October 13, 2023
By Mel Keith for Ontario Racing
MILTON, October 13, 2023 - Friday the 13th (of October) was Bob McClure’s lucky day in the Ontario Sires Stakes Gold Series Super Final for two-year-old male trotters at Woodbine Mohawk Park.
It didn’t look that way, as Willowtime turned for home after being pressed through a :27 flat opening quarter and :55.4 half by parked-out challenger Myretirementdream and driver Jody Jamieson.
Willowtime came into the divisional championship with a blemish on his three-win freshman season: September 29 at Woodbine Mohawk Park, the colt had left well in Gold Series Leg #5 for regular driver McClure and was leading at the top of the stretch, when he abruptly veered inside the pylons on a break.
Although the 1–5 favourite held on for show, Eli Wagler’s Myretirementdream trotted past late for the win and number-one status in the Gold Series division.
Previously undefeated in three pari-mutuel starts, Willowtime had won two Gold Series Legs at Georgian Downs and Woodbine Mohawk Park, as well as a Sept. 14 Champlain Stake division.
The move that racing analyst Randy Waples dubbed “the funky chicken” cost the number-three ranked OSS Gold Series colt a fourth consecutive win, in his last start before the $300,000 Super Final.
The turn for home loomed ahead Friday night, as Willowtime tried to go gate-to-wire for McClure.
Myretirementdream had already backed down, but whatever had sent Willowtime into his previous break threatened to do so again: The colt gave up much of a four-open length advantage when he “blew the turn” again after reaching three-quarters in 1:25.3, in the words of race caller Chad Rozema.
“This wasn’t my plan,” admitted a relieved McClure after the 1:54.4 victory. “I kind of thought, you know, this couldn’t set up any better for [place finisher] Griff,” who was rapidly closing the distance between himself and the leader. “He raced real tough…It’s unfortunate. I wish I had been able to let him go. It would have made things a lot easier. I don’t know what he’s doing at the three-quarter pole, but he trots perfect the rest of the way so...we’re not going to talk about that right now, because he got the job done.”
He credited trainer Mark Etsell with improving Willowtime’s mental game. The winning driver said he wasn’t expecting a repeat of the Gold Series Leg #5 antics for his colt: “I wasn’t, until he tried to, and then I was pretty tense but he came out of it. Mark usually knows how to catch those pretty good. He’s a great trainer, so he obviously taught him how to catch himself this week, so it was perfect.”
Willowtime is a Lookslikeachpndale–Sos Respect colt owned by Etsell, of Rockwood, ON, with partners Peter Porter of Port Dover, ON and breeder Terry Devos, Langton, ON.
Etsell told Woodbine Mohawk Park interviewer John Rallis he was satisfied with the 2023 Gold Super Final champ’s progress: “It’s great. Nice bounce back from last start, but we’ve had a lot of confidence in him since his first start and he’s been really good.” The trainer attributed Willowtime’s worrisome moments to being “just very green and very immature…like a big kid [who] doesn't focus a lot. So we changed some stuff this week, and he seemed to do a lot better.”
Willowtime paid $4.60 to win.
Complete results from Friday’s Super Finals are available
here and replays can be viewed on the Woodbine Mohawk Park YouTube
channel.
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