Chester, PA – The 2-year-old pacing colt Captain Groovy saw his bid to win all four of his Pennsylvania Stallion Series preliminaries and it looked good for much of the stretch at Harrah’s Philadelphia on Wednesday (Aug 28), until he tired late and was caught by $256.00 shock winner Keystone Dash in 1:53.4.

The Sweet Lou – Keystone Dawn colt Keystone Dash did dash away quickly at the start from post seven and had the lead well before the :27.1 opener for Andrew McCarthy. Captain Groovy, starting just to his outside, was patiently guided up to command in front of the stands, and his swift stepping past the middle poles of :56 and 1:25 seemed to have paid off as most of the competition had melted off by the far turn.

Throughout the race Keystone Dash stayed connected in the pocket, eased out in the drive, and outpaced the Captain to the wire by a half-length, triggering the biggest win payoff at Philly since Thrillonthebeach paid $264.00 for $2 in September 2017. Far back in his first three races but better in finishing second against “NW2” company in his last race, Keystone Dash continued the improvement with the big upset for trainer Ake Svanstedt and the ownership of Ake Svanstedt Inc.

In another of the three $20,000 Stallion Series divisions, the Well Said-Bodacious Hanover colt Lake Charles took a lifetime best of 1:52, this time matched the fastest posted by this group in either Sire Stakes or Stallion Series action to date. Jordan Stratton went to the lead with the victorious Ray Schnittker trainee by the :27.2 quarter, yielded to the brushing favorite Sandbetweenmytoes as that one took the field past a :56 half and 1:23.3 three-quarters, then moved out for the drive and went by more than three-quarters of a length final margin may suggest. Lake Charles is undefeated in three Stallion Series starts for the ownership of Schnittker, Dr. John Egloff, Max J. Hempt, and Steven Arnold.

The other StS division saw another colt remain undefeated in the series, as the Somebeachsomewhere – Temptation Hanover baby Patriot Nation made it two straight since dropping down from the Sire Stakes, here lowering his mark to 1:53.2. Driver George Napolitano Jr. used his favored front-end tactics, and after fractions of :27.4, :57.1, and 1:25.3 the youngster had more than enough left, defeating Hunter Hill by 2¼ lengths for trainer Andrew Harris and the partnership of Michael Goldberg and A Harris Racing LLC.

The Bureau of Standardbred Racing within the Pennsylvania Horse Racing Commission is the official tallier of the points earned in the Sire Stakes and the Stallion Series, but a quick, unofficial calculation performed after the last StS race today revealed the following nine horses with the most points: 1. Captain Groovy; 2. Lake Charles; 3. Lyons Music; 4. (tie) Cheerio Hill and Patriot Nation; 6. Paddy All Day; 7. Complete Kaos; 8. (tie) Sandbetweenmytoes and Sombodyitreasure. All eight of the Stallion Series Championships will be held on Monday, September 9 at Pocono.