by Jonathan Marsh, USTA Web Newsroom Correspondent

Columbus, OH — Higher And Higher’s second major race in her brief career is approaching Sunday (Sept. 20) at Harrah’s Chester as she looks to continue her display of skill as a fresh addition to the harness racing scene.

“We’ve worked with her. I’ve had to do a little vet work to her as far as making sure she stays sound,” said trainer Paul Reid. “Going at those high speeds, most of the young horses do get aches and pains.”

But even with the usual conditioning pains, Higher and Higher still remains an excellent horse to train.

“I noticed her attitude is getting better as far as knowing what to do and getting more ‘racy’ as the schedule picks up,” Reid said.

Scott Cantor photo

Dave Palone piloted Higher And Higher to a 1:54.1f score in last Sunday’s Three Diamonds eliminations.

The daughter of Western Terror and Pro Bowl Best (the full sister to $500,000 winner Pro Bono Best) is aiming to put another tally mark in the victory category with her three starts already producing two wins and one second-place finish. The second-place finish was her first major race at Mohawk in the She’s A Great Lady final (Sept. 5) for 2-year-old fillies.

“Maybe one more step, we might have got it all — but that’s horse racing,” said Reid referring to the $745,476 final at Mohawk, when Higher And Higher finished a quarter-length behind Put On A Show.

The Three Diamonds final this Sunday will go for a purse of $500,000 and Higher And Higher’s elimination performance at Harrah’s Chester last Sunday (Sept. 13) is a strong indicator of her potential. During the elimination, she was able to preserve her lead from the quarter-mile marker on and finished with a time of 1:54.1.

“She had never been in the front like that, so I didn’t know how she was going to handle it; that was my only concern, being that she has only had a couple starts,” Reid said. “A green horse, sometimes you don’t know how they’re going to react.”

Regardless of how Higher And Higher, owned by Bulletproof Enterprises, might have felt about the new sensation of leading the race, she finished without yielding to the trailing competition.

“I was partially surprised — you hope for that (winning). I knew she was a classy filly and had the speed, but you need some racing luck, too,” Reid said.

Two other elimination winners that will be at the post this Sunday are Casino Nights (Western Ideal-Can Du River) and Fancy Filly (Western Hanover-Fanciful Hanover). Both fillies have a post next to Higher And Higher, so the three elimination victors will begin pacing side-by-side. Spectators at the race will see if this “green horse” can bring home some green cash with her first big win.

The field is as follows:

The $500,000 Three Diamonds final
PP, Horse, Driver, Trainer
1, Native Doll, Tim Tetrick, Mark Capone
2, Casino Nights, Tim Tetrick, Noel Daley
3, Higher And Higher, Dave Palone, Paul Reid
4, Fancy Filly, Brian Sears, George Teague, Jr.
5, Full Picture, Richard Silverman, Jerry Silverman
6, Sammy’s Magic Girl, Brett Miller, William Popfinger
7, A And Gs Princess, Andy Miller, Mark Capone
8, Western Moonlight, David Miller, Jim Campbell