from the Meadowlands Publicity Department
East Rutherford, NJ — Freshman filly trotter Motivational’s success has been a happy quirk of fate for Kathleen and Donald LaMontagne. The LaMontagnes, who have trained a small stable of Standardbred racehorses for more than 25 years, enjoyed their biggest success with Motivation, a bargain $7,700 yearling who was chosen as the New Jersey Three-Year-Old Filly of the Year in 1995. Motivation won 11 starts that season, including the Miss New Jersey at the Meadowlands, and banked $270,000. Now they are enjoying success with a similarly named trotting filly, Motivational. Motivational will put her five-race winning streak on the line in Friday night’s second race, a $20,000 event for Goldsmith Maid entrants. With 10 fillies entered, no eliminations were necessary for next week’s $211,800 Goldsmith Maid Final. Motivational will start from post five with George Brennan at the lines in a field that also includes half-million dollar earner Solveig. Ladymatic was entered and is eligible for the final but has opted to skip Friday night’s prep race. The $211,800 Goldsmith Maid is part of the Fall Final Four, a quartet of stakes for freshman trotters and pacers on Saturday, December 4. The other three finals are the $228,600 Valley Victory for trotting colts and geldings, the $200,000 Three Diamonds for pacing fillies and the $237,400 Governor’s Cup for pacing colts and geldings. The preps for the trotters are Friday night and for the pacers on Saturday night (non-wagering before the program). The LaMontagnes had not even looked at Motivational’s name before purchasing the trotter for $15,000 at the Tattersalls Yearling Sale held on October 13, 2003 at the Meadowlands. “She actually came with this name and we didn’t notice until two days after the sale,” said Kathleen LaMontagne. “When we realized, we figured that it’s got to be fate. We thought ‘we can’t be this lucky again.'” Motivational also was the first trotter the LaMontagnes had purchased. “We always wanted a trotter and we wanted a Muscles Yankee, but they tend to be expensive,” she continued. “She had a little blemish when we bought her. She had an OCD (osteochondrosis dissecans, which can produce cartilage or bone fragments) so that allowed us to purchase her for $15,000. She went right to Walnridge Farm (in Cream Ridge, New Jersey) to be operated on by Dr. Richard Mears. From there, it was smooth sailing. She’s one of the most pleasurable horses we’ve had. She’s been a natural from the start.” Motivational has an impressive record of seven wins and two seconds in 10 starts this season and earnings of $171,625. She has never missed earning a check, and the only time she finished off the board was in the New Jersey Sires Stakes Championship on July 22 at the Meadowlands. She received a month off after that race and returned to Freehold where she reeled off five straight wins in New Jersey Sires Stakes competition, as well as the Helen Dancer. “She ran herself out of the cheaper classes and only raced in stakes races,” LaMontagne said. “There was nothing else she was eligible to so we gave her a month off and then brought her back.” Motivational’s record at Freehold and the Meadowlands is evidence of her versatility on the track. “We’ve been truly blessed with her,” LaMontagne said. “She can come from behind or race on the lead. In her last qualifier, George Brennan sat in with her to prepare her if they leave against her. She settled in and came right back out and won. She’s been a perfect horse since the beginning.” Kathleen LaMontagne’s other top trainee, Figure The Odds, will return to the races after a fourth-month break in Friday night’s $40,000 Mares Open. Figure The Odds, who is a daughter of Motivation, has earned more than $200,000 in three seasons of racing. She was tackling mares open company when she was turned out in July. Figure The Odds tightened up with a handy 1:57 qualifying mile at Gaitway last week. “The open mares were getting tough,” said LaMontagne, who is pointing Figure The Odds toward the Cape & Cutter Series in February. “Bunny Lake, Eternal Camnation — it was a tough group to race against. So we turned her out.” The $877,800 Fall Final Four, a late addition to the stakes program when the Meadowlands added a fall harness meet this year, drew 10 entrants for both trotting events. In addition to Ladymatic opting out of the Goldsmith Maid prep, Slovenia is skipping the Valley Victory prep. The pacing divisions each drew six entrants. Here are the draws in post position order with drivers. The $20,000 Goldsmith Maid Prep (Friday, second race): Fidanzata, Trond Smedshammer, 10-1; Flawless Bluestone, John Campbell, 8-1; Lightfoot, Cat Manzi, 12-1; Aeronautess, Jacquie Ingrassia, 15-1; Motivational, George Brennan, 9-5; Soul Mate, Jim Doherty, 20-1; Solveig, David Miller, 7-5; Nana’s Best, Ron Pierce, 7-5; and Color Coded, Brian Sears, 8-1. Nana’s Best and Solveig are coupled in the wagering. The $20,000 Valley Victory Prep (Friday, third race): Diesel Don, John Campbell, 9-2; Travelin Lite, Yannick Gingras, 5-1; Classic Photo, Andy Miller, 15-1; Magic Swan, Cat Manzi, 3-1; Manopoly, David Miller, 10-1; Penn Stix, Ron Pierce, 4-1; Musclesextrodinair, Brian Sears, 4-1; Mr Dream OM, Jim Doherty, 15-1; and Strong Yankee, Trond Smedshammer, 5-2. Penn Stix and Muslcesextrodinair are coupled in the wagering. The $20,000 Three Diamonds Prep (Saturday, non-wagering 6:50 p.m.): Just Wait Kate, Ron Pierce; Sugar Glider, David Miller; Odds On Laina, John Campbell; Odds On Shania, John Campbell; Crystal Slipper, Cat Manzi; and Restive Hanover, Andy Miller. The $20,000 Governor’s Cup Prep (Saturday, non-wagering 7:00 p.m.): Voracious Hanover, Jim Morrill; Philosopher King, George Brennan; Speed Demon, Brian Sears; Hurrikane Hogan, Daniel Dube; Syncro’s Z Tam, Patrick Lachance; and Dawn Ofa New Day, Ron Pierce. A lot to be thankful for after opening weekend For the first two nights of the 2004 fall harness meet at the Meadowlands, both on-track and total harness handle are up versus comparable dates in 2003. On-track handle for the November 19 and 20 programs averaged $808,459, an increase of 6.6 percent. The total harness handle (includes the wagering on the live harness program both inside the track and at simulcasting locations) averaged $3,648,626, up 11.7 percent. Attendance for the live racing averaged 5,456, down 3.2 percent. Amateur drivers battle for title in Gold Cup on Friday 12 challengers will battle for bragging rights as top amateur driver in the $35,000 Delvin Miller Memorial Driving Championship Gold Cup on Friday night at the Meadowlands. The final event of the CKG Billings Amateur Driving Championship Series, the Gold Cup will be contested at the distance of a mile and three-sixteenths and is carded as Friday night’s first race. The participants are: George A. Bonomo (Naperville, Illinois), George N. Casale, (Brooklyn, New York), David T. Ehrenberg II (Powell, Ohio), Joseph A. Faraldo (Kew Gardens, New York), Bud C. Hatfield (Columbus, Ohio), Ned A. Hodkinson (Hilliard, Ohio), Robert J. Krivelin (Goshen, New York), Steven R. Markoff (Denville, New Jersey), John Ryan Melsheimer (Columbus, Ohio), Alan S. Schwartz (Hurleyville, New York), Dein P. Spriggs (Jupiter, Florida), and Scott D. Woogen (Mechanicsville, Virginia). The $14,000 Miller Silver Cup will be contested as a non-wagering event prior to the betting card with a post time of 6:50 p.m. Meadowlands dark on Thanksgiving; online wagering open Although the Meadowlands will be closed on Thanksgiving, Thursday, November 25, online account wagering will be available on eight simulcast tracks through www.4njbets.com. The featured tracks, with post times, are: Aqueduct, Calder and Pimlico (11:00 a.m.), Churchill (11:30 a.m.), Woodbine (12:55 p.m.), Fair Grounds (1:30 p.m.), and Golden Gate and Hollywood (2:00 p.m.). To sign up for an account, visit www.4njbets.com. The Meadowlands will reopen on Friday, November 26 with a full menu of simulcasting, commencing with Churchill at 11:30 a.m., and a program of live harness racing, beginning at 7:30 p.m.