by John Manzi, publicity director, Monticello Raceway

Monticello, NY — Billy “Zeke” Parker is not far from 10,000 career driving victories and it’s a given that he will reach that milestone but he’s creating some drama en route to getting there.

For the previous three weeks he was winning races in brunches but since Monday, May 10, he has registered one win per day and after coming close a few times on Tuesday afternoon, May 11, he scored another triumph and ended the day with 9,998 wins.

Billy Parker, Jr. is within two of the 10,000 win milestone.

“I know I haven’t had much power this week so far but I don’t think I’m pushing too hard or doing anything different,” Parker told a newspaper sports writer yesterday while being interviewed in the paddock between races. “The wins are coming but they’re coming slow(ly).”

When Parker began this week he needed just four more wins to reach his coveted milestone. And for a driver who won six races on a card two weeks ago and five on another card last week no one thought it impossible that he couldn’t win four races in 12 drives on the Monday card. But one victory was all Zeke could muster.

So going into Tuesday afternoon and needing just three wins, many thought this was the day for him. But, despite driving in 10 of the 11 races on that program only one more win was added to his total. That came behind Art Green, Michael Goff and Ira Lustgarten’s Million Dollar Bay in a 1:56.3 clocking.

“I just missed in the first race (second) with Pumpkin Eater and had a few thirds but that was it,” he acknowledged.

On another note, Greg Merton, who had a four-bagger on the Monday card, won two more on Tuesday, one with Jennifer Lappe’s veteran pacing gelding Dominus.

For Dominus, who scored by three lengths in a time of 1:58.2, it was his second consecutive victory and third in his last four starts. For Merton it was his 106th, of which 90 were right here at the Mighty M, and for trainer Lappe it was her 44th, 39 of them here.

However, with 39 wins, 21 seconds and five thirds in just 86 starts, Lappe is carrying an incredible .605 universal training average. A former Midwesterner she now has a farm in Campbell Hall, N.Y. and ships to the tracks, mainly Monticello, to race her stock.

Though she doesn’t get enthused about driving she occasionally does drive and in her only start this year she won the Mighty M’s Lady Godiva Pace in February, which is a leg of the track’s Heritage Driver’s Series.

Asked why she doesn’t drive more often she replied, with tongue in cheek, “I don’t want to spoil my driving average (1.000),” and then added seriously, “I’m certainly not nearly as good as the catch drivers I use.”