by M. Kelly Young, executive director, Harness Horse Breeders of New York

Hamburg, NY — Buffalo Raceway will host the first round of the New York Sires Stakes for 2-year-old trotters this weekend with seven divisions of colts facing off on Friday evening (July 6) and six divisions of fillies mixing it up on Sunday afternoon (July 8). The freshman battles will be punctuated with a fireworks display at the Hamburg oval on Saturday night (July 7). A total of $233,750 in Sires Stakes purses will be handed out during the two days of state-bred racing.

Two of the New York Sires Stake starters will be looking to make something big happen in their divisions when the Conway Hall colt Make It Happen appears on the Friday card and The Icepan Cometh filly Makeithappenmaxine performs on Sunday.

Make It Happen was a $100,000 yearling last October who trainer-driver Ray Schnittker picked out of the Lexington Selected Sale in Kentucky. He is a half-brother to Man Of Action, a $187,000 winner, and Jersey Girl, a nearly $195,000 winner.

“He is probably a perfect colt,” said Schnittker. “There aren’t many of those. He acts like a good horse and I have high hopes for him.”

The trotting colt has been training at the Meadowlands and finished second by a head there in the Harriman Cup over a sloppy track on June 28, his first pari-mutuel start.

“All my trotters I try to train on a mile track, the wider turns are easier on them,” explained Schnittker. “I trained him on the half at Goshen on Sunday, though, and he handled it pretty well. He came the last half in :59, so I think he’s ready for Buffalo.”

The trainer, who owns the colt as part of Eat My Dust Stable with Daisy Acres, Howard Taylor and Jack Adkins, also explained that Make It Happen is scheduled to race against some of the best 2-year-olds in the country.

“He is eligible to the ($400,000) Peter Haughton, so we’ll probably race in that and miss a few New York Sires Stake starts,” explained the trainer.

Make It Happen will face New York’s best stock on Friday in the 10th race from post eight.

Another classy colt racing on Friday is Holy Grail, a half-brother to 3-year-old filly standout Oh Oh Its Magic, a career winner of $247,042 so far. The son of Conway Hall will start in the second race for owner-breeder Carolyn Atherton and trainer Carl Gillespie. Holy Grail raced over the same sloppy Meadowlands track in the Harriman Cup on June 28 as Make It Happen and finished fourth in that division.

The filly Makeithappenmaxine received all of her early education at Buffalo Raceway in this, the first year that owner-breeder Barbara Canale has stabled her horses in Western New York.

“Usually we are at Saratoga, but this year the horses are at Buffalo,” explained the Vermont resident. “I have a herd theory. She shipped out there with a gentleman who was taking her brother so I wanted her to be with her family. It’s a little silly, but that’s what I wanted and it’s worked out pretty well.”

The gentleman was David Brousseau, who purchased full brother Paulie Ma Guire and is now training Makeithappenmaxine. The filly warmed up for the season in the Menchi Memorial Series at Buffalo in June and then posted a third place finish in a Landmark Stakes at Goshen on Monday. She turned around and qualified two days after that in 2:05.4 at her home track to be eligible for the Sires Stakes.

“For a baby, I think she trots with authority and wears very little (equipment) so she is very balanced,” added Canale, who also raced the filly’s dam, Cherrie Somolli. “We have been adamant about not pushing her so she can develop. The last two times were the first times she was really asked to trot.”

Makeithappenmaxine will compete against some of the top state-bred filly trotters on Sunday. She drew post five in the sixth race with Buffalo regular Ken Holliday up.

One of her competitors will be the John Stark Jr.-trained After Hours, a $45,000 yearling buy who is out of the dam Raging Sam, a producer of four $200,000 winners and one colt who earned well over $550,000.

In another division, Sheena Blue Chip has tasted more speed than any of her peers and will be the likely post-time favorite in race 10. The Credit Winner filly was timed in 1:57.1 in a Historic-Acorn division at the Meadowlands on June 27. She finished third, and showed considerable promise for owners Fred Monteleone and Steven Arnold.

Post time on Friday for the 13-race card is set for 6:30 p.m., with two New York Sires Stakes divisions raced as early non-betting events starting at 5:55 p.m. Sunday’s 13-race card will kick off at 1:05 p.m.