lady’ in the barn, but as nicknames go, sometimes she’s ‘Bug’. She loves to eat... she damn near tears the barn down at feed time or when the bag of black liquorice comes out.
The Paul Davies barn has been firing on all cylinders since relocating to Ontario, with 4 wins, 1 second, and 2 thirds from only 9 starts. At Hanover Raceway the barn has had 2 wins and 1 third from 3 starts so far. StandardbredCanada recently featured Paul in the article Davies Ontario Based for Good. If things continue the way they have started, I expect to hear the name Paul Davies a lot as he makes waves on the Ontario circuit.

The question for tomorrow is: does Ladies from Hell have what it takes to overcome the dreaded post 7 to get the job done? She's stepping up in class, and faces tougher rivals in comparison to when she won from post 5 last week.

Shark Idea - Race 3: #8

3 year old, Bay Filly

John Lougheed(Trainer, co-owner): I picked her up around January 14th. She was on Winbak sales board, and I saw some potential after her late 2 year old season qualifier, where she was 2nd at Flamboro in 1:58.4. I purchased her from Blake Mcintosh and Hutt Racing stable. She's well behaved in the barn at home, and puts her game face on at the racetrack. She has very good manners on the track, and does what she’s told. She has good gate speed when it's needed, but I believe her best racing style is on a helmet in a good striking position. She's a good size, and has filled out well since we got her. She trains well at the farm, and hasn’t yet shown her full potential at the track. Hopefully Ross [Ross Battin- driver of #1 Dazzlin Rosie] wants to put his horse in a good spot and we will be right behind him. At very worst, maybe we get away mid pack. I'd like her to stay close, and hopefully land a second over trip and good flow on the front end. Fun fact: In the early stages of Training down as a two year old, she was in the same set as Blake’s Groovy Joe, who is NA cup eligible. Her barn name is Lady, after her dam, Shark Lady. She loves carrots and gets plenty of them. She's a very good eater, nose deep in her mash every night.
This will be Shark Idea's 6th lifetime start, and 4th start as a 3 year old. She has shown 29.0 second speed at Flamboro - but is yet to pick up a top 3 finish for her efforts. I (Ryan) look for her to improve off previous efforts here, and she seems to be well spotted in this field. The second tier starting position is a concern, as I wouldn't want to see her stuck on the outside for more than 2 turns if she doesn't find position early in the race.