Oct 1, 2013 | Racing
September 20-26, 2013
We returned to a full racing schedule this past week at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs after a few weeks of an interrupted slate. The action picked up fast and furious from where it left off, producing a plethora of candidates for the Weekly Awards. Without further ado, let’s get right to it and highlight the best of the best of the week that was.
PACER OF THE WEEK: ROCKIN THE HOUSE
Saturday night witnessed the first sloppy track at Pocono in quite some time, but that didn’t stop the powerhouses in the $25,000 Preferred pace from putting on an impressive show. The best of the group appeared to be red hot Chester invader Bestjetyet, but his early break threw the race wide open for the other competitors. Rockin The House proved to be ready for the opportunity.
The 6-year-old gelding from the Ron Burke barn had won his previous start in a rugged condition group in gate-to-wire fashion, but, because of the move up in class, he was only a 9-1 shot on Saturday. Driver Matt Kakaley settled him in the pocket early, but things still looked dire when pacesetter Flem N Em N opened up a nice margin heading into the stretch.
Rockin The House had something left to give in the lane though, while Flem N Em N began to falter. As they approached the line, Rockin The House went past and prevailed by a half-length. That made it two wins in a row and three in the last five for the gelding, who scorched the slop to the tune of a 1:50:2 winning time.
Other top pacers this week include: Competition Cam (Tyler Buter, Richard Banca), who stepped up in class to handle the toughest pacers on the grounds on Saturday night with a rallying win in 1:51:4, giving him three victories in a row; First Impression (Simon Allard, Rene Allard), who, despite moving up his claiming price and switching barns, chalked up his third win in a row on Saturday night, this one in 1:53:1 in the slop; and Lotsa Chrome (Matt Kakaley, Ron Burke), whose rallying win in Tuesday night’s condition pace came in 1:50:1, fastest time of the week at Pocono.
TROTTER OF THE WEEK: KEYSTONE THOMAS
When Keystone Thomas arrived at Pocono earlier in the meet, he was immediately slotted against the very best trotters on the grounds and was maybe a tad overmatched. Thus began a process of his handlers moving him from class to class in an effort to find the right spot for him to compete. That process seems to have reached its fruition the last few weeks.
Trained and driven by Joe Pavia Jr., the gelding parlayed a pocket trip into a victory in 1:54:2 on September 6. On Saturday night, he moved up in class into a condition for non-winners of $19,000 in the last five races and got away at 5-1. Pavia was the aggressor nonetheless, putting Keystone Thomas in front early and holding tight.
Things did indeed get tight, but the 7-year-old gelding dug deep and held off all comers. Pavia guided him across the line in 1:55:3, a rock-solid time considering the lousy racing conditions. With wins in two races in a row, this talented veteran appears to have finally found his stride, meaning that he might be able to advance even higher to continue an already-impressive season.
Honorable mention on the trotting side goes to: Quantum Lightning (George Napolitano, Bill Mullin), who stepped up in class to the $10,000 claimers on Tuesday and earned his second straight win at Pocono, this one coming in 1:56; Judith (Anthony Napolitano driver and trainer), a mare whose win over the $7,500 claimers on Friday night in 1:56:2 was her second straight in that class; and Wind Of The North (Matt Kakaley, Clifton Green), who scored a win over an excellent condition field on Saturday night in 1:55:1 in the slop.
LONG SHOT OF THE WEEK: EXCEL NINE
He got a break when the horse that crossed the line first was disqualified for interference, meaning this condition pacer driven by Matt Romano inherited a victory Saturday night at 29-1, paying off $60 to win.
DRIVER OF THE WEEK: MATT KAKALEY
Kakaley is currently experiencing one of the hottest stretches of his season. He followed up four victories on Saturday night with six more winners on Tuesday.
TRAINER OF THE WEEK: PIERRE PARADIS
Pierre has been a productive member of the training community at Pocono for many years, and this week he added two more wins to the ledger, including a 21-1 shot on Wednesday with ER Mr T.
That will do it for this week, but we’ll see you at the track. Feel free to e-mail me at [email protected].
Sep 30, 2013 | Racing
September 28, 2013
Dynamic Youth led much of the way and picked up the victory in Saturday night’s featured Preferred pace at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs. The race carried a purse of $25,000.
Leaving from post position #3 in a field of nine as the 3-2 favorite, Dynamic Youth (Bettor’s Delight-Always True), a 4-year-old gelding from the Aaron Lambert barn, settled third around the first turn as Meirs Hanover took the lead. On the front stretch, driver Andrew McCarthy seized his opportunity and sent Dynamic Youth quickly to the lead before the clubhouse turn. He led from there, holding off a second move by Meirs Hanover in the stretch to win by a length in 1:49:2. Alsace Hanover finished third.
Dynamic Youth, owned by J&T Silva Stables, Kenneth Tucci, and C&G Racing Stable, won for the fifth time in 15 2013 races. It was his 14th career victory, pushing his lifetime earnings to $776,137.
Sep 21, 2013 | Racing
September 13-19, 2013
With only about a month until the Breeders Crown on Saturday, October 19 at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs, it’s as good a time as any to start looking ahead to how some of the top competitors shape up. Because of the increase in the number of stakes races at Pocono, many more of the North America’s best horses have already traveled over the oval this season than at the same point three years ago when the Breeders Crown was last held at MSPD.
With that in mind, we thought we’d take a look at the Top 10 horses in the most recent Hambletonian Society/Breeders Crown and see just how well they’ve done this year at Pocono. We’ll count them down in descending order, just like this really good Bob Dylan book I heard about lately.
10. SEVRUGA: This 5-year-old trotting gelding from the Julie Miller barn has won nine of 19 starts this year with earnings of close to $500,000. His first start at Pocono this season was a memorable one, as he ripped off a victory in an Invitational trot in 1:50:3, a new-world record for aged geldings on a 5/8-mile oval. He was upset, however, by Wishing Stone in his last Pocono appearance on Super Stakes Saturday.
9. MAVEN: This 4-year-old trotting gelding is one of the few in the Top 10 who has yet to make an appearance at Pocono in 2013, although fans with longer memories may remember him as a solid performer in Pennsylvania Sire Stakes action at the track as a two and three-year-old. Maven’s biggest success this season has been in Canada, where he in unbeaten in four races for trainer Jonas Czernyson.
8. PET ROCK: A four-year-old pacing stallion from the Virgil Morgan Jr. barn, Pet Rock has had an outstanding season once again in 2013 with earnings north of $600,000. But his story at Pocono has been one of near misses. He finished 3rd and 2nd in the Ben Franklin pace elimination and final in June, then came up just short behind A Rocknroll Dance on Super Stakes Saturday.
7. VEGAS VACATION: Most people have conceded the 3-year-old pacing division to Captaintreacherous, but this gelding trained by Casie Coleman pushed the super-horse to the limit in their last meeting on the Pocono oval, finishing just a nose behind him in the slop in the Max Hempt. He’s been building confidence since then, scoring big-money victories at Tioga and Mohawk.
6. A ROCKNROLL DANCE: Trainer Jim Mulinix hopes the old phrase “horses for courses” applies come Breeders Crown time, because the last two starts this 4-year-old pacer had at Pocono were memorable. In 2012, he turned around a floundering season with a win in the Max Hempt Memorial. His lone start here this season was a win on Super Stakes Saturday in 1:47:4, matching the fastest ever at the track.
5. ROYALTY FOR LIFE: As the Hambletonian winner as well as a victor in several other big stakes races, 2013 has been a great year for Royalty For Life, trained by George Ducharme. Except at Pocono. Back in June, the 3-year-old trotter broke stride in both the elimination and the final for the Earl Beal Jr. In August, he got caught up in a speed duel and faded to 7th as the favorite in the Colonial.
4. FATHER PATRICK: The most celebrated 2-year-old in the country, Father Patrick made his trotting debut at Pocono in July in Pennsylvania All Stars action with a seven-length victory. He returned a few weeks later for another easy score in the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes. With seven wins in eight races so far for trainer Jimmy Takter, you get the feeling he’ll be tough no matter what track hosts him.
3. I LUV THE NITELIFE: With just one loss in 11 races this season, the pride of the Chris Ryder barn has been without a doubt the class of the 3-year-old pacing fillies division. She has been especially fine at Pocono, winning all three of her races here this year. Included among those were big stakes wins in the James Lynch and the Valley Forge, the latter coming in a world record for her age group of 1:48:4.
2. CAPTAINTREACHEROUS: It took a world-record performance from Sunshine Beach to spoil his unbeaten season at Pocono in the Battle of the Brandywine, and even then it was only in a photo finish. Before that, the Captain overcame a treacherous trip, if you will, to win the Hempt in June. Will the 3-year-old pacing colt from the Tony Alagna barn step up on Breeders Crown day? Time will tell.
1. BEE A MAGICIAN: The number-one horse in the poll is a relative unknown to Pocono fans, since she’s the only one on this list to have never raced at MSPD. The 3-year-old trotting filly from the Nifty Norman barn has done most of her damage in Canada, but she did stop at The Meadowlands this year to win the Hambletonian Oaks as part of her record of twelve wins in twelve races in 2013.
Those are just some of the horses to watch come October at Pocono. With all of that firepower on display, it should be an amazing night.
That will do it for this week, but we’ll see you at the track. Feel free to e-mail me at [email protected].
Sep 9, 2013 | Racing
September 5-11, 2013
There were only two nights of racing in the past week because of the Oktoberfest celebration at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs. Those two nights were full of great racing, however, thanks to the finals of the Stallion Series that were held on Friday and Saturday night.
These Stallion Series are a chance for some excellent two-year-old and three-year-old horses to compete for purses that they might not otherwise get the chance to earn. The races take place all summer, with the best performers earning tickets to the finals, which were each worth $40,000 each.
On Friday night, the 2-year-olds took center stage, followed by the 3-year-olds on Saturday night. Here is a look at how those finals went down.
TWO-YEAR-OLD PACING COLTS AND GELDINGS
In a thrilling race, 4-1 third choice Jack Attack, with George Napolitano Jr. in the bike, led much of the race, but had to deal with the 1-2 favorite So Surreal in the stretch. The two came to the line in a photo finish, and, when the dust settled, Jack Attack was the winner by a nose. Trained by PJ Fraley, the 2-year-old gelding paced the mile in 1:52:2, giving him a perfect record in Stallion Series action.
TWO-YEAR-OLD TROTTING COLTS AND GELDINGS
When Ron Pierce couldn’t make it to Pocono on Friday night, Tyler Buter got the catch drive aboard Who Wants Soup, who was coming off back-to-back wins in the preliminaries. Buter made the most of his chance, rallying the gelding from the barn of Jim Campbell from off the pace to take the late lead and hang on by a head over Faust for the victory in 1:56:3. It was a new career mark for Who Wants Soup.
TWO-YEAR-OLD TROTTING FILLIES
Nitro Nittany, a filly from the Jim Raymer barn, was coming off the first loss of her career after three straight Stallion Series wins. She atoned in the best way possible. Driver Howard Parker sent Nitro Nittany behind the cover of even-money favorite Tweet Me on the outside, and she blew by in the stretch for the victory in a career-best 1:56.
TWO-YEAR-OLD PACING FILLIES
Considering that she had won her previous start against tougher Pennsylvania Sire Stakes competition, it was no surprise that Weeper, from the barn of Kelly O’ Donnell, was the 3-5 favorite in this group. The filly didn’t disappoint, blowing by her competition with a huge first-over brush on the back stretch and pacing away for a 1 ¾ length victory in 1:51:4, giving her three straight wins.
THREE-YEAR-OLD TROTTING FILLIES
As part of an entry that went off as a 3-5 favorite, Choose Happy, trained by Virgil Morgan Jr., got off to a slow start and had to make a first-over move to reach the front of the pack. Not only did she get past the leader around the final turn, but she held back closers who had much better trips than she did, prevailing by a head with Brett Miller in the bike for a victory in 1:54:2.
THREE-YEAR-OLD PACING FILLIES
Trained by Amber Buter, Antigua Hanover came into Saturday night’s final with just two wins in 16 races this season. She found her stride at the right time though, starting fast, finding the pocket, and then blowing by the favorite Mattwestern late to pace away for the victory by 2 ½ lengths. Tyler Buter did the driving for Antigua Hanover, who paced the mile in a career-best 1:50:4.
THREE-YEAR-OLD TROTTING COLTS AND GELDINGS
The combination of driver Howard Parker and trainer Jim Raymer, who won a Stallion Series final on Friday with Nitro Nittany, were at it again with Rossini. Despite being a 3-1 third choice, Parker sent Rossini to the front end and dared everyone to catch him. The result was an easy 3 ¼ length win in 1:53, which narrowly missed a track record for 3-year-old geldings on the trot.
THREE-YEAR-OLD PACING COLTS AND GELDINGS
The final Stallion Series race of the season was a thriller. Ultimate Beachboy was the 3-5 favorite after back-to-back wins, one of which matched a track record. But he was pressured on all sides throughout the mile in the final, until Shock It To ‘Em, trained by Chris Oakes and driven by Ron Pierce, rallied in the stretch from the pocket for a half-length win in 1:50:1.
That will do it for this week, but we’ll see you at the track. Feel free to e-mail me at [email protected].
Sep 6, 2013 | Racing
August 30-September 5, 2013
August may be in the rear-view mirror, but it went out with a bang at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs. A track record fell on Friday night and a world record went by the books on Saturday night. It was quite a week of racing, and it’s no surprise that those two record-setters end up with the most honored positions in this edition of the Weekly Awards.
PACER OF THE WEEK: LIGHTNING PAIGE
If anyone seemed poised to break a record in Friday night’s $21,000 featured pace for mares who were non-winners of $24,000 in the last five races, Southwind Jazmin was the one. In the very same class a week earlier, the 5-year-old mare completely dominated with a two-length win in 1:49:3, and the margin and time could have been more impressive had she been kept to task. It’s no wonder that she was the 2-5 favorite at race time.
One of the horses that she beat the previous start was Lightning Paige, a 4-year-old mare from the Steve Elliott barn. She was a non-threatening third in that race, and she found herself in the pocket chasing the heavy favorite throughout the race. Even with fast fractions, it seemed like the only thing up for debate was whether or not Southwind Jazmin would challenge a track record.
Yet Lightning Paige had other ideas. Driver Andrew McCarthy urged her on through the stretch as she blitzed by the favorite to win by a neck. To add insult to injury, Lightning Paige’s winning time of 1:49 even broke the track record for 4-year-old pacing mares. The previous mark of 1:49:2 was held by, you guessed it, Southwind Jazmin, who set it a year ago. That’s what you call a double whammy. Here’s hoping these two star distaffers face off again in an exciting budding rivalry.
Other top pacers this week include: Caviart Spencer (George Napolitano Jr., Eddie Sager), whose victory on Friday night over the $7,500 claimers gave him three straight victories and came in a career-best 1:52; Light Up The Sky (George Napolitano Jr., Marty Fine), who switched barns and still came up with his second straight win against the toughest claimers on the grounds Saturday night, this one in a career mark of 1:49; and Mustang Art (Kevin Wallis, James McGuire), a veteran pacer who put on a show on the front end on Saturday night with a mile of 1:48:3, best of his career and fastest this week at Pocono.
TROTTER OF THE WEEK: BEATGOESON HANOVER
One of my little rules for writing this column is that I try to spread the wealth around in giving these awards. When a horse wins Pacer or Trotter of the Week once during a season, I usually disqualify them from winning it again. For Beatgoeson Hanover, I broke the rules, simply because it’s unusual for a horse to crash the record books twice in the same season.
Back in April, Beatgoeson Hanover, a five-year-old mare trained by Nifty Norman, matched a track record for aged trotting mares with a scintillating victory in 1:52:1. Yet on Saturday night in a Preferred trot with a $25,000 purse, Beatgoeson Hanover could only go off as a 3-1 second choice, because DW’s NY Yank, who also set a track record at Pocono earlier this season as a 4-year-old gelding, was the heavy favorite. Beatgoeson Hanover sat the pocket trip behind the favorite, who surprisingly caved in at the top of the stretch under pressure from the first-over move from Real Babe.
Driver Tyler Buter made a nifty move by swinging Beatgoeson Hanover out wide to elude her tiring cover and gather momentum for a rally. The mare did the rest, zipping by Real Babe to win by three-quarters of a length in 1:51:4. Not only did that reset her track mark, but it also set the world record for aged mares trotting on a five-eighths-mile oval. Maybe we bent the rules a little bit by handing out this award, but that performance was worth it.
Honorable mention on the trotting side goes to: Must Be Psychic (Anthony Napolitano, Scott Osterhout), who won his second straight claimer on Tuesday night, this one coming in a career-best 1:55:1 despite a move up in class; Hoorayforvacation (Matt Kakaley, Ron Burke), who scored a victory in Tuesday night’s featured claiming handicap trot in a career-best 1:53:4; and Raven De Vie (Matt Kakaley, Chris Ryder), who followed up his maiden win with another condition victory on Wednesday night in 1:56:1.
LONG SHOT OF THE WEEK: WEST RIVER VICTORY
On Tuesday night with Mike Simons doing the driving, this trotter utilized a pcoket trip to rally for a victory over a $12,500 claiming class at 17-1 for a $37 win payout on a $2 win ticket.
DRIVER OF THE WEEK: ANDREW MCCARTHY
McCarthy gets a lot of acclaim at Pocono for his ability to bring in long shots, but this week he was winning with every kind of horse, as evidenced by multiple driving victories on all four racing nights.
TRAINER OF THE WEEK: MARTY FINE
Part of the Canadian invasion of horsemen who have really made their mark on the 2013 season at Pocono, Fine stayed hot with a three-win week, including a double on Saturday.
That will do it for this week, but we’ll see you at the track. Feel free to e-mail me at [email protected].
Sep 4, 2013 | Racing
August 31, 2013
Beatgoeson Hanover rallied in the final strides to win the featured Preferred trot on Saturday night at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs and set a world record for her age group in the process. The race carried a purse of $25,000.
Beatgoeson Hanover, a five-year-old mare from the barn of Nifty Norman, left from post position #5 in a field of six as the 3-1 second choice. She led at the quarter, then ceded the lead to 1-2 favorite DW’s NY Yank in the front stretch and worked the pocket. Real Babe made a powerful first-over move on the back stretch and cleared DW’s NY Yank in the stretch, but driver Tyler Buter alertly swung Beatgoeson Hanover wide in the stretch to beat Real Babe by three-quarters of a length. DW’s NY Yank faded to third.
With a winning time of 1:51:4, Beatgoeson Hanover, owned by Neven Botica, not only shattered her own track record for aged trotting mares of 1:52:1, a mark she shared with Brighten Up, but she also smashed the world record for that age group of 1:52, which was set by Premiere Steed in Finland in 2009. Beatgoeson Hanover, winner of six races this season and 25 lifetime, pushed her career earnings of $1,073,080.
