by David Mattia, USTA Web Newsroom Senior Correspondent

New Brunswick, NJ — Street Dancer p,4,1:49.3 ($736,415), a Julie Miller trainee, is looking for her second straight Big M final victory. Having taken last month’s $88,700 Cape and Cutter final, this rugged daughter of Richess Hanover, from the Magical Mike mare Magical Cassie, will leave from post two in Friday night’s (March 21) $136,400 Overbid final.

This year’s Overbid final looks like it will be a hard fought one for Street Dancer in that she’ll be facing some stiff competition from seven of her highly regarded peers; chief among them being the celebrated Southwind Tempo and My Little Dragon. The tough level of competition does not seem to intimidate Julie Miller, who, by the way, is the wife of driver Andy Miller.

“We’ll just need good luck like we had in the Cape and Cutter,” said trainer Miller.

“Andy (Miller) did a fabulous job — he rode the rail and he found a seam to get up in the final say. I’d like to think it could happen again but there are seven other mares wanting the best trip and they’re all in the race because they’re exceptional mares.”

Lisa photo

Street Dancer and Andy Miller were 1:50.3 winners in the Cape and Cutter final.

Despite finishing second in the first leg of the Overbid, Street Dancer almost overcame her first-over grind when she finished a scant nose behind the winner My Little Dragon. She returned in the second leg with a third place finish, 1-3/4 lengths behind Southwind Tempo.

“I thought she raced really gritty coming first up like that in the first division,” said Miller. “She’s another one of those horses who likes to be up close and in the action so I wasn’t really worried that she was first up. As long as she’s in the hunt she loves to race. If Andy gets her up and in good position Friday night she’ll do well. If she gets in the thick of things she races really well. I think that’s her best quality.

“Street Dancer has great conformation and she’s a nice big mare who is really easy on herself. She’s a pleasure to be around and she has no bad habits on the track or in the barn. She’s a mare who takes care of herself because she knows the difference between training and racing. I would call her a pretty average training horse but she knows that when she goes behind the gate she has a job to do.”

In 2007 trainers Mark Silva and Nelson Willis alternately handled Street Dancer and she earned $304,980 for her owners, former Illinois Governor Jim Edgar, Terry Rathgeber, Ted Lock and James Reynolds. When the mare returned to the races for her 2008 campaign she was given to Julie Miller.

“One of the owners, Jim Reynolds, had the horse in Illinois and he asked me if I wanted to handle her in 2008 at The Meadowlands and I said I would,” remembered Miller.

Being the wife of one of America’s top drivers, and at the same time being the trainer of the horse he will handle in the Overbid final, begs the question, “Will the aforementioned Mrs. Miller give her husband Andy driving instructions for Friday night’s final?”

“I’m pretty much on the bandwagon that professional catch drivers race day in and day out,” said Miller. “They know the best way to race a horse. I might suggest something about the horse like if they like to leave or if they like to take back and rush home, but I pretty much leave it up to any driver I use — not just Andy. They’re professional drivers and that’s their job. I might suggest something about the horse’s versatility, but it’s the driver’s job and they should know how to drive the horse.”

With a little help from Street Dancer and the rest of her stable, Julie Miller might eclipse last year’s accomplishment when horses trained by her earned $1,375,541.

“I guess I’m a fresh face at The Meadowlands and people have sent me some good horses,” said Miller.

Born in Iowa City, Iowa, Miller has won 439 races and $3,702,834 lifetime, as her stable continues to grow. Known for her genuine affability and for being a first-rate horse trainer, Miller has two of the main ingredients a trainer needs to ensure a long and productive career.