by Jerry Connors, for the PA Harness Racing Commission

Dayton, PA — To paraphrase from a Byrds’ album title, the “Sweethearts of the County Fair” were in the brightest light at the session of 3-year-old Pennsylvania Fair Sire Stakes held at the Dayton Fair, as the two fillies who had already altered the all-time Keystone State fair record books this year won emphatically on Sunday (July 7).

Monroe County, a daughter of Glidemaster (two siring wins Sunday) who had equaled the all-time trotting mark of 2:02.3 at Meadville two starts back, gave no quarter in her Sunday contest, parking all-out challenger Classical Love through a :30 second quarter, then running off by more than eight lengths at the wire in 2:03.2, which equaled the age/sex/gait mark at Dayton first recorded 16 years ago by Armbro Pajamas. Wilbur Yoder, enjoying his second win of the day, was in the sulky behind the winner for owner John McMullen, Jr., co-owner with Michelle McMullen.

Monroe County’s pacing counterpart to date is She’salilfireball, who altered the all-time standard at Wattsburg to 2:00.3 three weeks back. On Sunday she burnt the competition by almost 13 lengths, tossing a :29 third quarter within her 2:01 triumph, fastest of the day, for driver Aaron Johnston and trainer/owner Bob Grover.

Pacing colt Jungle Of Terror became the first four-time winner at the PA fairs this year, remaining unconquered at the twicearounds with the easiest kind of 2:04.3-:29 triumph. Team Schoeffel scoreboard: One of three of Steve’s driving wins, and one of a pair of conditioning triumphs; and half of a double for owners Virginia and Kathy Schoeffel, sharing the title on this altered son of Western Terror with Stephen Lander.

And then there are the publicist’s nightmares — the two 3-year-old pacing geldings by Art’s Card Trick named Dinger Two and Dinger One.

You can’t say that they can’t count to even two, either, for it was just the luck of the draw that put “Two” on the track first, with a visit to Victory Lane for him at the end of a 2:03.3 mile. Amazingly, that was the same clocking posted 15 minutes later by “One,” giving driver James Dodson and trainer Ron Lineweaver two of their three tallies on the day (the other was with the trotting filly Tommys Cover Girl, the only variation here being that Dodson owns the winner).

Finishing Lines: After opening the fair season “out west,” the circuit comes to midstate, an hour north of Harrisburg, for PA Fair Sire Stakes racing on Saturday and Sunday at the Gratz Fair.