For the Reporter

Thetrailerguy bids for his second straight stakes victory and fourth straight win overall Sunday in the $50,000 Seattle Slew Handicap for 3-year-old colts and geldings at 1 1/16 miles.

A sizable field of 11 runners – the top eight finishers from the June 21 Coca-Cola Handicap and three new shooters – square off in the Seattle Slew, final stop before the $65,000 Emerald Downs Derby on Aug. 9.

Thetrailerguy is the starting high weight at 119 pounds and drew post-position No. 6 with Julien Couton the rider.

A Kentucky-bred Henny Hughes gelding, Thetrailerguy overcame traffic problems to notch a half-length victory over Prime Engine in the Coca-Cola three weeks ago. Neither the winning time (1:36.80) nor the Beyer (a mediocre 70) tells an accurate tale of the events. Thetrailerguy raced in heavy traffic the latter half of the race, and had to thread a needle to reel in Prime Engine.

It’s been the trend for Thetrailerguy: trouble early in races, punch it home late for the victory. The Seattle Slew marks his fifth start in 71 days, but if he’s tired he sure doesn’t show it.

“He’s bright-eyed and bushy-tailed,” trainer Monique Snowden said. “He’s feeling great. He’s really high-energy. He’s squealing, bucking and rearing in the stall everyday. His confidence is really high. It’s great to see.”

Owned by Heidi Nelson, Thetrailerguy is 3-1-0 in four starts with earnings of $54,425. He’s won twice at 6½ furlongs and once at a mile, and with Unbridled on the dam side of his pedigree, figures to relish the longer distances ahead.

“This race is going to be interesting with all the speed on the outside of us,” Snowden said. “Having all the speed on the outside makes that first turn a little bit congestive. Fortunately though, he’s shown from his other races that he can break really sharp. We have a little more room before the first turn.

“I do foresee it being a similar trip to his last race,” she added. “I think Julien (Couton) is going to have to be a little more careful not getting stuck behind horses. I do see us coming from off the pace.”

Snowden is enjoying a strong season with a 6-4-1 record in 19 starts. The Coca-Cola Handicap was her first stakes victory as a trainer, a significant milestone in the development of any young horseman or horsewoman.

“It’s been amazing. I can’t believe it, really,” Snowden said. “We knew (Thetrailerguy) was this high-energy, brilliant horse. But until they run and they show you what they can do, you really don’t know what they have until race day.”

Thetrailerguy throwing buckets around Monique Snowden’s barn on Thursday morning.

RACE AT A GLANCE

• The Seattle Slew Handicap is Race 9 at 6:09 p.m.

• Horses at 8-to-1 odds won the first two races of the series: Fooled Again ($19) in the Auburn Handicap and Thetrailerguy ($18.40) in the Coca-Cola Handicap.

• Betting favorites are 2-for-9 in stakes this year; the betting favorite has lost 10 straight runnings of the Seattle Slew including Del Rio Harbor at 3-to-5 in 2014.

• The 11-horse field is largest for the race since 2011, when Zayda rallied from 12th for a 2¼-length victory in 1:42.75. Heidi Nelson also owned Zayda.

• Average field size thru 10 stakes is 9.2 horses. Average $2 win payoff is $19.20. ($2 win prices: $19, $81.40, $19, $8.20, $3.60, $3.40, $18.40, $8.40, $10.60).

• As usual, Seattle Slew original owners Karen and Mickey Taylor will drive over from Ketchum, Idaho for the race.

• The field for the 38th running of the Seattle Slew Handicap: Percy Fawcett, Gallyn Mitchell, 116 pounds; Betrbegone, Leonel Camacho-Flores, 116; Fire the Trainer, Rocco Bowen, 114; John’s Not Bluffin, Javier Matias, 115; Gloria’s Angelo, Joe Steiner, 117; Thetrailerguy, Julien Couton, 119; O B Harbor, Jake Barton, 117; Prime Engine, Leslie Mawing, 118; Fooled Again, Juan Gutierrez, 118; Senna, Francisco Duran, 116; Daytona Beach, Diego Sanchez, 115.

Equine Art Show, Wiener Dog Races this weekend

Emerald Downs has a jam-packed weekend prepared for race fans looking for a wide array of activities, starting Friday with Equine Art Show 2015, presented by the Washington Thoroughbred Foundation, Washington Thoroughbred Breeders & Owners Association and Emerald Downs.

All of the art displayed over the weekend is for sale, and more than 15 different awards will be given, headed by the Stanley A. Gillman Best in Show Award and the Angie Crockett Memorial People’s Choice Award.

On Saturday, Professor Pollowitz and 22-year-old track announcer Matt Dinerman will host the season’s first Emerald AM from 9 to 11 a.m. on Track Level. The two-hour program will include Dinerman’s live race call of a pair of Jeff Metz workers, a trip to the starting gate for a meet-and-greet with the Emerald Downs gate crew and a chance to meet Washington-great Wassserman, who will parade in the track paddock with his jockey Jennifer Whitaker and trainer Howard Belvoir.

The morning workout show includes free admission, a free official program and coffee and pastries. After Emerald AM, attendees are welcom to hop aboard the tram for a free stable tour through the Emerald Downs backside.

On Sunday, Emerald Downs will have live racing of Thoroughbreds, quarter horses and wiener dogs.

The annual STAR 101.5 Wiener Dog Races includes two qualifying heats and one championship to determine the fastest wiener dog of 2015.

Finish lines

Weekly Honors #12-Jockey – Leslie Mawing; Trainer- Jeff Metz; Owner – Sue & Tim Spooner; Groom – Lidia Gutierrez (Metz); WTBOA Washington-bred – Lady Rosberg (Karl Krieg); Exercise Rider – Leo Salas (Rosie Simkins). … Lady Rosberg earned a 92 Beyer for her 5½-length romp in the Boeing Handicap, five points higher than Stopshoppingdebbie scored in last year’s Boeing, and largest in the race since Fleet Pacific got a 103 in 2000. … Owner/breeder Karl Krieg and trainer Tom Wenzel head into the teeth of the stakes schedule with Lady Rosberg in the older filly and mare division and Absolutely Cool in the older handicap division. Absolutely Cool, coming off a 92 Beyer while finishing third to Stryker Phd and Noosito in the Budweiser Handicap, breezed four furlongs in :47.80 last Saturday in a tune-up for the $50,000 Mt. Rainier Handicap on Sunday, July 19. … Sunday’s 11-race card drew a meet-high 92 horses—8.4 runners per race—including 11 horses in the $50,000 Seattle Slew Handicap. … Metz begins the week on a six-race winning streak and has stretched his lead to 31-15 over Howard Belvoir in the trainers’ standings. Metz has five horses entered Friday, including Rio Hondo , 9-to-5 favorite in the $12,300 feature race for older $10,000 claimers. A 5-year-old Awesome Again gelding, Rio Hondo bids to become the meet’s first four-time winner. … Julien Couton owns a 50-41 lead on Juan Gutierrez in the jockeys’ standings, with defending champion Leslie Mawing third with 36. … Charlie Thomas, reclaimed by Emerald Racing Club on June 14, runs in Saturday’s $14,900 sub-feature for older $15,000 claimers at one mile. … Anne Sanguinetti , who rode 43 and 24 winners here in 2013 and 2014 respectively, is named on three horses Sunday at Emerald Downs. … Apprentice Jimmy Guzman, who rode two winners here earlier in the meet, has packed his tack and is riding at Wyoming Downs. … The Northern California fair circuit moves to Sacramento for an 11-day meet beginning Friday.