by Frank Drucker, Publicity Director, Empire City at Yonkers Raceway

Yonkers, NY — The new month featured Empire-breds, with Yonkers Raceway on Monday night (Aug. 1) hosting the $167,864 Mike Cipriani Trot for 3-year-old fillies.

The event honored the memory of the Raceway’s longtime, award-winning photographer. A pair of $83,937 divisions were contested, won by a longshot and a short shot.

Mike Lizzi photo

Earn Your Wings was a 1:57 winner for driver Jason Bartlett.

The longshot was 30-1 Earn Your Wings (Jason Bartlett, $63), who overcame her eight-ball venue with an aggressive effort. Making the first lead right at a :28.4 opening quarter-mile, Earn Your Wings then relented to last season’s divisional champ, Non Stick (Dan Dube). The 3-10 choice found a :57.3 intermission and 1:27.1 three-quarters as Goosebump Hanover (Jim Morrill Jr.) moved from fifth down the backside. That one blew past the odds-on favorite, who subsequently went awry, leaving the course in the final turn.

Goosebump Hanover owned a two length lead into the lane, but was unable to close the sale. Earn Your Wings, who had extricated herself from the pocket before Non Stick jumped it off, angled back inside the new leader and won going away. The margin was 1-1/2 lengths in 1:57, with Monarch’s Sequel (Mark MacDonald) — last at the three-quarters — rallying for second. Goosebump Hanover, Open Access (Scott Zeron) and Zette Starlet (Brian Sears) completed the cashers.

For sixth choice Earn Your Wings, a daughter of Credit Winner trained by Anette Lorentzon for owner SRF Stable, it was her third win in eight seasonal starts. The exacta paid $454, with the triple returning $2,282.

Monday night’s second Cipriani event turned out to be much more formful, as in a two-speed, two-favorite number. Fad Finance (Jim Morrill Jr., $4.50), the 6-5 favorite from post No. 5, left around second choice Swinging Royalty (Sears), then easily kept her at bay (:29, :57.3, 1:26.4, 1:56.1).

The former, with a couple of lengths in and out of the final turn, won by a handy length. Credit to Thelimit (George Brennan), Straight A Student (MacDonald) and Time to Talk (Dube) settled for the minors.

Fad Finance, a Credit Winner ma’am co-owned by Purple Haze Stables, Rojan Stables and Marc Goldberg and trained by Trond Smedshammer, is now four-for-eight this season. The exacta paid $8.10, with the triple returning $29.

In addition to the Ciprianis, a few dozen guests from Equi Tours Sweden enjoyed dinner, the races and a tour.