V75 (December 23): Catapult starter Frazze going for the lead
The evening before Christmas Eve with trot races.
For Jörgen S Eriksson, that evening will not be spent on the couch with a cheese board this year either.
The day before Christmas Eve, he will go to work and try to win a race or two when V75 comes to his home track Sundbyholm, in Eskilstuna.
"Frazze is my best chance and he's good now. The lead is his favorite position — I will leave all I can out of the gate".
The evening before Christmas Eve marks the start of V75 Winter Burst with eight racecards in nine days.
Christmas Eve is the only day there is no racing for drivers, trainers, caretakers and others involved in racing, in the country. On all other remaining days this year, V75 Winter Burst is on full throttle with eight cards in the holiday season.
It is done for the ninth consecutive year and according to tradition, it all culminates in a multi jackpot at Axevalla, on New Year's Eve.
Post time for the first V75 leg on December 23 is at 20:00.
The Sundbyholm licensed trainer Jörgen S Eriksson likes to enjoy a cheese board in front of the TV when he is not racing. In recent years, there has been a lot of work, on the evening before Christmas Eve.
"In recent years, there has been racing that night at tracks near me, where I usually race. So, it's been a lot of work on this particular evening. Last year I raced at Mantorp. I had a few horses racing and won a race on the under card. This year, I have three V75 starters and I hope to get a win," says Jörgen S Eriksson.
He trains at his farm Himmelsända Lövnäs, located between Strängnäs and Eskilstuna. Together with his girlfriend Amanda Hellström and staff, they train around 40 horses (ten of them are yearlings) at the farm near Kjula.
By the end of this year, it's been ten years since we bought the farm. We ship down to the track in ten minutes which is nice, now that the racing is at night. We have two kids, three and six years old and my parents will look after them on Monday night when we go racing. Amanda takes care of two of the starters; Carl Halbak and Frazze," says Jörgen.
Hates being put away
The 5-year-old gelding 7 Frazze (V75-2) is one of Jörgen's favorite horses in the stable.
The chestnut looks to be the likely betting favorite in this race over 1,640 meters behind the gate.
Girlfriend Amanda Hellström takes care of the horse.
"Frazze is a super nice horse to drive, one of the most ratable horses I ever sat behind. But he does not like being put away. He's nice but I'm not jealous of Amanda who takes care of him on a daily basis. He's a chestnut and when someone touches his legs or rubs something on him...then, he's all over the place".
21 Sundbyholm trained horses are racing in V75 on December 23. Frazze will be the biggest hope from the home team and is picked to win in Travronden.
"I believe in him, but the post position is not great. He could get in trouble. But the horse feels good!"
Seven of eight from the lead
Frazze would surpass SEK 1 million in earnings, if he wins on Monday. in 37 lifetime starts, he has eight wins, Seven from the lead.
His biggest purse check so far, came in April 2023, when he won a Norwegian V75 race at Klosterskogen and made NOK 100,000, with Jörgen in the sulky.
He can make the same amount Monday for his owner and breeder Karin Eriksson, from Norberg.
"We won from the lead in Norway and the plan is to try to do the same thing again. The lead is his favorite position. He can leave extremely fast, so we could get there, despite starting from post seven. You can leave all you want with him and he comes right back to you without pulling. Not all horses understand that and can be rated like that. He loves to race and is such a nice horse to drive".
So, he is relaxed in the race?
"Yes, as soon as the battle for the lead is settled, he relaxes. The plan is to leave all he can, just throw him the lines out of the gate. If we get all the way to the lead, or if we have to look for options, remains to be seen. He is relaxed behind the gate and has often gotten a step on the opponents after 50 meters, from better posts".
This past spring, 12 Carl Halbak (V75-1) joined your stable. He had not raced for a year and a half before that.
"He's a horse with tons of ability. He wasn't injured, but he was sick a lot. He was great in his first start for me, I just wanted him to finish strong and he was climbing over the others. If he is back in that form and gets a good trip, he will pass many down the stretch. He raced decent last time out, after a tough trip. There were recalls and delays and he can be pretty sharp before the start. So, he might have wasted some energy there- He should be better now. No changes. I have to be a bit optimistic with Carl Halbak, too".
In a race open only for fillies and mares (V75-4), 7 Cersei Gene starts with a twenty-meter handicap. What are her chances?
"Jan Gustafsson from Lindesberg trained her before and now they left her with me. Gustafsson is the man behind horses like Vamp and Final Dream, who both earned a couple of millions. She has made two starts for me. She was trained down too much by me in her first start and was better last time out. Unfortunately, I managed to run into an opponent in the last turn, she would have finished second, or third with that incident. My other two starters have better chances to win than Cersei Gene. But she likes the distance and has raced well in long distance races, even over three kilometers. She likes having cover and use her speed and if you play with four, or five horses in this race, she might be worth a look" says Jörgen S Eriksson.