Hitwiththeladies a hit with his trainer too

from Harness Racing Communications, a division of the USTA

Freehold, NJ — Allan McCarty liked everything about Hitwiththeladies the first time he saw the trotter. Nothing has changed over the ensuing 15 months; in fact, the colt continues to bring a smile to McCarty’s face on a daily basis.

McCarty, a 57-year-old retired lawyer, owns and trains Hitwiththeladies at Buffalo Raceway in upstate New York. The colt was the New York Sire Stakes 2-year-old male trotting champ in 2006 when he won eight of 10 starts and earned $195,468. A son of Giant Hit out of the mare Lady Holiday, he was purchased for $12,000 at the Morrisville Sale.

“He looked like an athlete, and it looked like he would be sold in my price range,” McCarty said. “I liked everything about him when I brought him out of the (sales) stall. He’s a complete joy to be around. He’s one of those horses that you could be having the worst day of your life and after driving him you’ve got a smile on your face. He puts a smile on my face every time I sit behind him or I’m around him. He’s just a nice, nice horse.”

Hitwiththeladies was ranked No. 11 on Stan Bergstein’s 2007 Experimental Championship Ratings for 3-year-old trotters. The ratings, which appeared in the March issue of Hoof Beats magazine, attempt to forecast the top performers for the year based on best predicted win times. Donato Hanover, who was the Dan Patch Award winner for 2-year-old male trotters, is No. 1 in the rankings with a top time of 1:51; Pampered Princess, who was the Dan Patch Award winner for 2-year-old female trotters, is second with a time of 1:51.1. Hitwiththeladies was rated at 1:53; his best win time in 2006 was 1:59 over a half-mile track.

“I think he’s one of the best in country,” McCarty said. “There’s no question in my mind he can trot with anyone today. My driver, Jack Flanigen, who I think does a wonderful job, loves him. He’s like driving a Rolls Royce; he’s smooth as silk.”

In January 2006, Hitwiththeladies had a bone chip removed from an ankle. Because of the surgery, McCarty was cautious when it came time to stake the colt; consequently, he isn’t eligible to many of the top races for 3-year-old trotters, such as the Hambletonian and the Breeders Crown.

“That was a big mistake on my part, and one I’ll have to live with,” McCarty said. “But you can dream yourself broke in a big hurry in this business. When it was time to make the payments, he’d had the chip removed. I’ll look at supplementing him to some races if everything goes well.”

Last year, Hitwiththeladies finished second in his first career start, and then won four in a row. He went off stride in his next race, but recovered to finish second. He ended the season by winning another four consecutive starts, including a track record performance at Batavia Downs and a victory in the New York Sire Stakes Final at Saratoga Gaming and Raceway. He was voted the U.S. Trotting Association District 8 Horse of the Year and his $190,020 in the sire stakes made him one of the highest single-season earners in the history of the program.

He had two wins over Stunt Man Hall in the sire stakes, including the final. Stunt Man Hall finished fifth in the Peter Haughton Memorial, fourth in the Matron, and won the Valley Victory prep race before ending up sixth in the final from post 10. Stunt Man Hall was No. 25 in the Experimental Championship Ratings.

“Last March and April, I started thinking (Hitwiththeladies) was coming along super,” McCarty said. “I started telling people around the track I thought he was an awfully good horse. Of course, in March and April, all of them look good.”

McCarty has six horses in training at the current time. His father, Rex, who is now retired and living in Florida, worked in the business and McCarty worked for several trainers while putting himself through college. He worked as a trial lawyer before turning his attention back to harness racing on a more regular basis about five years ago.

In addition to Hitwiththeladies, McCarty has high hopes for older trotter Prime Interest in the coming season. He hopes to have Hitwiththeladies ready for mid-May’s Empire Breeders Classic at Vernon Downs. In addition to the New York Sire Stakes schedule, the inaugural $500,000 Nevele Pride at Monticello Raceway is on the trainer’s radar.

“He’s doing very well,” McCarty said. “We’re training him down and he’s exactly where I want him to be. He’s quite a bit bigger as far as filled out; he’s more muscular than he was last year. He’s a little more mature and acts more mature. We’ll see how good he is over a big track; most of his races last year were on half-mile tracks. I believe he’s going to be that much better over a big track.”

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