Angels gets ready to go one better in the Girls On Fire

22 February 2013 – Huntly-owned mare Prettylilangeleyes will attempt to go one better than her 2012 result in Sunday’s Aldebaran Park Girls On Fire Time Trials at Bendigo’s Lord’s Raceway.
Last year Prettylilangeleyes scorched around the 1609 metre Bendigo metric mile to clock a staggering career best 1:55.7 but was pipped as the overall winner when New Zealander, Dealornodeal set a new Australasian mare’s record of 1:55.5. “Our mare still can lay claim to the title as the fastest Australian-bred trotting mare,” proud owner Darren Manton said. “And her trainer Russell Thomspon said she is on fire at the moment, bucking her brand off, so bring on Sunday.” A victory in the Girls On Fire would elevate Prettylilangeleyes past the $100,000 in earnings. The Classic Adam mare has won 15 races from 147 starts. Prettylilangeleyes, to be driven by Nathan Jack is one of six contenders in the second edition of the Girls On Fire, which was a big success at its inaugural running last year.  The series heralds the unofficial start of a huge month of trotting in Victoria which will culminate with the Final of the Group 2 Lyn McPherson Memorial  Breed for Speed for Trotting mares and the inaugural Group 1 Pryde’s EasiFeed Great Southern Star, a unique international trot with elimination heats and a final on the same day at Tabcorp Park Melton, Saturday 23 March.  There will be no betting on the Girls On Fire on Sunday but Prettylilangeleyes will have a big fan following to run the fastest time. Her opposition is very handy though so it will be a keenly contested event. David Aiken has two starters Sultry Lady and his star trotter Cold Sister, both USA breds. Cold Sister is already a qualifier for the Great Southern Star, winning the 2012 Breed For Speed Gold Series Final. Her fastest mile rate is 1:57.2.  Sparks Ignite trotted a career best 1:57.7 mile rate over 1720 metres to win on a lightning fast track at Tabcorp Park Melton last Saturday night. Her trainer and driver Lisa Miles looks like she has  the Wydown Stud owned Spark Ignite back to her best form but she will have the task of setting the bench mark on Sunday. Sparks Ignite which has raced 46 times for nine wins and 26 top three prize money cheques will be the first of six mares to race the clock in the $5000 contest which kicks shortly after 2:00pm. The winner of the Girls On Fire will also receive a stallion service to Aldebaran Park’s trotting stud Skyvalley. Other mares racing the clock are the very fast Huntly trained Our Dolly Would (Anthony Crossland) which is racing in great form and  David Murphy’s  Ballarat trained five-year-old Kilmainham. The other main TAB races scheduled on the card include the Jack Caldow Memorial 3yo Vicbred Pace and the Warehouse Sales Bracelet Heats. The Caldow’s have an undeniable chance of winning the family race with their Bettors Delight filly, Snow Cone. The 3yo trained by Maree Caldow and to be driven by John Caldow finished third at Geelong on 13 February. In her 2yo season Snow Cone won two races from 12 starts. Glenn Douglas’ Rogers Joy is likely to start as the Jack Caldow race favourite.  In the Warehouse Sales Bracelet Heats, Broadways Classic and Ponder in Paris look the two top chances. In heat one, Broadway Classic is first up for Andy Gath and looks ready to run a race after trialling well at Melton and Geelong in the past few weeks, and in heat two Ponder In Paris broke gear first up from a break at Yarra Valley and was retired but since then she has won impressively at Kilmore in all-the-way fashion and finished a game second to Classic Bliss. The first race at Lord’s Raceway on Sunday is 1:59pm. - David Aldred