by Jerry Connors

Wilkes-Barre, PA — The memorable phrase in the title came from Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs announcer Jim Beviglia when a big longshot won at the northeast Pennsylvania track earlier this year.

Tuesday night (Oct. 28) he didn’t use the line, but he could have — twice — as two $100-plus winners visited Victory Lane on one card for the first time this season at The Downs (or, for that matter, at Pocono’s PHHA sister track, Harrah’s Philadelphia).

The first bomber came in race nine, as 54.50-1 shot Traffic Cop was hustled away from outside post nine to the early lead; two horses brushed around him, but then the 50-cent favorite on the lead broke, so Traffic Cop didn’t have much traffic to face from the pocket. Driver Marcus Miller kept him in to headstretch, then pulled and went by 3-1 second choice Preparty to win and paid $111 for a $2 ticket. The victory made Miller the only sulkysitter to have a $100-plus winner at both PHHA tracks, Pocono and Philly, this year.

The gimmicks added further shrapnel. Behind the front two were 20-1 shot Liberal (Simon Allard) and 131-1 shot Blue’s Rocket Man (Anthony Napolitano); because Pennsylvania state law requires payoffs to be posted on a $2 basis, the beleaguered infield totalisator flashed $10,261.40 for a $2 9-3-5 trifecta, and the superfecta, even at 9-3-5-All, provided a $37,099 bounty for a deuce.

Five races later Anthony Napolitano guided home 85.20-1 shot Lindy’s Fireworks first to provide $172.40 for his very scattered $2 backers throughout the wagering world.

This 85-1 shot got away second behind 1-10 shot Demoiselle Hanover, and undoubtedly she must be attributed a stroke of fortune when that one jumped late on the first turn, so she had the lead at the quarter. As with the earlier longshot, two foes quickly brushed by, but Lindy’s Fireworks started detonating for real when Napolitano guided the filly first-over and still won by 7-1/4 lengths.

Behind Lindy’s Fireworks were Broadway Delores (7-1, George Napolitano Jr.), L Dees Maggiebest (21-1, Tyler Buter), and Powerful Madison (10-1, Andrew McCarthy), three of the next four choices behind the overwhelming favorite, so the gimmick payoffs were relatively mild: $2,591 for $2 for the 1-2-4 trifecta and $14,762 for the 1-2-4-9 $2 superfecta.

The average win payoff on Tuesday at Pocono was $27.99; statisticians who want to remove the two “freaks” will find a comforting $10.49 average return. But then they have to go help clean up the shrapnel.