by Mark Ratzky, publicity, Cal-Expo

Sacramento, CA — The working-class performers and the amateur pilots get the chance for some spotlight this weekend at Cal-Expo in the $8,000 finale of the TVG Spring Amateur Series. The pacers have been sorting themselves out over the last two Saturday nights, being offered for base claiming prices of $3,000 the first week and $3,500 for the last gathering.

Last week’s two divisional victors, Bronte Anas Boy and LS Orchardwinner, figure to get the majority of the attention. Both were handled in those scores by David Siegel.

Bronte Anas Boy will be attempting a clean sweep in the event, as he romped home by 11 lengths the first week and then had to work a little harder to get the job done at 50 cents on the dollar at most recent asking.

LS Orchardwinner was the beaten choice in the first leg, but apologized in a big way last week as he crushed his rivals by seven lengths-plus after doing the track-and-attack to perfect.

This amateur series is a joint effort between Cal-Expo, the California Amateur Driving Club and the California Harness Horsemen’s Association.

“There is little doubt that the California amateur program is the strongest-based one in the country,” said Cal-Expo General Manager Dave Elliott.

“Given the challenge of an ‘island meet,’ amateur driving not only provides a varied program for fans, but serves a purpose for lesser experienced drivers to be competitive and show potential owners another side of ownership not available with thoroughbreds or quarter horses.”

There will be a second TVG Amateur Series that will take place beginning July 11, and that will be limited to pacing fillies and mares while being decided under the same conditions.

For Eli, the pause that refreshes

Keystone Eli, one of top pacers on the grounds for the last several years, is set for a return to the wars after being idle since late January for owner Hei Mitchell and trainer Bob Johnson.

“This is the second year that Hei has bred him to a couple of his mares, which makes him a happy camper, and he’s got two weanlings on the ground right now,” Johnson explained when asked about the vacation. “He would have been back sooner, but he had a couple of little issues.”

A 6-year-old son of Shady Character out of the Albatross mare Eglise Hanover, Keystone Eli has won 21 of his 87 career appearances while putting $168,037 in his account. He set his 1:51 mark here two years ago.

With regular pilot Lemoyne “Mooney” Svendsen in the sulky, Keystone Eli stretched his muscles in a qualifying mile last week, sitting the pocket to the stretch and then cutting loose in the final stages to win going away by 4-1/2 lengths in an excellent tuner.

“He’s come back good and Mooney was real happy with the qualifier,” Johnson noted. “He trained in 1:59 and then went 1:57 in the qualifier. There’s no real point to give him another qualifier, because he’d probably go 1:55 in there and not really get anything out of it. It’s just not the same as what you get from a race.”

Once he gets an evening start or two under his belt, Keystone Eli should be ready to assume his position at or near the head of the local class. There’s no doubt these little breaks that include dates are great for the attitude.

Fan favorite is a real pip

Pip’s Jenny G hasn’t been around forever, it just seems that way. The 8-year-old pacing mare came into this week’s action with 188 starts on her resume, sporting 27 wins, 24 seconds and 33 thirds while earning her $92,000 bankroll the old fashioned way.

Brevator “Doc” Creech owns and bred the daughter of Balanced Attack out of the Dignitarian mare Pip’s Cindy Lu. She currently takes her lessons from Lou Pena.

“Her dam was well configured but crazy, in fact she was dangerous to take on the track,” Creech related. “We finally gave up on her and bred her to Balanced Attack, and to tell you the truth, it was because it was convenient and cheap.”

As things turned out, the apple didn’t fall far from the tree as far as Pip’s Jenny G was concerned.

“We tried to break Jenny to the jog cart here on the farm, but she was too much like her mother. I remember she even broke some of our equipment. I gave up and turned her over to Lester Smith, whom I was told was good at breaking babies. Lester did a fine job and we ultimately got her to the track and the races.”

Pip’s Jenny G has certainly given Doc his share of memorable moments as she closes in on 200 starts and the $100,000 earnings plateau.

“She has a bit of an attitude from her dam, which is good as long as it’s directed at winning races,” he said. “She’s been a good, solid mare and fortunately has no injuries.”

Creech explained that one of the reasons for her longevity as a racemare comes from the scheduled vacations she gets from the hustle and bustle of the racetrack.

“I’ve always felt that horses need to get away from the track periodically to improve their attitude. I recently brought her home and gave her some time off to put her head down and graze.

“We were able to keep her in condition during that break using our treadmills. Giving her 30 to 45 minutes a day on the treadmill and 23 hours to just be a horse was just what the doctor ordered. She only lost two weeks of racing and returned to the track to post a second and a third right off the bat.”