by John Manzi, publicity director, Monticello Raceway

Monticello, NY — When Monticello Raceway presents its 11th annual St. Paddy Pace on Thursday (March 15), the race strictly for drivers of Irish heritage, three-time winner Jimmy Marohn will not be among those participating.

“I called John Manzi (the track’s publicity director) last week and told him I’d rather not drive in the St. Paddy Pace this year,” Marohn said. “I won the race last year and it was the third time I (had) won it so I told him let the young guys go at it this year.”

Marohn, a lifetime winner of 5,299 races, was in the sulky behind the 11-year-old New Zealand-bred gelding Konjo N when they coasted home a one length winner in a time of 1:59 — which marked the fastest winning time in the race since its inception back in 2001. That clocking erased the former mark of 1:59.3 set when Ya Gotta Belief won the St. Paddy Pace for Jimmy Marohn, Jr. in 2009.

The St. Paddy Pace, usually the third leg of the Mighty M’s Heritage Drivers Series, will be the second this year due to the postponement of the Lady Godiva Pace, which has been rescheduled for Monday (May 14).

The first leg of the series, the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Pace, was won by Bobby “Boonie” Williams when he reined Mt Vernon Hanover to a 2:01.2 victory and as a result he automatically became eligible for the series finale — the All America Cup — to be presented in the early fall.

He’ll be joined by the winner of the St. Paddy Pace and the future winners of the six other Heritage Drivers Series events planned throughout the remainder of the season.

Other ethnic events slated to be presented this year will feature races for drivers of Jewish, British, Canadian, Italian and German descent.

According to Eric Warner, the track’s director of racing, he’d like to add another ethnic leg to the series.

“We’d love to go with a race for drivers of Hispanic descent if we could fill one,” Warner said. “We’ve tried in the past to no avail, but now there seems to be more horsemen of Hispanic heritage involved in racing.”

Although there may or may not be a leg for drivers of Hispanic descent, the St. Paddy Pace will definitely be presented on March 15. That date was chosen because Monticello Raceway is dark on Saturday, March 17, St. Patrick’s Day.

Any driver of Irish extraction who is interested in competing in the St. Paddy Pace is urged to contact Warner in the race office at Monticello Raceway by calling 845.794.4100, ext. 557, or they can contact the track’s publicity office at ext. 455.