from Miami Valley Raceway

Lebanon, OH — Some very quick miles highlighted the Saturday night (Feb. 28) program at Miami Valley Raceway, including a 4-year-old track record 1:51.1 clocking by Neat in an $11,000 top conditioned pace.

Conrad photo

At Press Time swept past Mykindachip in the final strides to capture the $15,500 Open at Miami Valley Saturday night.

Thebestofjoel and Feel The Heat dueled throughout the mile setting up a perfect trip for pocket-sitting Neat and driver Jeff Nisonger. In just his seventh lifetime win, Neat lowered his own record by more than two seconds and eclipsed the Miami Valley standard previously owned by Gold Rocks by three-fifths of a second. The winning son of Art Major is owned by Miller Racing Stable and Dorothy Miller and trained by Ryan Miller.

The $18,000 championship leg of the Sovereign Warrior Series for conditioned horses was also presented with Ideal Race (Chris Page) edging Feel N Funk E (Andy Shetler) and ER Zach Attack (Tyler Smith) in 1:53.1. Burke Racing and Weaver Bruscemi own the 9-year-old son of Western Terror who now has 35 wins and almost $840,000 in earnings.

Sovereign Warrior was one of the toughest racehorses to come out of southwest Ohio, winning 64 races during the 1970s for trainer-driver Ralph Lunsford.

The featured weekly $15,500 Open Handicap Pace also went postward on Saturday with At Press Time (Chris Page), who finished fourth in the final heat of the Little Brown Jug last September, upsetting older adversaries in 1:52.3. Heavily favored Mykindachip (Kayne Kauffman) coasted through fractions of :26.4, :55.4 and 1:24.3 before just falling short despite a :28 final panel. Gold Rocks (Randy Tharps) was best of the rest in the stellar field.