by John Pawlak, the U.S. Trotting Association

Columbus, OH — The reputation of Brittany Farms’ homebred American Jewel is growing with each and every start, and two major stakes wins in the month just ended helped the daughter of American Ideal-Trim Hanover win honors as June’s Horse of the Month from the U.S. Trotting Association.

New Image Media photo

American Jewel has been named June’s Horse of the Month.

The Jimmy Takter-trained pacing filly began June by sweeping a Fan Hanover elimination and the $629,160 Fan Hanover final at Mohawk Racetrack, and she followed that with a similar sweep in an elimination for — and the $250,000 final of — the Jim Lynch Memorial at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs.

American Jewel won her Fan Hanover elimination in 1:50 in what was only her second start of the year. It was a new mark for the filly and a preview of things to come: In the Fan Hanover final she scored an eye-popping 1:48.2 victory — a new world record for a 3-year-old pacing filly around two turns.

The Fan Hanover victory perhaps inspired even bigger and better things: her Lynch elimination win, timed in 1:49.2, was also a world record for her division around three turns. In the Lynch final, backed to the tune of 1-20, she responded by matching the world record effort she posted in the eliminations.

“Every year you think, ‘I’m never going to get another horse like this,’ and then here comes another one that is maybe even better,” Takter said about American Jewel in a recent interview with Harness Racing Communications’ Ken Weingartner.

American Jewel is the latest in a long line of very talented trotters and pacers trained by Takter, who was formally installed in Harness Racing’s Living Hall of Fame one night after her win in the Lynch final. Many of Takter’s charges over the years, including Moni Maker, Malabar Man and See You At Peelers have reached superstar status — with seems to be the direction in which American Jewel, the latest star to be bred by Brittany Farms, might be headed.