by John Manzi, for NAADA

Monticello, NY — By now Hannah Miller is used to competing against the boys. And since she’s among the few female amateur drivers in the United States she more than holds her own against her counterparts.

At Freehold Raceway on Saturday afternoon (April 4) in a leg of the North American Amateur Drivers Association’s trotting series, Miller wore down the pacesetter and then held off a late charge by the betting favorite to score a hard fought head victory with Rev It Now in a time of 2:01.

After the race got underway Miller allowed Rev It Now to coast away from the gate and watched Tagmaster (Bob Hechkoff) and Wygant Prince (Paul Minore) circle them on the first turn. At the first panel, which was trotted in :29.1, Tagmaster had command followed closely by Wygant Prince. Miller was content to be in third position at that point, but when Hechkoff grabbed leather she was out and moving while Minore chose to stay put in the cat-bird seat.

Still third at the halfway point Miller’s veteran trotter kept grinding toward the lead but they were second on the limb at the three-quarters.

The only lead Miller’s charge had came at the wire after Rev It Up trotted by Tagmaster in mid-stretch and then held off the late rally by Wygant Prince to score a head triumph over Minore’s trotter.

Rev It Now, a 9-year-old altered son of Revenue S is owned by his driver along with the Nick Surick and the Erv Miller stables. Sent off as second choice in the wagering, Rev It Now paid $6.40 to win.

Watching all the action in that contest, while himself chasing the leaders and finishing fifth with Gimme The Loot, NAADA president Joe Faraldo said he is impressed with Hannah Miller’s talent.

“Being Erv Miller’s daughter she has good breeding,” Faraldo said jokingly. “I mean, she grew up in the sport and she has solid knowledge of harness racing. And she drives a horse really well, too.

“However, she’ll be moving up in class later this month when NAADA hosts the French amateur drivers in an international competition. Hannah will get to compete against another top female driver and the reigning French amateur champion, Sophie Blanchetiere, who has won over 350 races. We’re counting on Hannah to bolster our NAADA team in that competition.”