Oh No Three O fires late to win Vernon feature
August 16, 2018,by John Horne, for Vernon Downs
Vernon, NY — Oh No Three O ($4.70, Jeff Long) charged in the stretch to win the $6,500 featured trot at Vernon Downs on Thursday (Aug. 16).
Kabu (John MacDonald) went right to the front and controlled fractions of :27.3, :57 and 1:25.4. Oh No Three O, fourth after three-quarters, went three-wide at the top of the stretch and blew by just before the wire to win in 1:54.2. Gimme The Cash (Claude Huckabone III) came up to finish second. Kabu held on to be third.
Oh No Three Oh is an 11-year-old gelding by Ken Warkentin owned by Charlene Long and trained by Paul Long. It was his third win of the season and his 35th career victory.
Jaclyn Hanover ($3.70, John MacDonald) won the $6,500 fillies and mares pacing feature.
It’s A Miracle (Truman Gale) led the way to all the early fractions of :28.1, :56.4 and 1:24.3, while Jaclyn Hanover sat in the pocket all the way to the stretch. The 6-year-old Dragon Again mare popped the pocket, chased down It’s A Miracle, and held off the late charge of second-place finisher Heart Crusher (Josh Kinney) to win in 1:52.4. It’s A Miracle held for third.
Jaclyn Hanover, owned and trained by MacDonald as well, earned her fourth win this season and career win number 17.
MacDonald and Michael Miller each had driving doubles. MacDonald got his other win with Choke Hold ($9.10), while Miller went to the winner’s circle with Ex Crown ($4.50) and American JJ ($19.80).
Live racing returns to Vernon Downs on Friday (Aug. 17) featuring the $350,000 Dr. Harry M. Zweig Memorial for 3-year-old trotters as well as the $180,000 Zweig filly division. There will also be two divisions of the New York Sire Stakes for freshman pacing fillies. Post time for the 10-race card is 6:10 p.m.