Assiniboia: Miss Sandy Dee's the one

WINNIPEG, Manitoba - Miss Sandy Dee will be the one to beat in Monday's $30,000 Victoria Day, where a field six fillies and mares will go 5 1/2 furlongs in the first stakes race of the season at Assiniboia Downs.

Last year, Miss Sandy Dee won the Winnipeg Sun and Matron on her way to being named the top local older mare.

Trained by Patti Ross, Miss Sandy Dee will be making her first start of 2002. Second in the Victoria Day last year behind Ispymytie, the distance may be her only downfall as all 10 of her lifetime wins have come between six and nine furlongs.

Rohan Singh will ride Miss Sandy Dee, breaking from post position 4.

Texas Heat and Cathy's Star will be making their first appearances here.

Texas Heat will also be making her first start for trainer Clayton Gray. The likely speed of the race, Texas Heat won her last start in allowance company at Sam Houston in Texas at the Victoria Day distance.

Manuel Alicea will be aboard Texas Heat for the first time, breaking from post 2.

Cathy's Star will be making her first start for trainer Gordon Marsh and her first dirt start since last November. A winner of two turf races at Turf Paradise over the winter, Cathy's Star will break from the rail under Robert Munoz.

Kitty Would comes into the race off three starts this spring at Fonner Park, where she finished second in an allowance race but was off the board in two stakes. Trained by Jerry Gourneau and ridden by Jacques DesAutels, Kitty Would will break from post 5.

Danceprincessdance finished third in a stakes race at Fort Pierre, a small track in South Dakota unrecognized by parimutual tracks, in her only start of 2002. She is trained by Ardell Sayler and will start from the outside under Tim Moccassin.

Dawn Edition, who will be making her first start against open stakes company for trainer Wendy Anderson, will begin from post 3 under Anderson Ward.

- additional reporting by Adam Goss