Jun 29, 2012 | Racing
The Fates of the Post Position Draw certainly smiled kindly on the likely favorites in three stakes races headlining a 16-race card with over $1,200,000 in purse offerings this Saturday night at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs.
The $500,000 Ben Franklin Pace for older horses, the $300,000 Max Hempt Pace for three-year-old colts, and the $250,000 James Lynch Pace for three-year-old fillies all saw their elimination races this past Saturday produce world-record performances over the lightning-fast Pocono Downs 5/8-mile strip, and those responsible for most of the recordwriting were drawn to the inside by the shake of the numbered pills at Wednesday morning’s draw.
The Franklin field is among the finest one-race gathering of harness horses ever, with the nine sidewheelers combining for lifetime earnings of $12,961,896, with five millionaires, two more with over a half a million to their credit, and the other pair with “only” a bankroll of $400,000+.
Last week’s world recordsetter in this group was Aracache Hanover. The son of PA stallion Dragon Again, trained by Gregg McNair for owners William Switala and James Martin, went perhaps the most impressive mile to date in North America during 2012, tucking from an outer post, then ranging up first-over, and despite that brutal journey staying clear late in 1:48.1, the world standard for older entires and just 1/5 off of the all-time all-age record for 5/8-mile tracks. Tim Tetrick, who has topped the drivers list in earnings for five consecutive years, is scheduled to handle Aracache from post four…
…which will lead some to say, “Where’s George?”, as it was two-time defending Driver of the Year George Brennan who won with Aracache last Saturday. But Brennan has opted to guide Betterthancheddar for the powerful stable of Casey Coleman from post two, and why not – because Brennan completed the Franklin elim double by giving “Cheddar” a perfect trip, then coming on late to win in 1:48.3 for owners Steve Calhoun and the West Wins Stable, edging out …
…We Will See (tonight post five, driver Ron Pierce), who had to traverse the brutal raw trip and still held gamely to the shadow of the wire. A son of the late PA champion sire Western Hanover who is trained by part-owner Sam DePinto for himself, Smith, and the Silva Stables LLC, We Will See is a co-holder of the all-time world record on 5/8-mile tracks and the outright owner of the all-time Pocono Downs record, a 1:48 victory in 2011.
One would be a fool to turn away from one’s barn (from remaining inside post out) Razzle Dazzle (Brian Sears), Meirs Hanover (David Miller), Clear Vision (Matt Kakaley), Rockincam (Jim Morrill Jr.), Foiled Again (Yannick Gingras), and Bettor Sweet (John Campbell), but it is very likely that the three in the above paragraphs will draw the most attention … and perhaps lower that 1:48 record at race’s end.
Sometimes the three-year-old pacing fillies take a backseat to the male rivals, the sport’s “glamour division,” but in the Lynch this is not the case, due to the #1-ranked horse in North America for this year, American Jewel. Trained by Jimmy Takter, who will be inducted into the sport’s Hall of Fame the next day, for Brittany Farms, the Jewel sparkled brightly in a 1:49.2 divisional record-equaling performance in her elim at the end of last week, boosting her earnings lifetime to $1,027,193, and she has the added advantage of the rail Saturday for driver Tim Tetrick.
On her very best race, and with a good trip, Economy Terror might be able to give a solid challenge to the likely chalk. Second behind American Jewel last week, the daughter of PA sire Western Terror (and practically a millionaire herself with her $998,881 bankroll) was the national champion at two and won last season’s PA championship at this very same Pocono track, and will be carrying the hopes of local trainer Chris Oakes and owners Chuck Pompey, Howard Taylor, and Edwin Gold as she starts from the middle of the nine-horse field for driver Brian Sears.
Nine will also face the gate in the Hempt Pace for colts, and the two most likely to be fancied by the gathered will start from posts one and three. The #3 will be Hurricane Kingcole, whose effortless 1:48.1 victory last Saturday set the all-time standard for sophomores over this size oval – and the alert will remember that the all-age all-time record for 5/8’ers is 1:48. Off a roaring 52.4 back half, the “King” is as sharp as can be for driver Tim Tetrick, trainer John McDermott, and the ownership combine of Kuhen, Levy Racing Stable, Klee Cohen Brewer and Gordon, and Hurrikane Racing.
Not far behind on last week’s impressive meter was Bolt The Duer, a lightly-raced colt who has the rail for driver Mark MacDonald, trainer Peter Foley, and All Star Racing Inc. His 1:48.3 time caught the eye of many an onlooker, and he is a colt who seems to have a world of potential.
Sam DePinto, trainer of We Will See in the Franklin, has a major contender in this race as well – I Fought Dalaw, who triumphed in 1:49.3 last time out and retains the services of David Miller as they start from post five.
In all, the sixteen-event extravaganza boasts eight millionaires and 11 others who have topped $500,000 in their careers. Given good weather, the Pocono and world record book may be in for another savaging this Saturday, with the action set to begin at 6:30.
The night has been dubbed “Sun Stakes Saturday,” and only partially because of the brilliance of the horses gathered. While supplies last, Pocono patrons purchasing a program can also pick up a special “Sun Stakes Saturday” beach towel (one per person). And a beach towel isn’t a bad promotional item on a night with this kind of equine star wattage, as the pacer Beach Towel of course was the 1990 Harness Horse of the Year, and would feel right at home amidst the heavyweight horsepower of this card.
Jun 24, 2012 | Racing
June 23, 2012
On a night when three track records and two world records had already been established at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs, Googoo Gaagaa needed to come up with something special to steal the show.
How does the fastest mile ever on a 5/8-mile oval work for you?
Googoo Gaagaa trotted an unreal 1:50:4 to win the $500,000 Earl Beal Memorial Jr. trot on Saturday night. The performance capped off an amazing night of action that saw pacers and trotters scorching the Pocono oval all night long.
Googoo Gaagaa came into the night having set a world record for 3-year-old colts on the trot of 1:51:3 in last week’s Beal elimination. In the final, the colt who is owned and trained by Richard Hans of Maryland, made his move on the front stretch to take the lead from Stormin Normand.
Nobody else made a serious threat to the top two, and Stormin Normand made a charge in the stretch, pulling up to about a half-length away. But driver Corey Callahan, who’s been aboard for all of Googoo Gaagaa’s 2012 victories, urged him home to win by 1 ¼ lengths. Little Brown Fox finished a distant 3rd. The fractional times were 27:1, 55:2, and 1:22:3, leading to the amazing winning time of 1:50:4, which shattered the world record for trotters of all ages on the 5/8-mile oval, which was the 1:51 mile posted by Arch Madness at Pocono in 2010.
In the winner’s circle, Callahan described Googoo Gaagaa’s legendary performance by saying, “He’s just a machine. He’s a professional in every sense of the word.” Callahan also had encouraging words for Hans, who was unsure how he fit in on the big stage, telling him, “You belong here, and he proved tonight that he does.”
Googoo Gaagaa now has an amazing record of 11 wins in 12 races, with his only loss coming earlier this season when he went off-stride at Harrah’s. Sired by Cam’s Rocket, a pacer, the colt pushed his career earnings to $345,945 as he heads to the Yonkers Trot.
The record-setting began at Pocono in the first elimination for the Ben Franklin, a free-for-all pace which Pocono will host for the first time next week. George Brennan drove Aracache Hanover, trained by Gregg McNair, to the Pocono all-time mark for aged pacing stallions with a victory in 1:48:1. The previous mark of 1:48:2 was set by Vlos in 2010 and matched by Transcending this May. From that elimination, Meirs Hanover (2nd), Bettor Sweet (3rd), Clear Vision (4th), and Razzle Dazzle (5th) also made the Franklin final.
In the second elimination, Bettarthancheddar, with Brennan in the bike again, this time for Casie Coleman, chased down We Will See late for a victory in 1:48:3. Along with Bettarthancheddar and We Will See, 3rd-place Foiled Again and 4th-place Rockincam are headed to the Franklin final.
In the second elimination for the Max C. Hempt Memorial, a 3-year-old open pace, Hurrikane Kingcole powered to a romping win in 1:48:1, breaking Shadow Play’s track record of 1:48:2 and matching the world record for 3-year-old colts on a 5/8-mile oval. From that split, I Like Dreamin and Hillbilly Hanover, who finished 2nd and 3rd, will race in next week’s final.
The first Hempt split was captured by I Fought Dalaw, with David Miller in the bike for Sam DePinto, in 1:49:3. One Through Ten and Mc Attaboy made the final by finishing second and third in that split. Bolt The Duer, with Mark MacDonald driving for Peter Foley, won the final Hempt split in 1:48:3. All Star Legend, who finished second in that split, and A Rocknroll Dance, who finished 3rd, are headed to the Hempt final next week.
The night’s final record came courtesy of American Jewel, the star 3-year-old filly trained by Jimmy Takter. With Tetrick in the bike, she captured her elimination for the James M. Lynch Memorial stakes for 3-year-old pacing fillies in 1:49:2. That’s a new Pocono mark for the age group, breaking the 1:49:3 staandard set by the great Southwind Tempo, and matches the world record on a 5/8-mile oval. Joining her in next week’s Lynch final from her split are Economy Terror, Marty Party, Lightning Paige, and Destiny’s Chance, who finished 2nd through 5th, respectively, in the race.
In the night’s other Lynch elimination, Darena Hanover, with Yannick Gingras in the bike for Ron Burke, scored in 1:50:2. Her fellow finalists are Sarandon Blue Chip (2nd), Shelliscape (3rd), and Major Look (4th.)
The finals for the Ben Franklin, Hempt, and Lynch will all take place in a mega-card on Saturday night, June 30 at Pocono, with approximately $1.6 million on the line during the night.
Jun 20, 2012 | Racing
Northeast Pennsylvania will undoubtedly be the Center of World Harness Racing this Saturday night, as Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs offers a spectacular card, with the $500,000 Earl Beal Memorial Trot Final for 3YO colts – whose eliminations last week spun off the two fastest trotting miles in global harness racing 2012 – joining up with elimination races for the following Saturday’s Ben Franklin Pace Final (FFA horses), Max Hempt Memorial Pace Final (3YO colts), and Jim Lynch Memorial Pace Final (3YO fillies).
The Beal Final is marqueed by Googoo Gaagaa, a son of Cam’s Rocket who set a divisional world record of 1:51.3 in his elim while winning by seven lengths, and Stormin Normand, the Broadway Hall colt and defending PA Sire Stakes champion whose 1:51.4 triumph last week would have been a world record had it come 40 minutes earlier (that is, before Googoo Gaagaa hit the track). In Saturday’s rematch, which is race 12 on the 16-race card, Stormin Normand got a bit of an edge in the positional draw for Hall of Fame driver Dave Palone (who won last year’s inaugural Beal with Dejarmbro after the famous private plane ride), trainer Jim Campbell, and breeder/owner Jules Siegel, shaking post four, while Googoo Gaagaa will have to overcome post six (which he did last week, by the way) for driver Corey Callahan and owner/trainer Richard Hans.
Not to be dismissed is Uncle Peter, the 2011 Breeders Crown winner (ironically, driven by Palone in that race), who thunderbolted home last week to just miss a half-length to Stormin Normand. This Cantab Hall colt, owned by the Fieldings, Christine Takter, and Falkbolagen AB, will begin from post seven for driver Ron Pierce as part of a three-horse entry trained by Jimmy Takter, who will be inducted into the Hall of Fame eight days after the Beal, along with stablemates Nothing But Class (post two, Takter up) and Little Brown Fox (post eight, Yannick Gingras).
The first four finishers and the fastest fifth-place finisher from last week made the Beal final, and the same rules will be used in the Lynch Memorial and Franklin, which also have two elims. The Hempt Final, requiring three elims, will find the top three from each of Saturday’s contests advancing.
The combined Franklin eliminations may gather the richest collection of pacers ever assembled for one race, with the 17 entrants sporting a total bankroll of $21,962,000 lifetime, including nine millionaires.
The 9th race second Franklin elim looks to be the tougher of the two, headed as it is by the #1 horse in the North American Top Ten, Foiled Again. The ironsided altered son of Dragon Again, owned by trainer Ron Burke in partnership with Weaver Bruscemi and the JJK Stables, has hit the board in all ten starts this year, and the horse who knows no reverse gear will be guided from post four by Yannick Gingras. (Think we’re kidding about a tough field? Foiled Again, with a lifetime assemblage of $3,843,305, isn’t even the richest horse in the field – heck, he’s not even the richest Burke trainee in the field, with Won The West [$3,939,136] starting from post eight for David Miller.)
This group also includes We Will See (post three, Hall of Famer Ron Pierce), whose all-age record 1:48 at Pocono last September ties for the fastest mile ever on a 5/8-mile track and who also is the defending Franklin champion, and Golden Receiver (post nine, Brian Sears), who has led the Top Ten polls for most of the campaign.
In the 7th race Franklin elim cut, much of the attention will focus on two horses who were in the photo for win in the Bettor’s Delight Pace at Tioga Downs on June 10 – Clear Vision (post four, yet another Burkian, driven by PcD regular Matt Kakaley), who nosed out (yes, stablemate) Foiled Again, and Bettor Sweet (post seven, Hall of Famer John Campbell), who set a scorching pace and succumbed only by a neck to the two outside-flow horses.
A good deal of the industry will have an eye on the 11th race Lynch elimination, a field of seven, topped by the Top Ten’s #2, American Jewel (post four, driver Tim Tetrick, trainer Jim Takter, and owner Brittany Farms), who had established herself as last year’s top distaff pacing freshman before suffering a season-ending injury. But she has roared back in 2012, last week winning the $629,160 Fan Hanover Final at Mohawk in 1:48.2, a divisional world record – enough to encourage her connections to put up $15,000 to supplement her to the Lynch.
Her archrival, last year’s divisional champion Economy Terror, had a hard trip in the Fan Hanover and finished fifth, but tonight’s post change from nine outside Toronto to one at the track where she won her state’s Sire Stakes Championship last year should position her for a big outing for driver Brian Sears, local trainer Chris Oakes, and the ownership triumvirate of Pompey, Taylor, and Gold.
The other Lynch elim, race 3, may hinge on which Sarandon Blue Chip shows up at Pocono – the one who was super-impressive winning at The Meadowlands three weeks ago, or the one who was rough-gaited and missed out on the Fan Hanover Final. Sarandon will try to bounce back from post five for driver David Miller, with the major danger looking to come from Major Look (post two, Jeff Gregory) who won in 1:50.1 at Tioga in her last start.
For the Hempt, the first elim is race 5, where I Fought Dalaw, like Sarandon Blue Chip, will look to bounce back from a subpar Mohawk performance after strong Meadowlands form. David Miller will guide I Fought Dalaw from post two.
Also trying to shake off bad Mohawk luck will be Hurrikane Kingcole, starting from post three for Tim Tetrick in the 10th race second elimination. The “King” (no relation to George Anthony) miscued at the start of his North America Cup elim, but was officially timed in a mind-blowing 1:18.3 for his final three-quarters after repairing his error.
The third Hempt group, in race 13, pulls together many horses with great credentials: Bolt The Duer (post two, Mark MacDonald), who has all the potential in the world; A Rocknroll Dance (post four, Yannick Gingras), who was the top-rated colt coming into this season; and Allstar Legend (post seven, Brian Sears), who smoked the last 1320 feet of Philadelphia in 26.2 in posting a 1:48.2 triumph last out.
FINISHING LINE – That 1:48.2 of Allstar Legend was just 1/5 of a second off the divisional world record of Custard The Dragon – who just happens to be the defending Hempt champion – and who just happens to be in the race which will kick off the card at 6:30, a $25,000 winners-over pace.
Nov 10, 2011 | Racing
Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs
2011 Season Review
Well, here we are at the conclusion of another season of racing at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs. We got started all the way back on March 22, and we’ll close things out on Saturday night, November 12. It seems like we just got underway, but, instead, it’s time to wrap things up.
As the track announcer at Pocono, I have the best seat in the house for all of the racing action. This was my fourth year in the booth, and I’ve been employed here since 1997 in some capacity or other. The changes that I’ve witnessed have been truly been monumental, but nothing has changed nearly as much, all for the positive, as the quality of racing.
I think that coming into the 2011 season at Pocono, there might have been a sense that a letdown could be in the offing. After all, MSPD hosted the Breeders Crown, harness racing’s night of champions, back in 2010, and there was seemingly nothing on the schedule that could match the brilliance of that event.
It turns out that 2011 at MSPD was a constant series of highlights, with one incendiary performance leading to another. All you need to do is look at the track records page in the program to get confirmation of this. Of the 24 different categories of track records, based on age, gender, and gait, 10 of them were set in 2011. In a few of those cases, the records that fell came from Breeders Crown night.
Among those track records, a few stand out more than most. Economy Terror, a 2-year-old pacing filly, and Sand Violent Blu, a 2-year-old trotting filly, set their track marks while winning state championships as part of the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes finals in September. Dejarmbro inaugurated the Earl Beal Jr. Memorial Trot, a new Pocono stakes race featuring 3-year-old trotters, by matching a world record in 1:52:2. And who could forget the dead heat between Macraider N and Bettor Sweet in an Open pace in May, which came in 1:48:4, fastest time ever for two horses hitting the line in a tie?
As great as those miles were, the one that stands out for me was the mile paced by 4-year-old stallion We Will See in an Open pace on September 4. With Ron Pierce in the bike, he tripped the line in 1:48, setting the mark for fastest mile in track history and matching the fastest time ever on a 5/8-mile oval. That one is still jaw-dropping several months after the fact.
Of course, as great as the horses were, we also have to salute the drivers and trainers who conditioned and guided them to such great performances. Congratulations to Matt Kakaley, who came out on top of an outstanding field of drivers in the wins department. Dave Palone took the driving average title, which was all the more impressive considering that the Meadows regular usually only came to Pocono if there were some big stakes races on tap.
On the training side, it was a clean sweep for Lou Pena, who led the trainers in both wins and percentage at Pocono. Those three guys that I just mentioned were at the top of the charts, but the distinguishing characteristic about the MSPD driving and training colony is the balance. So many men and women had outstanding campaigns in 2011. Congratulations to them all.
It has been a pleasure writing these columns, as usual. Thanks to all the publications and web sites that run these articles, and thanks to all the readers. Thanks as well to all of the people who make my job the easiest in the world. Again, too many to mention in this case, and I don’t want to leave anybody out, so a blanket thanks will have to suffice.
Of course, thanks to all the fans who came out to see the action this year at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs. It must be especially rewarding for those fans that have been with us even in leaner times. They stuck with us, and now they’re enjoying what truly is the Golden Age of Pocono racing.
I guess it’s natural at the end of one season to look ahead to the next, but it’s hard to say what 2012 will hold. Harness racing is ever-changing, and the stars of one year are often also-rans the next. But while it may be hard to predict who will be in these articles next season, it’s no stretch to say that the upcoming meet will probably top this one.
That is not a reflection in any way on the great, great season ready to be consigned to the history books and the memory banks. It is a reflection instead on what has become the status quo at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs: Sustained excellence and racing quality that is constantly trending upwards.
That will do it for this season, but we’ll see you, next year, at the track. Feel free to e-mail me at [email protected].
