Clear-cut favorite in Fantasy

VANCOUVER, British Columbia - Aim for the Wire figures to be a short-priced favorite in the $50,000 Fantasy Stakes at Hastings Saturday. The 1 1/16-miles feature drew eight horses and is the only middle-distance stakes for 2-year-old fillies at the meet.

Aim for the Wire is owned by Peter Redekop BC Ltd. and it looks like the $60,000 Redekop paid for the daughter of Impeachment at the Ocala Breeders' Sale in June was well spent. A Florida-bred, Aim for the Wire has received substantial support in both of her starts. She was sent off as the 3-2 favorite in her debut Sept. 6, but after breaking a couple of steps slowly and rushing to the lead she tired to finish third. She was an obvious standout in her second start and paid $2.50 as she cruised to an 8 1/2-length win over Lenawest. Her final time of 1:17.84 was the fastest at the meet for her division. Aim for the Wire is trained by Dennis Terry and will be ridden by Pedro Alvarado.

Honky Tonk Pat is the only two-time winner in the field, and with a 1 1/16-mile prep race under her belt Oct. 3, she could have a small edge over the favorite. Her trainer, Barb Heads, wasn't happy with the way Honky Tonk Pat ran while finishing fifth in a race that included male stakes winners Alabama Rain and One Special Hoss.

"She seemed a bit flat," she said. "I knew it was a tough race, but I thought she would show more. I'm going to try running her with blinkers and hopefully she'll be a bit more aggressive."