by Daina Kazmaier, Freehold Raceway publicity assistant
Freehold, NJ — Feathery Fame, guided by reinsman David Miller, paced her way to victory in the $15,000 Fillies and Mares Open Handicap Pace at Freehold Raceway on Friday.
The four-year-old Apaches Fame mare left the gate from post six and led the field through quick fractions of :27.2, :55.2 and 1:24.3, crossing the wire only a neck ahead of Jet Lag N (Cat Manzi) in a final time of 1:53.3.
Jet Lag N proved to be a challenger after brushing by the field in the first over position at the top of the stretch, pacing the fastest final quarter of the mile in :28.4.
Finishing third was the bettors’ favorite and last week’s Open Handicap victor, Giggles The Clown (George Brennan).
Feathery Fame, trained by George Anthony, collected her seventh win this year and pushed her lifetime earnings to over $200,000. The mare is owned by the Gombert family and the Rose family of New Jersey and New York, respectively, and returned a generous win price of $9.80.
David Miller went two-for-two in the feature races after driving Dram-Jack to a win in the $15,000 Open Handicap Trot.
After leaving from post five and finding a comfortable spot along the rail, Miller pulled the four-year-old Sierra Kosmos gelding at the head of the stretch and came down hard on the other trotters, finishing two and three-quarter lengths ahead of the field. Earl’s Charm K (Tyler Stillings) was second, with Delaware native Rickie (Marcus Johansson) close on his tail in third.
Dram-Jack is owned by Threes A Charm Stable, LLC of New Jersey. The trainee of Peter Walsh racked up his eighth win this year and returned $4.80 as the favorite.
Miller notched four wins on Friday’s card and is currently the ninth leading driver at Freehold Raceway.