Bangor, ME – Two $17,000-plus divisions of 3-year-old pacing colts and geldings in the Maine Sire Stakes convened under sunny skies on Wednesday (Sept. 16) at Bangor Raceway before the regular card.
This season’s “Glamour Boys” division, as they are affectionately called, has been a battle for supremacy between leading point earner Daytoremember and freshmen champion Real Horrorshow who is a close second. This week they drew into separate divisions, thus each colt was able to advance their own agenda.
In the first $17,434 division it was a typical wire-to-wire romp by Real Horrorshow and driver Kevin Switzer Jr. Leaving swiftly to grab the lead, the son of Dude’s The Man set opening fractions of :29.4 and :59.3. Past the half, Deuces Red (Mike Stevenson) rolled first over and found himself within a half length of the pacesetter as the field approached the 1:29.1 third panel.
But that was all for show because Switzer Jr. gave his charge the cue to continue and the gelding responded with a :29 second final quarter, tripping the timer in 1:58.1 while prevailing by 1-1/2 lengths and avenging last week’s defeat.
Capturing his seventh win of the season, and 16th of his career, Real Horrorshow, increased his lifetime earnings to $168,883. Trained by the senior Kevin Switzer, who also co-owns with Kathleen Mofield and Anthony Sivik Jr., he was bred in Maine by Luke and Patricia Varnum.
Itsjustmoney (Andy Harrington) rallied for second; Dude’s The Jet (Joey Mosher) was third.
In the second $17,434 division for sophomore male pacers, another non-wagering event, it was Déjà vu all over again as Daytoremember enjoyed another pillar-to-post victory on his home turf.
Protecting his pylon starting position, Heath Campbell sent his charge out for a tour of historic Bass Park, admiring the quarter station in :28.4 and glancing at the 1:00 half before any other tourists decided to join the party.
Down the backstretch the final time, Nuh Uh (Andy Harrington) had tried valiantly to improve his position as he led the outer flow into a 1:29.1 third panel. However, Campbell tapped the accelerator on Daytoremember and they sprinted home in :28.1, to win by 2-1/2 lengths in 1:57.2.
The son of Dude’s The Man is owned, trained and was bred by Valerie Grondin, and picked up his eighth seasonal victory with $123,670 earned lifetime. Daytoremember continues to lead Real Horrorshow by 25 points in the divisional standings.
Ghost Of Winter (Joey Mosher) sat a pocket trip to retain second; Nuh Uh was third.
Looking ahead, the Maine Sire Stakes transitions back to the Fairs with a week of action at Farmington starting with the 3-year-old filly pacers on Monday (Sept. 21), followed by the all the 2- and 3-year-old trotters on Wednesday (Sept. 23).
For more information about the Maine Standardbred Breeders Stakes, follow them on Facebook @MaineBreedersAssociation, or go to their website: MaineSireStakes.com.