SHAKOEE, MN – The $50,000 Minnesota HBPA Distaff and Brooks Fields Stakes, both run at a mile, have their annual renewals at Canterbury Park tonight while the special Saturday twilight card also features the debut of the $100,000 Mystic Lake Turf Express and what has become a fan favorite the last few years – the Indian Relay Inter-Tribal Championships.

The five furlong Turf Express has drawn a field of eight plus Malibu Max, a main track only entrant.  The 2-1 morning line favorite is Jockamo’s Song, a six year old gelding shipping into Shakopee by the Michael Stidham barn fresh off a length and 3/4 win in an Arlington Park optional claiming event.  He had been off since December prior to that win and was ready to fire off the bench, tracking the early pace and steadily gaining and pulling away late.

Jockamo’s Song will compete for first jump on the early speed with Bushrod.  Bushrod, third in the Honor the Hero here in June, has been the epitome of consistency this season, running at three tracks and not missing the board in seven starts – including a pair of wins.  Last out he handled a field of $50,000 optional claimers at Arlington while earning a field best last race Beyer Speed Figure of 90.

Creative Art has also earned a recent 90 Beyer, but it was done over the main track here at Canterbury where the eight year old gelding has reeled off four straight victories.  He will try the turf for only the 5th time in his career and has yet to pick up a win.

The one mile Minnesota HBPA Distaff features the return of hometown jockey Alex Canchari to Canterbury Park this season who has been riding mostly in Indiana this summer.  He’ll be aboard favored Stallion Heiress who will break from the far outside in the nine horse field.

Stallion Heiress is returning from a two and a half month break in the Distaff after moving from the Stidham barn to that of John Ortiz.  Ortiz is 13% with new trainees but he and Canchari have been outstanding together, winning at a 29% clip over the past two years.  She began her career in 2017 with three straight wins including a pair of stakes but has been unable to find the winners’ circle since running exclusively in stakes company at a variety of mostly East Coast tracks and even tried Graded Stakes company twice.  She tends to like to get to the front and that can be problematic from the outside post in a mile race at Canterbury.

Defending champion Beach Flower drew post three and Dean Butler and has a stalk and pounce style that could prove to be useful.  Trainer Mac Robertson seems to get them cranked up for spots just like these as evidenced by Beach Flower’s win last year when she shocked the field at 11-1.  She’s been rounding into form nicely but her only knock would be the lack of a turf win in four lifetime starts (last year’s event was washed off the turf).

Panoe does her best running on the turf having kicked off the 2018 Canterbury season with a pair of turf wins in high level optional claimers.  She was claimed two back from Lothenbach Stables and trainer Joel Berndt by David Van Winkle who brought her back in a dirt mile where she was dusted by Beach Flower.  Back on the turf for the Distaff, expect a more solid performance from a mare that is three for four with a second over this turf course.

Minnesotan Some Say So will take on open company in the Distaff.  She opened her season with a turf win over open company in a $40,000 optional claimer before taking the Princess Elaine Stakes in June.  She shipped to Arlington for her last where closed from far back in a five furlong race after a bad break and was beaten only a length.  She loves the Canterbury Park turf have won four and placing six times in eleven career tries.  She could be able to score here at a solid price.

The one mile Brooks Fields drew a very talented field.  Nun the Less, a Mystic Lake Derby winner, defending champion Patriots Rule, Mystic Lake Mile winner My Bariley, multiple stakes winner Majestic Pride, graded stakes winner Hay Dakota and the winningest horse at Canterbury Park, multiple stakes winner A P is Loose all drew in to this very competitive renewal.

After winning the Mystic Lake Mile in June at 16-1, My Bariley shipped back to Indiana where he showed up a little flat in the Warrior Veterans Stakes.  He’s back at Canterbury, where he was also second in the 2017 Mystic Lake Derby, and will be running late to try and capture the 18th renewal of the Brooks Fields with Hugo Sanchez who has become My Bariley’s regular rider.

Last year’s Mystic Lake Mile champion Hay Dakota has been the victim of some tough racing luck thus far at Canterbury.  A pair of seconds and a third by combined total of a less than one length has marked  five year old’s 2018 campaign.  Trainer Joel Berndt has him ready to roll and will be part of what looks to be a blanket finish under Denny Velazquez.

Majestic Pride, third in this year’s Mystic Lake Mile will break from the inside of Hay Dakota in post six with Dean Butler aboard.  With a win, two seconds and a third in four starts this season, Majestic Pride has been solid and is coming off a mile turf win in a $35,000 optional claimer where he got the best of Hay Dakota and the speed in this race, Ibaka.

The speedy Ibaka opened up his 2018 season with a front running victory in a $25,000 optional claimer at Canterbury and was just nipped by Majestic Pride in his last, losing by a neck. He led up to the stretch in the Mystic Lake Mile being pressed hard the entire way before finishing fifth.  It is entirely possible that breaking from post two and the lack of any other early pace with the possible exception of A P is Loose, who is mired out in post ten, that Ibaka could have it all his way early.  If leading jockey Ry Eikleberry can keep Ibaka relaxed and cutting reasonable fractions, he could lead this field from gate to wire.

You know a race is deep when we’ve gone this far and are only getting to the defending champion, Patriots Rule, who is a winner of 14 races and over a half million dollars.  Patriots Rule prevailed over Majestic Pride by a length last out over the dirt and has only one turf win to his credit.  That one win, however, was in this race last season, scoring at 6-1.  The 2018 renewal is considerably more competitive and Patriots Rule is going to have a hard time repeating.

The Indian Horse Relay Inter-Tribal Championships will also be run Saturday night at Canterbury.  In what has become a tremendously popular annual event at the track, riders from 16 Nations compete in the three mile race.  Riders ride bareback and change horses after each of the first two miles in tight designated areas in the stretch in front of the crowd.  In conjunction with the Relays there is an Indian marketplace set up in the grandstand with Native arts and crafts as well as a youth relay exhibition (where the girls have beaten the boys each of the first two nights).

Special post time for twilight racing is 6 PM tonight with the Indian Relay Championship scheduled for approximately 9:30 PM.