Wilkes-Barre, PA — Two sophomore male pacers came to Saturday’s (April 12) Bobby Weiss Series action at Pocono Downs at Mohegan Pennsylvania looking to sweep their three series preliminaries. But neither was successful, and instead three horses joined them as two-time preliminary winners from Saturday’s $20,000 four divisions, promising a wide-open $50,000 final next Saturday (April 19). There were also five divisions of the first Weiss leg for 3-year-old pacing fillies.
The only male winner in the Weiss Series who was successful over Saturday’s harsh conditions (40 degrees, sloppy going) and notched his first series victory was the Heston Blue Chip colt Charge Me Up, who overcame his outside post to equal for the fastest of all Weiss cuts, 1:53.2, and also gave driver Tim Tetrick, trainer Nicholas DeVita, and owners David Hamm and Glenn Phillips a win in both the male and female Weiss action. Oogleville, who won the first two legs, was pushed by the winner to regain the lead in front of the stands, and then he fell short of withstanding the Pocono Pike challenge of the winner by three parts of a length.
All of the other Weiss winners for the males added a third-round victory to triumphs they had notched in the first leg. That included the Betting Line gelding Flight In Motion, 14-1 when he won two weeks ago and this time 8-1 as he closed past two-time series winner World Of Wishes by a neck in 1:54.1 for trainer Eddie Dennis and the partnership of Mulligan Stables and Jason Johnson Inc.
Tyler Buter drove Flight In Motion as part of his four-bagger on the day, and he won another division of the Weiss male action with the Bettor’s Wish gelding Cover The Spread, also a neck winner (in beating 65-1 shot Ima Perfect Choice) in 1:55.3 as the favorite after being dismissed at 40-1 when winning his other Weiss division. Tyler’s father, Todd, conditions the Oldford Racing LLC winner.
The 1:53.2 clocking by Charge Me Up was equaled by the Papi Rob Hanover gelding Gold Glove Hanover, who was hard-used early but kept on going to win for the father/son team of trainer Brett Pelling and son Jack. Last week, the Pelling Racing LLC winner couldn’t overcome post eight, but a better draw plus a good performance brought him back to Victory Lane today.
Papi Rob Hanover, sire of Gold Glove Hanover, was the only sire to win on both the male and female Weiss sides and also the only doubler within either sex when two of his female progeny won. One of them was the filly who may be the present favorite to win her group’s May 5 final, Allegra Hanover, who won her seasonal debut in 1:53 at Hoosier before taking the fastest Weiss filly cut in 1:54.4, pouncing home in :27.4 from the pocket for trainer Gareth Dowse and owners Martin Valentic, T G Stable LLC and Bill Boyce. Papi Rob Hanover rounded out his siring exploits of the day with 15-1 Savage Blonde, who broke her maiden in 1:57.3 for driver David Miller, trainer Carter Pinske and Pinske Stables.
Tetrick, DeVita, Hamm and Phillips got their filly Weiss win with the Cattlewash miss Albright, a 1:56.1 winner, while the Huntsville filly Strutsville has now won half her seasonal and lifetime starts after stopping the timer in 1:55 for driver Ridge Warren, trainer Ron Coyne Jr., and owners Nancy Retzlaff and Douglas Stout. The biggest margin of victory in all the Weiss divisions belonged to the Sweet Lou distaff Sweet Odds, who left her second-place opponent 7-1/2 lengths in arrears as she broke her maiden in 1:55.2 for driver Jason Bartlett, trainer Per Engblom, and Morrison Racing Stables.
More Weiss Series action, for developing 3-year-old trotters, will feature on Monday’s (April 14) card at Pocono, which begins at 1 p.m. There will be three $20,000 divisions for both sexes: the males will have their third and final preliminary, with no one able to win in both prelims contested thus far, while each division of the second Weiss prelim for fillies contains a winner from the first week. Free Pocono program pages are or will be available at www.phha.org.