by Scott Ehrlich, publicity director, Sacramento Harness Association
Sacramento, CA — A scratch of the horse to beat combined with a perfect trip led to Ohoka Jasper N being the pocket-rocket.
Open Handicap I trotters, racing for an $8,000 purse, were featured on a chilly Thursday night (November 8) at Cal-Expo, in which Ohoka Jasper N got back on the winning track.
In advance of starting from post position five in a field reduced to five with the scratch of Desperatehousewife, trainer/driver Rick Plano knew that the cards were in his favor.
“When Desperatehousewife was scratched, my thoughts were that I should be able to win if things went okay,” said Plano. “If all was okay, I thought I’d head out to the front and play it by ear from there.”
Leaving and getting the lead an eighth of a mile past the start, Ohoka Jasper N would be in the process of yielding at the quarter-mile pole, timed in :28.3.
“Being that it was a short field, I chose to let Simply Made (Ed Hensley) go and sit in the deuce.”
Yielding past the 5-16th-mile pole into a first half that was timed in :57.2, Ohoka Jasper N would remain in the pocket, but was now locked in at the three-quarter-mile marker, timed in 1:27.1.
“I knew at the three-quarters that I had to get loose somewhere, but I liked the way things were looking at that point because I figured Phipps (Steve Wiseman), who was first-over, would tire.”
Finding room up the inside at the seven-eighths-mile pole, Plano merely needed to point the 7-year-old in the right direction.
“When the inside opened up, being that he’s a wonder from down-under, he knew what to do and shot through there and won easy.”
Flying into the lead with a sixteenth of a mile to go, the Virginia Schick-owned gelding, while just under moderate urging until late, would win ($5.00) by 1-3/4 lengths in 1:56.3. Simply Made finished in second and British Columbia (Steve Hyman) finished another 1-3/4 lengths farther back in third.
“It was as easy a win as I’ve had in any Open I in a long time,” finished Plano.
Live racing will resume at Cal-Expo on Friday (November 9) and continue through Saturday. Post time on Friday and Saturday is scheduled for 5:35 p.m. (PST). On Friday, Cal-Expo offers Happy Hour between 6:00-8:00 p.m., where $1 beer, $2 wine and $3 orders of buffalo wings are offered. The estimated total Pick-6 pool for Friday night is $10,000.
Cal-Expo offers guaranteed $10,000 pools on all Pick-4’s!