A resounding victory earned by a long uncovered mile has trainer Mario Dessureault and owner Gene Kirsch of Coconut Creek, Florida thinking they got much more than they bargained for when entering a claim on
trotter Sun Island just over a month ago.
"He's continuing to surprise us but maybe the time for us to be surprised should be ending," Dessureault declared after the four-year-old CR Excalibur-Sunrise Isle gelding romped home in 1:55.4 on the January 19 card at The Isle Casino Racing Pompano Park with Bruce Ranger in the bike. "We were really surprised by his first start after the claim on December 15 he set the three-year-old geldings track record of 1:55.3. Soon he'll be due for a bit of a rest and then we'll see if he can work his way into the top class here."
"I thought so highly of him that I paid up the three-year-old allowance when we claimed him in December," owner Gene Kirsch said. "Mario and I knew he'd had the proper foundation from Dan Daley and we saw a lot of potential. With the longer racing season here now into July I'm really excited that this could be the best horse I've ever owned," Kirsch added. "I'd been out of the ownership end of the business for almost 15 years since I owned a piece of a pacer named Deli Choice. Sun Island looks like a really great find."
Mario Dessureault, 42, hails from Montreal was based in Sherbrooke, Quebec before making a permanent move to South Florida. He is the son of long-serving Pompano based Canadian horseman Normand Dessureault. To date Mario has sent out over 430 winners in his career for almost $2 million in training purses.
"I enjoy trotters the most," said Dessureault. "I had Dr Cal take a life's mark of 1:54.3 on Wednesday evening but he was claimed away. So I'm down to two trotters now, Sun Island and Park Way, along with one pacer, Max Q. I really do think Sun Island can go on and become a star, or at least the star of my stable. That's my hope for 2011."
With a muggy night in the mid-70's most of the Wednesday evening winners in South Florida turned in life's mark performances.
None was bigger than the effort by PC Moonshine in the top weekly handicap trotting class for a $12,000 purse.
Anthony Napolitano was in the bike to work out a trip fourth in line behind a first half speed duel involving Lord Burghley (Wally Hennessey) and Ginger Tree Jimmy (Kevin Sizer). Turning into the stretch, PC Moonshine followed pocket-sitter Senator Hall (Joe Pavia Jr.) to the outside to get up by a length. The six-year-old Malabar Maple-JM Gerula gelding, bred in Ontario by Peter Clements, recorded his 21st career win for owner-trainer Gaston Claude of Pompano Beach, Florida. PC Moonshine recorded a life's mark of 1:53.4, just two-fifths of a second from the category track record held by Tweedle Dum.
(Pompano Park)