by Keith Gisser, director of publicity, Northfield Park

Northfield, OH — Iowa-bred phenom Panaramic Art has been invited to the April 19 Battle of Lake Erie and his owners are seriously considering a trip to the Route Eight Oval.

The son of Hot Pans has posted an incredible 20 consecutive wins and has been first or second in 37 of 38 lifetime starts. As it may with several Battle possibles, an Ohio trip hinges on his performance in the Levy series at Yonkers. Panaramic Art is owned by the Squawk Box Stable and Keep The Dream Going, Incorporated, and is trained by Albert Meyer.

Chicago-based Booze Cruzin made his seasonal debut last Friday with an easy 1:54.2 Maywood Park Open Handicap win, and is being pointed to the Battle by trainer Joe Seekman. He is owned by Michigan-based Broekhuis Stables.

The Battle of Lake Erie Web site profiles a number of possible contenders. Log on to www.northfieldpark.com and click on the Battle of Lake Erie graphic to check it out.

This And That: Northfield has added Wednesday, April 16, to its live racing schedule as a make-up date for the weather cancellation on March 8. The track’s first post will be 5:30 p.m. that day, with 16 races anticipated… Eighteen-year-old Andrew Wright posted his first pari-mutuel driving victory Friday, scoring with Marlin Smith’s 90-1 Stormy Gray Sea in the 12th race. The $183.80 winner headed a $2,315.60 exacta, a $1,230.40 late double, and an $11,676.20 trifecta… Players Club members who accumulate at least 2,000 points through March 31 will receive a rewards mailing later that week. Rewards include a voucher, reflecting the player’s wagering activity on a graduated scale, as well as coupons for live and simulcast programs and television carrels.

Harnessing The 65: The draw for the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tourney was unkind to many schools with harness racing connections, but that will not deter your humble scribe from filling out a bracket based on harness racing.

The Midwest Regional is very weak — look for Wisconsin to battle UNLV for a spot in the Final Four. Las Vegas doesn’t have any harness racing, but you can bet on plenty of it, so let’s give the #8 seed an upset nod. They will be knocked off in the National semi-final by North Carolina’s Tar Heels. Foaled in 1948, Tar Heel is considered by many to be the greatest sire of pacers ever, so UNC is our team of destiny.

The other side of the bracket gets interesting. #1 seed Memphis is an immediate pitch (as are all Tennessee schools), due to the lack of pari-mutuel wagering in the state, so in that half of the bracket look for Michigan State and Pitt, both in close proximity to harness tracks, to battle for the chance to take on Stanford in the Elite Eight. The Cardinal will win that. After all, the University is named for Governor Leland Stanford, an icon among harness horse owners and breeders in his day. In fact, Stanford’s Standardbreds were indispensable in helping photographer Edward Muybridge to develop moving pictures. The Cardinal will move on to the Final Four and should cruise to the title game against North Carolina.

An intriguing West Region features the greatest number of teams with good harness connections. The winner of the Drake-Western Kentucky game is well-poised to get to the Elite Eight. Drake is a short ten-minute drive to Prairie Meadows, an all-breed racetrack that features pacers and trotters in the fall, while the Hilltoppers must have spent time at “The Hilltop,” aka Yonkers Raceway.

On the other side of the bracket, Duke will beat Belmont. How can a college that shares a name with a major t-bred stake even be considered? Duke will be upset by Arizona, a team that gets in thanks to its proximity to the executive offices of the Harness Tracks of America. (Humble scribe doesn’t really think Arizona has a chance, but he does not want to raise the ire of Wildcat fan and HTA Executive Vice President, the iconic Stan Bergstein).