CHARLOTTETOWN, P.E.I. – The first round of qualifiers has been announced for the 2019 World Driving Championship (WDC) in Sweden and Island native Robert Shepherd is in the mix.
The Ontario regional championship is set for May 16 at The Raceway at Western Fair District in London, Ont., with the top nine dash-winning drivers in the province vying for the top two spots to advance to the National Driving Championship.
The 37-year-old Shepherd currently sits second in Canada for driving wins with 111 this season. He is the leading driver at Flamboro Downs in Dundas, Ont., and sits second for wins at The Raceway at Western Fair District.
The national event is being held Sept. 26 at Grand River Raceway in Elora, Ont., with the top two drivers from the Ontario regional, the Western Canada regional, the Atlantic Canadian regional and the Eastern Ontario/Quebec regional.
The Atlantic regional championship is being held off Island for the first time with the event being held June 29 at Truro Raceway in Bible Hill, N.S. This marks the first year since the inception of the National Driving Championship concept in 2007 that no events will be held in Charlottetown or Summerside. The inaugural National Driving Championship was held in Charlottetown in 2007, while the event was also at the capital oval in 2011 and 2014.
The National Driving Championship winner will represent Canada at the World Driving Championship in Sweden in 2019, while Kingston native James MacDonald will represent the International Trotting Association after winning the WDC on home soil in 2017.
RELATED: Click here for the story from August of MacDonald winning title
P.E.I. Scene
The Prince County Horsemen’s Club annual awards banquet was held last weekend at the Credit Union Place in Summerside with the richest driver of all-time in attendance as the guest of honour.
John Campbell, a winner of 11,000 races and $303 million in purse money, was the guest speaker at the packed event that saw P.E.I.’s own Campbell, trainer-driver Marc Campbell, pick up the lion’s share of the hardware as top driver, top trainer and horseman of the year.
Maritime Triple Crown-winning rookie trotter Windemeredontuworry was named horse of the year at the award’s ceremony, that also included a fitting award given to aged pacer Blu Meadow Willie as the fan favourite on the racing season. Blu Meadow Willie was a top-end pacer for a number of years at the western oval, guided by trainer-driver Robert MacInnis, who passed away this past season.
Nicholas Oakes' column appears in The Guardian each Friday. He can be reached at [email protected].
