VANCOUVER, British Columbia – Hastings has scheduled four $50,000 stakes this Sunday – dubbed the Spring Showcase – and the stars all came out. Herbie D figures to be a handful in the 1 1/16-mile Sir Winston Churchill for 3-year-olds and up, and Evelyn’s Dancer is the obvious choice in the Vancouver Sun, which drew nine fillies and mares going 1 1/16 miles.

The Emerald Downs for 3-year-old fillies goes as the second race, followed by the River Rock Casino for 3-year-olds. Both will be contested over 6 1/2 furlongs.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Granted, it’s very early. Nonetheless, the fastest Beyer Speed Figure for a 2-year-old so far this year in North America was recorded Thursday at Churchill Downs by Bahnah, a filly making her first career start.

Trained by Bret Calhoun for Wayne Sanders and Larry Hirsch, Bahnah earned a 91 Beyer with a six-length triumph under Corey Lanerie in a 4 1/2-furlong race. She was the 9-5 favorite in a field of eight and finished in 51.17 seconds over a fast track.

“It’s great when they run the way they’re supposed to,” Calhoun said Friday.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Trainer Malcolm Pierce will be a busy man here Sunday, with six entrants on the 10-race program. The majority of Pierce’s participants will not be of the garden variety, as he will send out both Smartyfly and Dance Again in the $500,000 Woodbine Oaks, His Race to Win in the $150,000 Plate Trial Stakes, and Overheard in the $125,000 Alywow Stakes.

“I hope I’ll be getting my picture taken lots of times,” said Pierce, who runs a 40-horse stable here with his wife and assistant, Sally.

It will take more than five hours to run the 14 time trials for the Ed Burke Million Futurity at Los Alamitos on Sunday evening.

Five Bar Cartel starts in the first race for trainer Danny Montes, and he is one of two runners on the evening for the 33-year-old trainer. The colt won his career debut in a 300-yard maiden race in a quick 15.39 seconds at Los Alamitos on May 19, giving Montes confidence for Sunday’s race.

The hard part will be waiting through the evening for the other results.

“It will be a long day,” Montes said.

The Golden Gate Fields stewards suspended trainer Billy Morey for 30 days and fined him $3,000 for an overage of the bronchodilator albuterol in the horse Picture Perfect, who tested positive after winning the first race at Golden Gate Fields on Jan. 1.

Fifteen days of the suspension, which begins on June 10, were stayed as part of a stipulated agreement. Morey will be placed on probation through June 5, 2014.

The 39-year-old Morey was fourth in the trainer standings entering Friday’s racing at the Golden Gate Fields meeting with 39 winners from 139 starters.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia – Herbie D will attempt to carry his exceptional speed around three turns in the $50,000 Sir Winston Churchill at Hastings on Sunday.

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The timing of Sunday’s $100,000 Silky Sullivan for California-bred 3-year-olds at one mile on the turf at Golden Gate Fields couldn’t be better for Surfcup, who enters the race at the top of his game.

A son of Unusual Heat, Surfcup will try to match the effort of Unusual Way, a daughter of Unusual Heat who won last week’s Campanile, a California-bred turf stakes race for 3-year-old fillies.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – A certain dilemma presents itself when a trainer contemplates claiming a horse away from Mike Maker, whose dominance on the Kentucky circuit has hit unprecedented heights in the last couple of months.

“You’re pretty sure you’re not going to move one up on him,” said Bill Denzik, who went against that grain when he recently claimed a 3-year-old colt named High Dollar Kitten for the full-retail price of $50,000 from Maker and owner-breeder Ken Ramsey.

FORT ERIE, Ontario – Fort Erie is only three days into its 116th year of operation, but the vibes could not be much better, as fans are helping to make a successful beginning to a season that many thought would never happen.

The onsite handle has been up on all three days.

Tuesday’s first twilight card of the meet attracted a large crowd, and it was evident that a post-workday starting time allowed for the increased attendance.

Adding to the excitement of the evening’s eight-race card were the Horns from Hell. Following the last race, the group took to the bandstand.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Pyrite Mountain reaffirmed his fondness for Woodbine’s Polytrack when he took the May 5 Wando Stakes from off the pace. He should be favored in Sunday’s $150,000 Plate Trial Stakes, a nine-furlong event that is restricted to 3-year-olds who are eligible for the $1 million Queen’s Plate Stakes on July 7.