"He's got a heart of gold and he'll just keep going until the sun goes down. He's like that when I train him, when I race him...he's not a horse that pulls up when you train him, you have to pull him up."
On today's episode of Trot Radio, Norm Borg talks to trainer Dr. Ian Moore regarding his busy weekend of stakes starters. Friday's focus will be on State Treasurer, who looks to defend his title in the 2014 Molson Pace at The Raceway at Western Fair District.
State Treasurer has won his last three starts against Preferred foes on the WEG circuit, and drawing the rail helped solidify his choice as the 7-5 morning line favourite against one of the deepest groups ever assembled for the Molson Pace.
"Where I come from, in the Maritimes, they're all half-mile tracks and when I grew up the rail was King down there," said Moore. "And I think at London, the configuration of the track -- very tight turns, not a very wide track -- I think the rail is very important."
Moore discusses how he has tried to change strategy with how State Treasurer races since his two-year-old year and whether or not that will be an issue coming Friday night against such a solid group of open pacers.
"That will probably be the best field I've seen on a half-mile track in Canada here, for sure, and we're looking forward to it."
Once the dust settles from Friday night's tussle, Moore will send out two more pacers in divisions of the Somebeachsomewhere on Saturday night at Mohawk Racetrack. That could have been three -- and three sons of Shadow Play, at that -- had Arthur Blue Chip not been sidelined earlier this year. Moore will harness up Play It Again Sam and Silverhill Shadow in Canada's first major stakes event for three-year-old colt pacers.
"He's come to me in good shape and he trained really well [Wednesday]," said Moore of Play It Again Sam. "He's the type of colt that could really step up on Saturday. That's why we entered him even though he doesn't show a whole lot on his lines this year yet, but he stepped up when he got here last year."
The colt he's more familiar with is lightly-raced Silverhill Shadow, just making his seventh lifetime start on Saturday night. Moore notes that the colt was shut down after suffering a tendon injury at two but that's since been healed and he's in tip top shape heading into his first major stakes event.
"He's a very nice colt; he's a big, strong, powerful colt," said Moore. "He's displayed a lot of talent to us so we've elected to try him with the big boys right from The Diplomat on. I wouldn't be putting him in there if I didn't think he had some talent."