from the Meadowlands Publicity Department

East Rutherford, NJ — While Four Starzzzz Ittt goes back to work in Friday night’s $215,000 Lady Liberty at the Meadowlands, her future foal is growing in a surrogate mare.

The five-year-old daughter of Falcon Seelster drew the rail and will be driven by Eric Ledford in the featured sixth race.

It is her second start back after a break in her schedule for motherhood.

“We recently laid her off, and that was by design,” said trainer Erik Schulman. “We had her bred to Four Starzzz Shark. She was inseminated and then they transferred (the embryo) into a surrogate mare, who is actually carrying the foal.

“She was racing pretty good when we stopped with her off two wins in a row,” he noted.

That was on March 4 and 11 at the Meadowlands when Four Starzzzz Ittt won a pair of conditioned paces for fillies and mares. She had five wins and two thirds from eight starts before she took her brief maternity leave. She tuned up for her return to racing with a trio of qualifying races and finished third in her first start back, the mares open for Lady Liberty eligibles last Friday.

“I thought she was very good, coming back last week with a :26.4 final quarter and had a chance to win, although she wasn’t quite raceway tight” said Schulman. “Sometimes three qualifiers just isn’t enough. She has to get into a regular race routine. We’re very happy with her both on and off the track.”

“This mare doesn’t particularly like a lot of training,” he explained. “She needs to be tightened up a little but not to a large degree. As long as she’s racing, a light training session on Tuesday or Wednesday, and she’s fine.”

Four Starzzzz Ittt races for the FS Starzzzz Stables Inc. of Glenwood, New Jersey and has banked $98,670 this year toward career earnings of $174,433. Lifetime, she has 11 wins and has finished in-the-money in 26 of 37 starts.

“It’s a long season,” Schulman added. “She’s staked a little bit, and she’ll get her chance to make some money against a bunch of nice mares like Burning Point, Carolina Sunshine and Stonebridge Kisses.”

Strategies in the Lady Liberty will likely change with news that 2004 Horse of the Year Rainbow Blue will be scratched from the stake and likely miss the balance of the year with a tendon injury.

“We have the rail, and this mare can race both ways,” Schulman said. “If you wind her up, she can come out of there and protect the rail.”

The field for the $215,000 Lady Liberty Final, race six on Friday, June 17, in post position order: Four Starzzzz Ittt, Eric Ledford, 12-1; Apple Krisp, Cat Manzi, 20-1; She’s My Belle, Jim Morrill, Jr., 15-1; Carolina Sunshine, Brian Sears, 5-1; R Burning Desire, Patrick Berry, 15-1; Glowing Report, David Miller, 10-1; Ascending, Mike Lachance, 15-1; Burning Point, George Brennan, 6-1; Rainbow Blue, Ron Pierce, Even; L Dees Val, John Campbell, 12-1; Smashingpringipisa, Daniel Dube, 30-1; and Stonebridge Kisses, Yannick Gingras, 15-1.

Rainbow Blue will be scratched off the program.

Meadowlands has many father-son milestones to recall

While America gets ready to honor “Dear Old Dad” this Sunday, the Meadowlands has its own share of unique father and son milestones on which to look back.

On May 12, 1991, an equine father and son team made Meadowlands history when they competed in the same race. Oregon, age 13, and his seven-year-old son Zealot not only raced in the same event, they finished first and second. Oregon set a lifetime mark of 1:57.1 and the exacta paid more than $60. Bill O’Donnell drove the winner. No Standardbred father and son have appeared in the same race at the Meadowlands since then.

Mike and Patrick Lachance produced the first father-son deadheat in track history on December 11, 2002. Patrick, driving Brandyz Baby, caught Mike and Big Duchess at the wire and shared the 1:58.4 win in the ninth race that evening.

On May 25, 1981, a father-son exacta occurred as Bill and Tom Haughton finished one-two with trotters Burgomeister and Final Score, respectively.

In 1985, Soren Nordin competed against his son, Jan Nordin, in the Hambletonian. Soren finished second with Ron B Hanover and Jan Nordin was tenth with Master Willie in the final heat, which was won by Prakas.

The late Carl Allen and his son Rod were the first father-son team to drive the winners of $1 million races — Carl with Carl’s Bird in the 1983 Woodrow Wilson and Rod with Carlsbad Cam in the 1992 Meadowlands Pace.

Three equine father and sons have won the Meadowlands Pace: Cam’s Card Shark (1994) and Holborn Hanover (2004), Matt’s Scooter (1988) and Mach Three (2002); and Niatross (1980) and Nihilator (1984).

Around The Meadowlands for June 16, 2005

Lady Liberty finalist Burning Point, who won the prep race last week, seems to be “coming back to 100 percent,” according to trainer Steve Elliott.

“We found out she had ulcers, we treated her for it and she started coming back around. We’re just going to try to avoid any road trouble (in the Lady Liberty). In the Classic Distaff at Woodbine she got parked to the quarter in :26 (seconds) and that kind of stung her. She was racing well before that with three straight seconds up there (Woodbine). But for some reason, she’s just happier when she’s home.”

Two of this year’s Lady Liberty starters were also in the 2004 edition. Burning Point finished second to Loyal Opposition. Carolina Sunshine was fifth.

A second morning of baby racing has been added to the Meadowlands’ schedule. In addition to Saturdays (box closes on Thursdays at 4:00 p.m.), there will also be baby races on Wednesday mornings (box closes on Saturdays at 4:00 p.m.). Qualifiers will continue on Friday mornings (box closes on Wednesdays at 4:00 p.m.).