by Darin Gagne, Running Aces track announcer
Columbus, MN — A fan favorite at Running Aces, pacing mare Queen Of Denial made her return to the Minnesota oval Wednesday night (July 27) and did not disappoint her loyal followers by posting a nice 1-1/4 length tally over a decent field of conditioned/optional claiming distaffers.
She paced in 1:55.3 with the win and paid her backers $5.20 at the windows. She is owned by Peter Pellegrino and trained by her driver Nick Roland.
Queen Of Denial had been racing out on the east coast all season and had been doing quite well until she took a bad step in a race on May 31 at Pocono and fell to the track. She hadn’t been herself since that incident until she returned to Minnesota and the care of Jessica Johnson and trainer Nick Roland.
She took quite well to her old stomping grounds Wednesday evening with a very nice effort. She is by Hot Pans and was bred by Duane Roland and now sports 17 lifetime wins and a bankroll of $120,422.
The Wednesday night program at Running Aces featured the $15,000 Minnesota-sired 2-year-old trot and it was heavy favorite Silent Dreams ($2.20), a filly by Money Talks, who posted another impressive win, topping the field by two lengths in 2:05.1 with Dean Magee in the sulky.
It was the third win in four lifetime starts for Silent Dreams, who has now earned $23,900 for Glen and Jody Wilson. She is trained by Brett Ballinger.
Bunkerhill Bill did not disappoint off the big class drop in the Wednesday finale, as he posted a dominating gate-to-wire performance in 1:56.2 and paid $3.00 to win, with Gerald Longo in the sulky for owner/trainer Gene Miller.
Despite a seven-horse field, and with the big favorite on top, the 50-cent Hi-5 wager paid handsomely with a $630.40 dividend to each winning ticket holder. The 50-cent Hi-5 wager has been producing very large payouts all season at Running Aces.
The next card of live harness racing goes to post at Running Aces on Saturday (July 30) at 6 p.m. (CDT).