by John Manzi, for the NAADA

Monticello, NY — Talk about dominating. Not only did Bob Krivelin win five legs of the recently completed NAADA Trotting Series but he was also victorious in the $15,000 final which was presented Thursday evening (April 7) at Yonkers Raceway. In fact he won that contest by five lengths with his own Permanent Joy in a time of 1:59.

“My horse went a big trip,” he said. “We had the pole (position) and (Dave) Yarock (with Nautilus De Vie) left like gangbusters which was OK with me but when Alan Schwartz slipped in in front of me as we headed to the quarter pole it upset my plans for a two-hole journey.”

Yarock’s trotter led the field by the first quarter in :29 and with horses hung on the limb and moving up it forced Krivelin to come first-up as the field headed to the halfway point.

“I really didn’t want to come out so early but with (Bob) Hechkoff and Joe Lee moving up from the rear I really had no choice but to move when I did,” Krivelin related.

Getting out in front of the outside flow allowed Krivelin clearance and he was able to challenge Yarock’s trotter as they headed for the third stanza. However Nautilus De Vie hung tough and Permanent Joy didn’t clear until the two trotters passed the three-quarters. But once Kriveiln’s horse settled down along the pylons only the margin of victory was in doubt. At the wire Permanent Joy was five lengths in front of runner-up Joe Lee’s Boysdroolgirlsrule who finished a long neck better than Bob Hechkoff’s AJ Destiny.

“I’m proud of my driving victory but I’m even prouder of my training,” added Krivelin who doubles as Permanent Joy’s trainer. “I keep him in his own huge paddock on my farm which is outside Goshen and rarely do we put a harness on him between races. For extra exercise we tow him along on my farm’s bridle path from time to time.”

For Krivelin, a food purveyor in New York City, it marked his 190th amateur driving victory and his 107th win as a trainer.