Mar 15, 2017 | Racing
Winter Storm Stella caused havoc in Northeast Pennsylvania, dropping more than 2’ of snow in the area, and thereby forced the Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono to cancel their opening night for Saturday, March 18th. The legendary 5/8 mile racing surface would not be ready to kick off the racing season, and track officials, along with the Pennsylvania Harness Horsemen’s Association, decided to cancel opening night.
The official opening night will now be Tuesday, March 21st, post time 6:30PM.
On Tuesday, fans can pick up their free racing program with a coupon inside, and drop it in the registration drum for a chance to win up to $100 in live racing vouchers.
Mar 13, 2017 | Racing
The Standardbred trotters and pacers will begin their 52nd season of pari-mutuel harness racing in northeast Pennsylvania this Saturday night, March 18, as The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono will present the first of 135 cards of harness racing scheduled for 2017, with Saturday’s first race marked for 6:30 p.m.
The two biggest purse races on the Saturday card, each worth $16,000 and both for pacers, will come early at The Downs, in races two and three. The second half of the Early Double will feature claiming pacers valued between $20,000 and $25,000 in a handicap event; among the entrants is Freeneasy Hanover, who paced the local red clay oval in 1:50 while on a hot streak last year. The third race is written for “non-winners of six races,” horses usually moving up the class ladder to bigger and better things.
Many of this type of horse would eventually wind up in one of $15,500 co-features on Saturday, for older, high-level conditioned horses. The tenth race pace finds among its seven entrants Ontario Success, a 14-time winner in 2016 who comes in after good performances at The Meadowlands; their trotting counterparts have been slotted for race twelve, with Zooming and Wind Of The North, both career winners of $700,000+ who have trotted the Pocono oval in 1:51, starting from the two outside slots in the field of six.
The highlight of the 2017 Pocono season will come on Saturday, July 1, with the $2 million+ Sun Stakes Saturday card, which annually draws the sport’s best horses over several of the major categories. It was recently announced that Wiggle It Jiggleit, 2015 Harness Horse of the Year and the fierce seasonlong rival of 2016 Harness Horse of the Year Always B Miki, will make his debut for the year in the Franklin Pace elimination races, to be held on Saturday, June 24.
Pocono’s all-time driving champion George Napolitano Jr. will be on the scene from opening night, coming up from Florida, where he already has shown himself in “midseason form” with a 27% win rate; his brother Anthony, second in the standings last year, will also have a full driving schedule from the word “go.”
The basic racing schedule at Pocono follows a Saturday through Tuesday basis, with first post at 6:30 except on Sundays, when the action starts an hour later. During the early part of the campaign, Pocono will gradually “work into” that schedule: after Saturday, racing will be held on Tuesday, March 21st; Saturday-Sunday the 25th and 26th; and Tuesday the 28th; Mondays will be added to the schedule on April 10.
A press conference/luncheon will be held at the track at 12 noon this Thursday, the 16th, with Pocono officials and horsemen on hand to take part in a preview of what should be a quality season of racing at The Downs. Qualifying races will be held before the press conference on Thursday, beginning at 10 a.m. Pocono’s person of contact for media is Jennifer Starr, 570.831.2195.
Mar 13, 2017 | Racing
Due to the impending snowstorm, and for the safety of all horsemen and horses, as well as track personnel, Wednesday’s Qualifying races at the Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono have been rescheduled to Thursday, March 16th at 10AM. Box closes Wednesday morning, March 15th at 11:00AM.
Opening night is Saturday, March 18th with a 6:30PM Post Time.
Mar 1, 2017 | Racing
The rain held off just enough for the gates at the stable entrance of the Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono to open on Wednesday morning at 7:30AM. Soon the stable area was filling up with the sounds of whinnies and laughter as horsemen arrived with their precious cargo, officially kicking off the 2017 racing season.
Linda and John Kakaley were the first to arrive with Mcsorley’s Mistake and Swiss Platinum, both owned by Charlie and Mary Johnston. A smiling Linda helped John get the first two horses settled in their stalls before a few more of theirs arrived soon after. John hit the track to train with Mcsorley’s Mistake as the torrential downpour began, but neither John nor the trotter seemed to mind.
Horses for the Peter Pellegrino Stable soon arrived in a trailer driven by Ollie Rose III, and Bucky Angle’s trailer was seen being unloaded by the veteran horseman. Outrider Tia Shafer’s horses Red and Hollywood., along with pony Niles stepped off the trailer after their long ride from Ohio, and were greeted by hugs from Tia.
Stall applications are still being taken for the stables at https://myhorsemen.mohegansunpocono.com with special reduced rates for the 2017 season. Call Luann Reynolds at 570-831-2125 for details.
The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono stable area features an excellent training track; tack shop and farriers; two veterinary clinics; laundry facilities; and a secure area with a guard on the premises 24 hours a day. Entry is with a license only. The stable area is minutes from major interstate highways.
Racing opens for the season at the renowned 5/8 mile track on Saturday, March 18th.. Three dates have been set aside for Qualifiers; Tuesday, March 7; Thursday, March 9th; and Wednesday, March 15th.
Jan 20, 2017 | Racing
The 2017 schedule for the Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono includes four consecutive nights of racing, and a double-header on Kentucky Derby day, according to Vice President of Racing, Dale Rapson. A total of 134 race nights and 135 cards are planned for the new season.
Racing opens at the renowned 5/8 mile oval in Wilkes Barre, PA on Saturday, March 18th, with limited days of racing in March, including Tuesday, March 21st; Saturday, March 25th, and Tuesday, March 28th.
In April, racing moves to Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and Saturday, with Sunday, April 2nd the 1st leg of the Bobby Weiss Late Closing Series for 3 and 4 year olds, named for the beloved former Director of Track Maintenance. Bobby retired in 2011, and was responsible for the record-breaking track surface that is maintained today. The series continues throughout April with the finals on May 2nd and 9th. There will be no live racing on Monday, April 3rd or Sunday, April 16th.
The prestigious $2 million Sun Stakes Saturday is set for Saturday, July 1st, and will feature the Earl Beal, Jr. Memorial 3-year-old Trot; the James Lynch 3-year-old Filly Pace; the Max Hempt 3-year-old Colt & Gelding Pace; and the Ben Franklin Free For All Pace. Eliminations will take place on Saturday, June 24th.
Kentucky Derby day, May 6th, features a double-header with two Pocono live race cards. Post Time for the first card will be at 11 a.m., and the second will be immediately following the 143rd running of the Derby. The $50,000 Van Rose Memorial Pace for 4 YO & up will take place on the night card, honoring the late well-known local sportswriter, who was a fixture covering Pocono throughout the years. In between, there will be the Run for the Roses Hat Review and a huge party on the track apron. Live racing will immediately follow the second and third legs of the Triple Crown, the Preakness and Belmont Stakes.
Monday, September 4th will be the PA Sire Stakes Championship Finals for the 2YO future superstars with estimated purses of $260,000. Also on the stakes schedule are the PA All-Stars for 2 & 3YO in July: and the 3YO PA Stallion Series and PA Sire Stakes starting in May.
Post Time for Sunday nights is 7:30p.m., with all other nights 6:30p.m. In September, October, and November, Monday night Post Time will switch to a 4:30p.m. Post. The 52nd season of live racing concludes on Saturday, November 25th.
***Stall applications are now being taken for the 2017 season by calling Luann Reynolds at 570-831-2125. Special reduced rates are being offered for the new season.
Nov 16, 2016 | Racing
2016 Season Review
Well, it’s about time to wrap up the 2016 season at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono. At press time, there are still a few more nights of racing until we officially wrap things up on November 26, but, for all intents and purposes, this campaign is essentially in the rear-view mirror.
If it seems like the time passes quickly within a single season, imagine my surprise when I was alerted that this month marked the tenth anniversary since Mohegan Sun came aboard to revitalize the racing product at Pocono. In the past decade, we have transformed from just another run-of-the-mill track into one of the finest harness racing establishments in the entire world. Without Mohegan Sun’s commitment to racing, none of that would have been possible.
That commitment, combined with the outstanding work of those folks who take care of our racing surface, is responsible for the fact that we have one of the fastest tracks in the entire country. The Pocono faithful were lucky to witness a lot of that speed in 2016. Five world records were either set or matched at MSPD in 2016. And some of the record-setters turned out to be among the biggest superstars in the sport, including Betting Line, Freaky Feet Pete, and Always B Miki.
Then there were the horses who made Pocono more of a home rather than just an occasional destination. The best of those have been honored with horses of the year awards. Our Pacer of the Year, Keystone Velocity, overcame the fact that he sat out all of last season to put up more sub-1:50 victories than anyone else on the grounds. Our trotter of the year, Wilberforce, managed to move up the ladder from condition trots against mostly younger horses to facing off against the featured trotters on the grounds, winning all the way. And our claimer of the year, McCedes, demonstrated that age is nothing but a number, gliding through the claiming ranks as an 11-year-old to distinguish himself time again in the 2016 meet. Their exploits, along with the performances of so many other Pocono regulars, will not soon be forgotten.
Of course, the horses need some guidance to perform their amazing feats, and this year two horsemen stood above all. Although at press time there was still a slight chance that they could get caught in the percentage categories, it appears that driver George Napolitano Jr. and trainer Chris Oakes will sweep the year-end honors for wins and percentage. Both have been Pocono mainstays for quite some time, but never before have they combined talents to dominate the racing at the track as they did in this past meet. Several other drivers and trainers were serious forces on the Pocono scene this season, but the dynamic duo of Napolitano and Oakes were a notch above the rest.
It’s impossible to sum up all of the exploits of the horses and people who made the 2016 meet so special at Pocono. I write this column week in and week out, and even on that micro level I found myself unable to detail all of the fantastic performances, thrilling upsets, and heart-pounding excitement that I was lucky enough to witness from my perfect view in the announcer’s booth. It was a special season, for sure. Still, with the momentum we’ve built at MSPD, I have a feeling we’ll be able to operate at the same level and maybe even higher for the foreseeable future. I can’t wait to see what 2017 has in store.
Before I sign off for the season, I’d like to thank all of the horses, horsemen and horsewomen for their wonderful efforts this year. I’d also like to thank my co-workers, who do so much to bring you such an excellent product night after night. As always, the fans make Pocono what it is now and what is always has been; thanks so much to you all for reading these columns and, of course, for coming out and supporting racing.
Finally, I would be remiss if I didn’t send out a special thanks to Terri Phalen. Terri is responsible for putting these articles in the programs, as well as about a million other tasks in her capacity as Program Director/Clerk of Course. Terri is stepping away from full-time work at Pocono to pursue other exploits. To say she will be missed by the entire Pocono community is obvious to anyone who knows her work ethic; to say that she’ll be missed by yours truly for her patience, geniality, and friendship in the years that I’ve worked as track announcer is the understatement of the year.
That’s going to do it for these articles for 2016. I hope you all have a wonderful winter, and I look forward to seeing you all again in the spring. We’ll see you at the track.
