Woodstock, VA — Twelve-year-old gelding pacer John’s Dream, the winningest harness horse ever in Woodstock, Va., got his 30th local win during Thursday’s (Aug. 28) Shenandoah County Fair race card.
Chuck Perry led his prized horse to a 1:56.4 mile, finishing the wire-to-wire effort three lengths the best. Overall, John’s Dream has 51 wins from 149 starts and purse earnings of $397,907. Thirty of those wins came at either Shenandoah Downs or the Shenandoah County Fair meet. The son of Dream Away, who held the Downs track record of 1:52.1 for seven years and has a life mark of 1:50.3, is owned, trained and driven by Perry.
Perry had two other drives Thursday and won both, completing a driving hat trick. He scored with The Lizard, a pacer he owns and trains that was four-for-four at the Shenandoah spring meet and is now five-for-five in Woodstock this year. He capped off the afternoon by driving Henry Lewis’ Captain Malicious to his 17th lifetime score in the eighth race.
Michael Whitaker’s trotter Vulcan Hanover, the second winningest horse in Woodstock behind Perry’s pacer, recorded his 26th local victory during the card. Overall, the 8-year-old Donato Hanover gelding is 32-for-73 with earnings of $142,517. Whitaker piloted his charge to a 1-3/4-length victory in 2:00 after taking over the lead from Steve Wetzel’s Defriended just past the half.
Later in the card, 17-year-old Joseph Malone got his first-ever driving win, doing so aboard Scott Warnick’s Leroys Skipn Skool in the seventh race, but Malone had company in the winner’s circle as he finished in a dead heat at the wire with Eric Davis’ Moneyorroses in 2:02.
How many drivers in history can say they got their first win via a dead heat? Malone can.
“I thought he won, but the other horse was a lot larger than my horse so I wasn’t sure,” said Malone. “I figured it was pretty close, then when I heard them announce my horse’s name over the PA system, it was pretty cool. I knew it was really close. I’m glad I got the experience to drive here and am looking forward to the rest of the week. I love doing this.”
Malone brought seven of Warnick’s horses to the Fair from Delaware to compete — some 2-year-olds and some overnight horses, too. Malone will start his senior year of high school next week in Bethany Beach, Del., and after graduation, he hopes to start driving and training horses regularly. He will begin working toward his “P” license as early as February.
The 108th Shenandoah County Fair race meet continues in Woodstock with a seven-race card Friday (Aug. 29) and an eight-race card Saturday (Aug. 30). First post both days is 12 noon. The Shenandoah Downs pari-mutuel meet kicks off Sept. 13 and continues through Oct. 26. A ceremonial ribbon cutting for a new $2 million, 165-stall horse barn will be held on the grounds next Friday, Sept. 5, at 11 a.m.