from the PA Fair Harness Horsemen’s Association

Wattsburg, PA — Major Matter, driven by trainer Rick Beinhauer, equaled the all-age track trotting record at the Erie County Fairgrounds in this northwest Pennsylvania town on Sunday (June 12), with the sophomore Explosive Matter gelding covering the mile in 2:04 to tie the 28-year-old local standard of Smokey Crown on the second day of the two-day meet kicking off the 2016 Pennsylvania fair racing season.

Seth Dowling photo

Major Matter equaled the all-age track trotting record at the Erie County Fairgrounds.

Major Matter took to the track in the very first race on Sunday, just as sunny as the day before but cooler and with a quartering wind, and got the track buzzing right way on this day of PA Fair Sire Stakes for 3-year-olds, going around the half-mile oval, which was in great shape, in fractions of :30.3, 1:01.4 and 1:32.3 before trotting home to the historic 2:04 clocking, first set, and in this division, by Smokey Crown and driver David Brocklehurst in 1988.

Trainer/driver Beinhauer has literally every right to be proud of his horse, winner of his PA Fair Championship at The Meadows last year, as he is also co-owner and co-breeder of the new track record holder with his wife Regina.

After the record trotting mile, the major news headline of the day would seem to rest on Team Shaw, trainer Jason Shaw and brother/driver Chris, as they combined to win three of the four divisions of the sophomore filly pace Sire Stakes.

Jason’s young son Mason added to his already-bulging college fund when his Unbeamlievable, last year’s North American leader in divisional victories with 13, quickly showed her fair-loving form, the daughter of Moon Beam the fastest winner in his section with a 2:04.1–:29.2 triumph.

The other two filly winners are owned by Jason, Quick Hot Passion (a maiden win in 2:04.3) and Singalongwithbing (2:05.3, lowering her mark by almost four seconds).

The trio of triumphs gave the brothers four wins each in their respective categories for their weekend’s work and thus a share of meet honors with Roger Hammer on the sulky side and with Bob Rougeaux III on the training end of things.

Hammer and Rougeaux each scored three wins on Saturday and one on Sunday, with the Shaws and their fillies reversing those days’ achievements in earning their statistical ties.

Well Lets See, an 11-time winner while proving a tough hombre in the 2-year-old pacing colt fair ranks in 2015, was ready for fair season right away, posting a 2:03.4 triumph for owner Frank Chick and trainer Kevin Lare.

Lare also took a rare turn in the sulky in guiding the Well Said gelding to the winner’s circle; in fact, Kevin achieved his only driving triumph in 2015 (on a severely-limited sulky schedule, to be fair) behind Well Lets See at Butler on July 2, and to go back into history he has paraded no other horse back to Victory Lane since handing Political Terror in winning at Dover Downs on Jan. 9, 2013, as he continues his own stirring story on the comeback trail.

That 2:03.4 by Well Lets See would prove to be a tick short of the fastest pacing mile of the Sire Stakes division, the day, and the meet, as a race earlier the Art’s Card Trick gelding Wont Be Nothing continued to escape scorn for his bad grammar with good racing, lowering his mark to 2:03.3 for owner/trainer/driver Cory Kreiser.

The Pennsylvania fair season will next gather at Butler on the last day of the first half of the calendar year (Wednesday, June 30) and the first day of the second half of the calendar year (Thursday, July 1).