American Harness Drivers Club contests 2nd Leg
April 9, 2006,by David Krepow, for the American Harness Drivers’ Club
Cherry Hill, NJ – John Regina and Carmen Ciccone took turns dodging the raindrops while splashing to divisional victories in the second leg of the American Harness Drivers Club’s Spring Pacing Series on a dreary Saturday, April 8th at Freehold Raceway. It was the first score of the season for both drivers, making amends for Leg 1 performances where they finished out of the picture.
With the Division 1 field reduced to four as a result of a late scratch, Regina and his own Deft Hand N sat a comfortable third in the parade led by veteran amateur teamster, Brad Rathbone and Bound Left A. Rathbone, making a return to the AHDC ranks after a break of several seasons, had controlled the tempo throughout, setting three-quarter fractions of 29, 1:01, and 1:31.
As the field barreled down the backstretch, Rathbone and his mount were noticeably laboring. Philip Winkler, who had been sitting second with Riley Hale N, used the opportunity to pull to the outside, taking control from the tiring leaders with Regina and Deft Hand following. As they headed into the stretch, the race evolved into a classic battle to the wire. Winkler, a winner in Leg 1, tried valiantly to urge Riley Hale to hang on for a second consecutive score but it was not to be as Regina, an administrator for the Robert Wood Johnson Hospitals in New Brunswick, NJ, was able to splash by to take a 1 1/2 length victory, stopping the timer at 2:01.2. Rathbone and Bound Left held on for the show spot while Harold Lowenfels was a distant fourth with Mr Heartache due to an early break.
In Division two, Ciccone, a sales manager for Primedia Business, based in Stamford, Connecticut, saw far less drama. He fired his mount State Affair from the gate, set all the fractions, then needed only to survive a late bid from Carl Rafanelli and AG’s Legend to take home a 1 1/2 length victory. Ciccone and State Affair stopped the clock at a soggy Freehold Raceway in 2:02 flat. East Brunswick, New Jersey’s Neil Goldstein took the show money with Princess Nikki.
The American Harness Drivers Club returns to action at Freehold Raceway with the third leg of the Spring Pacing Series on Saturday, April 22nd.
For more information, check the official website of the American Harness Drivers club at our new link: http://home.comcast.net/~ahdc/ahdc.html.