Ken Weingartner

Freehold, NJ — Muscle Hill, racing at a third different track in as many weekends, made it 8-for-8 this year by winning his elimination race for Saturday’s C$1 million Canadian Trotting Classic by 5-1/4 lengths over Howd That Feel in 1:53.3. The triumph extended Muscle Hill’s win streak to 16 races. His only setback was a second-place finish, losing by a neck, in his career debut.

On September 5, Muscle Hill won the $540,000 World Trotting Derby at the Du Quoin State Fair in Illinois. A week earlier, he won the $200,000 American-National Stakes at Balmoral Park in Chicago. Muscle Hill is bidding to become the third consecutive Hambletonian winner to also claim the World Trotting Derby and Canadian Trotting Classic, joining Deweycheatumnhowe (2008) and Donato Hanover (2007).

Muscle Hill won the $1.5 million Hambletonian with a world-record-equaling 1:50.1 mile on August 8 at the Meadowlands.

Southern Rocketop, who was second to Muscle Hill in the World Trotting Derby, won the other Canadian Trotting Classic elim, beating Yonkers Trot champion Judge Joe by two lengths in 1:53.4.

Also advancing to the final were Duded Up, Explosive Matter, Airzoom Lindy, Photoforwin, Neighsay Hanover, and Tom Cango.

So far, Muscle Hill has handled his travels through the Midwest and Canada fine and is keeping on weight. He will be starting for a fourth consecutive weekend for the first time in his career.

New Image Media photo

Muscle Hill was a 1:53.3 winner in his Canadian Trotting Classic elimination.

“He’s staying in good shape, ready to go,” trainer Greg Peck said. “He is at Dr. David Goodrow’s private training center in Cambridge. He eats a textured feed, like a sweet feed, and that plus rice bran mixed in to give him some more fat content.

“I’m on my way to Lexington to qualify (Peter Haughton Memorial winner) Holiday Road tomorrow (Tuesday). One of my staff, Enrico Robinson, will be there to train him this week. He’ll train Wednesday and we’ll go by feel, somewhere between 2:10 and 2:15 for the mile.”

Peck said Muscle Hill had no problems handling his third different racetrack in as many weeks.

“I got interviewed by Trot Radio of Standardbred Canada and the headline almost sounded like I thought there was a problem with the surface at Mohawk, but that’s not the way it should have been characterized at all,” Peck said. “What I said was that they are excellent racetracks and it’s not just them, but all racetracks, seem for some reason too hard for my liking. I said in the interview that all I’m asking for is more water and more track conditioner and lots of stone dust and you’ll have a great racetrack. That’s what they did and the track was great.

“I’m from Canada (Sydney, Nova Scotia), so I was going home. I know that stone dust in Canada is the same as it is here in the U.S., so I never thought that was an issue. Having raced up there before, the last time I took Lady Mattgalene up there, I made a shoeing change and I should have left her as she was. You learn by experience. The track was fine and I made sure to thank the track crew and (Race Secretary) Scott McKelvie and (Senior Vice President for Racing) Jamie Martin for making sure the track was much to Muscle Hill’s liking.”

Peck said the race on Saturday has special significance for him.

“This is Canada’s Hambletonian,” he said. “It is my home country and I was most happy to be there and I’d love to win it, as close to my home turf as possible. I grew up watching this race and the Maple Leaf Trot (for older horses) so I’m certainly very happy to win the elimination and hope we can win the final.”

Although he picked the post position (No. 1) for the Hambletonian, Peck deferred to driver Brian Sears for the Trotting Classic.

“We picked post four,” Peck said. “We had first pick and that’s what Brian wanted so that’s what we picked. He likes to have options. It looks like at Mohawk, you want to be somewhere toward the middle of the gate rather than my beloved rail. It was me who insisted on the rail in the Hambletonian, so I said it was time to let Brian choose.”

Peck also reiterated that Sears’ decision to go to Canada for committed drives on September 5 when it looked like the World Trotting Derby might be a rain out was not a problem for the Muscle Hill camp. Luke McCarthy drove Muscle Hill to victory in the World Trotting Derby.

“It was nice that Brian was reunited with Muscle Hill (in the Trotting Classic elimination) because he’s been there from day one,” Peck said. “At the time he left Du Quoin, it looked like they wouldn’t race. Make no mistake, Brian is very committed to Muscle Hill. He checks in on him all the time, at the point where he left to go to Canada, it looked like they wouldn’t race. There were other owners involved and at that point it looked like the way to go was to go to Canada. He would never want to leave Muscle Hill, that is for sure.”

One of Muscle Hill’s biggest fans, 11-year-old Brendan Peck, will accompany his father to the Canadian Trotting Classic on Saturday. The younger Peck will be attired in his “lucky” Hambletonian ensemble.

“Brendan will be wearing his Hambletonian blazer and tie,” Peck said. “He doesn’t want to change anything from the Hambletonian to Canada’s Hambletonian. The dress code is in force. It was only a month ago, so it still fits.”

The elder Peck won’t be wearing the suit he wore on Hambletonian Day.

“I got so many compliments on it that I feel like the woman who can’t be seen in the same dress twice,” Peck said with a laugh. “We have to make a change.”

Enjoying The Ride: Southern Rocketop was not eligible to many of the major trotting stakes, such as the Hambletonian, Kentucky Futurity and Breeders Crown, so trainer Robert Taylor has spent the last few weeks trying to soak up as much of the experience as possible. Southern Rocketop was second in the World Trotting Derby and third in the American-National Stakes. He has won eight of 13 races this year and 17 of 27 in his career while accumulating $448,311.

Balmoral Park photo

Southern Rocketop has 17 career wins and earnings of $448,311.

“It’s pretty nice to have a horse like this in the barn,” said Taylor, who took over the training of Southern Rocketop this season. “I’m just trying to enjoy the ride while we can. He wasn’t eligible to a lot of big races. That’s one reason he doesn’t have a lot more money on his card. We’re just trying to make the most of our opportunities and have fun.”

Taylor, who turns 27 on Sunday, was born in Mississippi and lives in southwestern Tennessee, about 65 miles from Memphis. His father, Donnie Ray, was involved in harness racing in the 1980s, but got out of the sport to concentrate full time on being a blacksmith (primarily for three-day event horses). Taylor and his brother, Donnie C., teamed to train and drive horses, although his brother has since joined their father in business.

This year, Taylor’s trainees have won 31 times and earned a career-high $484,263. His top purse win to date was in last year’s $133,000 Lady Lincoln Land with filly trotter Miss Vickie, a $7,000 yearling purchase who has banked $202,074 lifetime.

Southern Rocketop’s Canadian Trotting Classic elim victory was his first win since the State Fair Championship at Springfield, Illinois, on August 20 and his second in six races since mid-July while battling illness. He finished one length behind Muscle Hill in the World Trotting Derby, timed in 1:52.4 with a :26.1 second last quarter-mile.

“He went a good race in the World Trotting Derby. He finished good and strong and he was strong on the end of the mile in this race, too, so I think we’re pretty back on our game now,” Taylor said. “Dave (Magee) said he was in hand, that he had him on cruise control when he hit the wire. Hopefully, we’ll be OK for this weekend.”

Even at a hundred percent, it might not be enough to stop Muscle Hill, who has won 16 consecutive races.

“The way it looks, it doesn’t look like anyone can,” Taylor said. “But it’s horse racing and you never know what can happen.

“You’ve got to give it to Greg (Peck, Muscle Hill’s trainer),” he added. “He’s done a great job keeping him fresh and sharp. He’s done a very good job keeping him on his game between races.”

Back On Track: Explosive Matter, who was second to Muscle Hill in the Hambletonian and had not raced since winning the $500,000 Colonial at Harrah’s Chester Casino and Racetrack on August 16, finished fourth in his Canadian Trotting Classic elim, which was won by Southern Rocketop. The colt had minor veterinary work done on his right hind leg following his performance, which saw him trot the last quarter-mile in :28.1 seconds (tied for the slowest final panel among the nine horses in the race).

Lisa photo

Explosive Matter has won four of eight this year with 2009 earnings of $760,001.

“Hopefully, we’ve corrected that and will be a lot better off,” trainer Noel Daley said. “I know he’ll have a lot more go this week. I can’t worry about (Muscle Hill); I’ve just got to be worried about having (Explosive Matter) right. If we’re not good enough, we’re not good enough. There’s nothing we can do about that.”

It did not appear Muscle Hill’s recent travels through the Midwest prior to arriving in Canada had any ill effects on the colt.

“He’s been at three different tracks, but all of (his races) have been like training miles for him; he’s done it so easily,” Daley said. “He looked like he was jogging around there (in the elim). If all we can be is second, that’s all we can be. Whatever it is, it is. We’ve just got to race our races for the next six weeks and see what happens.”

Following is the field for the Canadian Trotting Classic in post position order with listed drivers and trainers: 1. Duded Up, Steve Condren, Ely Iversen; 2. Southern Rocketop, Dave Magee, Robert Taylor; 3. Explosive Matter, Ron Pierce, Noel Daley; 4. Muscle Hill, Brian Sears, Greg Peck; 5. Judge Joe, John Campbell, Jimmy Takter; 6. Airzoom Lindy, Jody Jamieson, Frank Antonacci, Jr.; 7. Photoforwin, Rick Beinhauer, Beinhauer; 8. Neighsay Hanover, Brian Sears, Trond Smedshammer; 9. Howd That Feel, Jack Moiseyev, Matthew Butcher, Jr.; 10. Tom Cango, John Campbell, Jim Campbell.

Owners: 1. Ely Iversen; 2. Powers Farms; 3. Adam Victor & Son Stable; 4. Jerry Silva, TLP Stable, Southwind Farm, Muscle Hill Racing; 5. Atlantic Trot Inc.; 6. Lindy Racing Stable, Robert Rudolph; 7. Rick Beinhauer, Regina Beinhauer; 8. Ted Gewertz, Willow Pond, Leif Alber, Martha Frank; 9. Neal Oksenberg, Matthew Butcher, Jr.; 10. Arlene Siegel, Jules Siegel.