Hambletonian winner headed to Chicago
August 12, 2004,by Dan Poprawski, for Hawthorne Racecourse
After Windsong’s Legacy captured the $1,000,000 Hambletonian Stake Final for three-year-old trotters at The Meadowlands on Saturday, August 7th, driver-trainer Trond Smedshammer announced that he was shipping his star trotter to Chicago to compete in the Yonkers Trot. The estimated total purse for the Yonkers Trot is approximately $400,000.
The Yonkers Trot, one of the sport’s premier trotting events and the second leg in harness racing’s Trotting Triple Crown, is being raced at Hawthorne Race Course this year on Saturday, August 28th. The raced was moved from Yonkers, New York as that half mile oval is undergoing renovation for the addition of new gaming machines. The first leg of Trotting’s Triple Crown is the Hambletonian. Leg two is the Yonkers Trot and the final leg is the Kentucky Futurity which will be raced in Lexington, Kentucky on October 9th.
“This is the biggest win of my career,” said Smedshammer after his Hambletonian victory. “It means everything to me. It hasn’t sunk in yet.” When asked where he planned on racing Windsong’s Legacy next, Smedshammer responded, “We’re going to Chicago”.
The Yonkers Trot was first raced in 1955 as Joe O’Brien guided Scott Frost to victory in the inaugural race. For the first eight years the Yonkers Trot was raced at 1 1/16th miles, but in 1963 the race became a one mile event and has stayed at that distance ever since. The actual conditions of the 2004 Yonkers Trot give the hosting track the option of running the race at one mile or at a mile and a sixteenth. However, Hawthorne will maintain the modern tradition of racing the important event at the distance of one mile.
A total of 61 three old trotters were nominated to the Yonkers Trot and a horse can also be supplemented to the event for $35,000. In addition to Windsong’s Legacy, such notable sophomore trotters as Cantab Hall, Cash Hall and Tom Ridge are possible starters in the eliminations for the Yonkers Trot scheduled for Saturday, August 21st.
Local trotting sensation, Photo Color is also expected to start in the Yonker’s eliminations. Out of the Erv Miller Stable, Photo Color has won 2 of his 3 starts over the Stickney oval and has looked impressive in each. The son of S J’s Photo was scheduled to make his final start before the eliminations this past Friday here at Hawthorne.
In addition to the Yonkers Trot, the $100,000 Hudson Trot for 3 year old filly trotters will also share the spotlight with the Yonkers Trot. If that wasn’t enough, eliminations for the $100,000 Robert F. Carey Memorial Free For All Pace will also be contested. It should be an outstanding night of harness racing action here at Hawthorne on Saturday, August 28th, in what could very well be the top night of harness racing all year in Chicago.