Racing


Eagles Span Wins $141,100 Mystic Lake Northlands Futurity
Eagles Span (inside) outruns stablemate Gone All In to win the $141,100 Mystic Lake Northlands Futurity at Canterbury Park Sunday afternoon.

© Coady Photography
Eagles Span Wins $141,100 Mystic Lake Northlands Futurity

SHAKOPEE, MN—JULY 5, 2015—Long shots prevailed Sunday in Canterbury Park’s richest quarter horse races of the season when 23 to 1 Eagles Span won the $141,100 Mystic Lake Northlands Futurity and 11 to 1 Fortune In A Wagon and 24 to 1 Feature A Runaway finished in a dead heat in the $50,000 Canterbury Park Quarter Horse Derby (see related story).

Eagles Span, one of five in the 10-horse Northlands field trained by Jason Olmstead, was ridden by Berkley Packer and is owned by Tom and Bill Maher. The 2-year-old colt was the seventh fastest qualifier from the trials held June 14. He held off odds-on favorite and stable mate Gone All In by a head in 18.155 seconds for 350 yards.

“He gutted it out and he got there,” Olmstead said. “I don’t think he wanted to go much further. The filly [Gone All In] was coming.”

The 28th running of the Northlands Futurity offered a record purse. Eagles Span, who broke from the inside post, paid $48.80 to win. Streakin Wagon finished third.

“He came through. He’s just a gutty horse. He’s real strong.” Tom Maher said. “He can handle the one hole.”

Eagles Span is a son of leading sire One Famous Eagle out of the champion First Down Dash mare Tinys First Effort. Bred in Texas by Entrust Rt Ser Inc and FBO Tiffin, Eagles Span is a $48,000 Heritage Place Fall Mixed Yearling graduate.

The sorrel colt completed the 350 yards in :18.155 seconds, an 87 speed index into a 15 mph head wind, to pocket the winner's purse of $70,550. Eagles Span's record stands at (4) 3-1-0 with earnings of $89,168.

Also trained by Olmstead, Gone All In is a Tres Seis filly owned by Gene and Gaye Reeves. Vessels Stallion Farm LLC and Jerry Windham bred the brown miss in Texas from the First Down Dash mare Gone First. Ridden by Cody Smith she earned $28,220.

Streakin Wagon is an Oklahoma-bred son of Pyc Paint Your Wagon racing for Reliance Ranches, LLC and trainer Ed Hardy. David Pinon rode the Debbie Strebig-bred colt from the Streakin La Jolla mare Streakin La Tac. He picked up $14,110 for the effort.

Completing the field were Dividendz, Expensive Paint Job, Big Bad Ivory, Okeyfreight, No Regrets Here, Painted Streaks and Valiant Norther.