Lassie's Goal - 3FT
bay filly 3, by Armbro Goal -- Missy Hadagal, by Speed Bowl
Owners
Rompaway Fms & Waldo Frankenstein
With few exceptions, the three-year-old filly trot division has been one of great predictability at Breeders Crown time. Fillies like Fancy Crown, Armbro Devona, Armbro Fling, Peace Corps, No Nonsense Woman -- all Breeders Crown champions, that went to the gate in their respective Breeders Crown events expected to win and all behaved as expected.
As the old adage goes when a heavy favorite is upset “that’s why they race horses” and indeed the 1998 version of the division had one of the most unpredictable results in history.
A filly with flashy speed but temperament problems at two, Fern blossomed at three for trainer Arild Eggen and owners Jim Sprow of Castleton Farm and Stein Sjolie.
Fern controlled the division early on. She won her first three starts and roared into the Meadowlands at the peak of her form. She left with the Del Miller Memorial money, a Hambletonian Oaks title, and three new owners. With two-time HTA Driver of the Year Luc Ouellette at the lines, her charmed life seemed assured.
Eggen, the epitome of a level-headed horseman, was none the less thrilled. The four weeks at The Meadowlands was a turning point for the stable, which also featured Fern’s stablemate Box Trot, originally thought to be the better of the two fillies by her freshman record. Box Trot was fourth in the Oaks, and Eggen, who’d grown up on the fantastic Scandinavia trotting classics like the Elitlopp, was determined to keep both feet on the ground as he found himself with managing two of the best sophomores in the division.
Fern won her next start, a PA All Stars contest, then the distaffers headed out to DuQuoin. In the first heat of the World Trotting Derby Filly Division, she was impeded, boxed in and never had a fair chance, finishing fifth. Latest Lover owned the first heat but in the second, Lassie’s Goal, a $7,200 Tattersalls yearling, found her best stride in a 1:54.2 mile, forcing a race-off. Lassie’s Goal took the raceoff from Latest Lover as well, and Fern showed the first crack in her composure.
In Lexington, Fern won the first heat of the Kentucky Futurity filly division, with Lassie’s Goal second. The next heat was won by Latest Lover, with runner-up True Blue Victory driven by Norwegian import Hans Tholfsen. The final heat saw Fern trot away from the field, with Baltic Region second and Lassie’s Goal third. The stage was set for the Breeders Crown.
Despite the presence of Fern, enough trotting fillies dropped in the box to necessitate elims, including defending Breeders Crown champion My Dolly, Colonial Lady winner Warrawee Kes and the lightly-raced That Fabulous Face. Colonial Downs, in New Kent, Va., was the newest harness track in the U.S. and figured to be a trotter’s dream with it’s unique one-turn mile with sweeping turns and a start from a chute.
One trotter who found something about the track completely not to her liking was Fern. She made a totally out-of-character break behind the gate in her Crown elimination. Ouellette steadied her and despite being some 14 lengths off the field, was able to salvage a third place finish, but the elimination was an unfortunate harbinger of things to come.
That Fabulous Face won her Crown elimination, while Fern stablemate Box Trot took the other.
In the final, Ouellette did yeoman work maneuvering the favored Fern around in the chute till it was post time. But again, it was clear Fern was one unhappy filly. There were three lead changes before the half in the Crown final, and one could almost hear the drivers wondering “Where is she?”
Trainer | Driver
Mark O'Mara
With the three-quarters reached in a mild 1:25.3, Ouellette was at now or never time and sent the filly for the front. But she struggled to make the top, and heading into the sweeping final turn, Ouellete lost control of Fern and she galloped.
Mike Lachance, aboard That Fabulous Face, drove as if she were the best in the race and she very nearly was. He’d hurried her from the gate for position and found himself able to angle out in deep stretch (which goes on for a very long time at Colonial) and get more trot out of filly as they headed for the wire. He was pursued by Hans Tholfsen doing a masterful job with True Blue Victory and Mark O’Mara driving Lassie’s Goal through a disastrous trip that was going to go golden at the last possible second. O’Mara had trouble getting into any flow in the race, and was finally forced to take his filly fourwide around the last turn and drive furiously to the wire. He got there a few steps short, but they were trotting steps, unlike those of That Fabulous Face, who just lost it and galloped at the thought of winning a Breeders Crown with just $44,245 on her card. .
For the first time Breeders Crown races, a winner was placed first. Lassie’s Goal got the trophy and the $220,000 for Michigan partners Tom Smith of Rompaway Farm and Dr. Waldo Frankenstein, who had not been able to travel to Virginia. Lassie’s Goal had endured a roller derby campaign, raced at 13 different tracks, had her number taken down at Springfield in the Castleton Stake and found her best foot amidst the cornfields of DuQuoin, her finest hour till she traveled to Virginia.
Trainer Frank O’Mara has a well-respected reputation with trotters, and Lassie’s Goal was a pleasant reminder of his accomplishments over the past 20 years. Son Mark had last visited the Crown winner circle ten years ago with sophomore Crown victor Firm Tribute.
The daughter of Armbro Goal got a third Breeders Crown credit for the stallion, and strangely enough, a breeders credit for Continental Farms, a partnership of Jan Johnson and Berndt Lindstedt and one of the leading training concerns in the Breeders Crown series. So Continental Farms bred the winner and finished second with True Blue Victory. Owner Bill Perretti and trainer Ron Gurfein were philosophical about their loss with That Fabulous Face. They had expected little from her and gotten plenty.
The loss at Colonial Downs could not take away from Fern’s tremendous accomplishments of the season. Aside from her gaudy roster of stakes, her $644,823 in earnings made her the richest of the division, and sealed the decision for year-end honors.
