by John Manzi, publicity director, Monticello Raceway

Monticello, NY — Bruce Aldrich Jr. and Bob Lounsbury are at it again. Last year at Monticello Raceway that driver/trainer combination had 18 consecutive victories with a claiming pacer by the name of Tracys Song and currently they’re running another string with Burlesque, also a claiming pacing mare.

Geri Schwarz photo

Burlesque posted an easy 1:57.3 victory over Rusty’s Flying, the mare’s seventh win in a row.

On the Monday afternoon card of Sept. 22 Aldrich guided the Lounsbury-trained Burlesque to an easy 1:57.3 victory over Rusty’s Flying (Jimmy Marohn Jr.), which was the mare’s seventh win in a row.

It’s true that seven is a long way from 18, but as Aldrich said, referring to the mare’s winning journey, “We’ll take it one step at a time, although honestly, it’ll be nearly impossible to win that many in a row.”

Actually Burlesque showed shades of brilliance earlier in her career but she could never get it all together. She amassed nearly $100,000 in purse money at two and three but wins came sparingly.

“Phil (Schultz) claimed Burlesque for $12,500 in Canada earlier this year but he was not happy with her after he claimed her,” Lounsbury said. “She didn’t want to race so finally Schultz sent her to his other trainer, Mike Watson, and told him to put her in at Monticello Raceway for a $4,000 claiming tag.”

Watson also trained Diamond Tiara for Schultz but he stables his horses in Wind Gap, Pa., some 90 miles from Monticello Raceway.

“With shipping bills around $200 every time she raced at Monticello it didn’t pay Phil to have Watson keep trucking her here since she wasn’t racing very well,” Lounsbury explained. “I’ve trained horses for Phil before so he sent her to me to stop the shipping costs.

“She didn’t race well for me, either, at first. I know she was sour because she’d try to run off the track when we jogged her, so we began feeding her ‘Dr. Green’ (turning her out in a pasture) a few days a week and that she seemed to sweeten her up.”

Lounsbury won his first race with Burlesque on June 10 when Aldrich sat a two hole with the 4-year-old daughter of Mach Three and then rallied her to a 1:56.4 victory. Her only other triumph prior to that was a 1:53.3 mile on February 24 for Jonathan Drury while racing for a $12,500 tag at Woodbine.

Once at the Mighty M and under the tutelage of Lounsbury, Burlesque won her first race on June 10 and since then she has won nine more times for the Lounsbury-Aldrich combination, every time racing for a tag which was continually magnified by her being a mare and a 4-year-old.

“She’s not a mean mare but she’s temperamental and being here where she can get away from the race track a few days a week helps to sweeten her up,” Lounsbury added. “She has a mind of her own but Bruce (Aldrich) gets along real well with her.”