by Lynne Snierson, for Rockingham Park

Salem, NH — Earl’s Charm K notched his fourth successive victory at Rockingham Park on Sunday (August 13), and Jonathan Roberts has played a significant role in the six-year-old gelding’s winning streak.

When Roberts became the trotter’s regular driver a month ago, it was magic and the horse won for the first time since shipping in from The Meadowlands. Not only have they won the featured $10,000 Trot on each Sunday since July 23, the pair set the all-age Rockingham trotting record of 1:54 on July 30.

Earl’s Charm K may have been a couple of steps slower on Sunday, covering the mile on a fast track in 1:55.3, but he was equally impressive in easily beating four of the other top trotters on the grounds. As the heavy favorite, he returned $2.80 and $2.20.

The son of Earl and Glamour Girl K, who is trained by Scott Rollins and owned by David McWhinnie, has now won seven of 22 starts this year and earned $185,000 in his career. His connections have been invited to the $50,000 Joseph Carney Memorial Trot here on September 2, where he is expected to bring his considerable talent to a field featuring some of North America’s best trotters.

Also on Sunday, Rockingham was proud to host the Past Champions Reunion Day, which brought back many of the top harness drivers who competed at the 100-year-old track over the decades.

Past luminaries included Hall of Famer Jim Doherty, Paul Battis, Peter Blood, John Hogan, Billy Faucher, Gary Kamal, Bruce Mattison, Lou Puntolillo, Walter Ross, Bruce Ranger, Elmer Smith, and Robert Tisbert. Many of the stars of the 1960s and 1970s competed on the track in the first three races against current Rockingham driving champion David Ingraham and Ranger, who won three straight titles here in 2003-05.

While the large crowd on hand enjoyed watching the greats drive on the racetrack, they were especially thrilled by the opportunity to meet the stars and get autographs and pose for photos near the winner’s circle.

Past Champions Reunion Day was part of Rockingham’s golden anniversary celebration this season. Live racing resumes on Wednesday with a post time of 1:05 p.m.