Harness: Norman gearing up for stakes finals at Mohawk, Red Mile

There are many schools of thought when it comes to developing young horses in our business. As early results indicated this season, many of our young trotters were going faster than ever in the very first trips to the racetrack for competition. At the time it appeared as if this next generation was perhaps a step above the past.

Yet as the weeks marched on from those early days, it has become apparent that the long racing season and its demands come with a price.

Trainer Richard “Nifty” Norman has maintained a long-term philosophy when it comes to his babies and that means as the seasons change he expects his horses to continue to improve. Norman’s trotters have been known to race from off the pace predominantly and that is a style he’s more than comfortable with.

“I think racing them from the back helps preserve them for the long run,” said Norman, while looking at his two entries in Saturday’s major stakes events for freshman trotters at Woodbine Mohawk Park.

Evident Beauty and Southwind Avenger did not win eliminations for the Peaceful Way or William Wellwood Memorials but they both did what Norman is comfortable seeing and that is finishing their miles strongly.

Evident Beauty was perhaps the more impressive of the two as the filly from the first crop of Trixton flew home finishing behind only Doherty Memorial winner The Ice Dutchess in her trial.

“She showed a lot of talent early,” said Norman of Evident Beauty, “But she took a bit longer to get it all together. She was making mistakes. Since we’ve gotten her to the races she’s been improving all of the time.”

Evident Beauty is out of the half-million dollar winning Struck By Lindy, a filly Norman campaigned throughout her career and notably finished second behind Shake It Cerry in the freshman Breeders Crown of 2013.

Evident Beauty has but four starts thus far heading into Saturday’s final, with a win and two seconds to her credit. “I raced her at Freehold,” Norman said, “I think she’s better on the big track.”

Perhaps that’s an understatement as Evident Beauty came from a dozen lengths off at the half in the Champlain to finish a solid second in her debut on Canadian soil on August 30 and then followed that up with last week’s impressive closing effort.

“Bob (McClure) has done an excellent job with her,” said Norman, “But we’ve had a lot of success with David Miller and he’ll drive her on Saturday.”

Evident Beauty was an $80,000 yearling at last year’s Lexington Selected sale. “She was a beautiful filly, a little bigger than her mother,” Norman said.

Evident Beauty starts from post five in the C$385,000 Peaceful Way final.

Southwind Avenger, by first-crop sire E L Titan, finished fourth in his elimination after a solid second-place finish in a division of the Champlain. “I thought he could have been a little better,” said Norman objectively about the effort.

Baby-raced in the States, Southwind Avenger had been solid winning one and finishing second in two other Ontario Sire Stakes Gold divisions before making his Grand Circuit debut in the Champlain.

“He’s been getting better all the time. He was a handful early and I don’t think I could have dealt with him if we hadn’t gelded him,” said Norman, confessing the early decision was necessary if there was going to be any hopes of getting Southwind Avenger to this level.

Southwind Avenger is likely going to need to not just pick up his game on Saturday but also get some racing luck starting from post nine in the C$400,000 Wellwood. Trevor Henry will drive Southwind Avenger, a $77,000 pick up at last year’s Lexington Selected auction.

In any other year Norman may have had one of the top two trotting fillies in North America with Live Laugh Love, a daughter of Donato Hanover that he brought along slowly last year and has emerged as a talent in 2018.

“It’s incredible that there are four other fillies out there against her that are great. You have Manchego, Atlanta, Phaetosive and Plunge (Blue Chip). That’s an incredible group to have to race against,” Norman said.

It’s easy to understand the frustration given that Live Laugh Love trotted in 1:50 2/5 in the Del Miller and only finished third behind Plunge Blue Chip and Manchego in that event. Her luck didn’t improve any going forward as she was saddled with poor posts in the Hambletonian Oaks and most recently drew post nine in the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes championship won by Phaetosive.

“She’s in Kentucky for the Kentucky Sire Stakes championship and then the Grand Circuit,” said Norman of Live Laugh Love.

The freshman Can’t Beach That is also in Kentucky and will go in the Sire Stakes finale where he’ll face a host of Captaintreacherous’ first crop. Third in a leg of the Kindergarten Series at The Meadowlands behind the unbeaten Captain Ahab earlier in the year, Can’t Beach That debuted at The Red Mile on August 18 with a 1:50 4/5 victory in Kentucky Sire Stakes preliminary action. Can’t Beach That was a solid second behind another “Captain” colt in Captain Trevor this past Saturday.

“Like the others he’s been getting better each week,” said Norman.

With his Down Under roots, one might expect Norman to be playing a big role in importing stock from his native land, but that’s not happening in a major way. “I think it’s nuts,” Norman said bluntly. “I think the prices have gotten out of hand. It costs more than $20,000 to bring them over here.”

Norman has a pair of recent arrivals that may do nicely for him. “I had a buddy down there that had a mare that needed Lasix,” said Norman of Delightfulmemphis N, a 5-year-old by Bettor’s Delight currently campaigning at Harrah’s Philadelphia.

Shebang N is a different story in that she came to North America with just one victory.

“She was racing against the best fillies and was in over her head,” said Norman. “You can race her in the non-winners category and work up the ladder.”

Shebang N has won four of her first five races in North America.