Racing Roundup: Agenda Tom Ridge takes Hidden Viggorish division
April 16, 2010,from Harness Publicists across North America
Thursday’s (April 15) Racing Roundup features results stories from The Meadows and Cal-Expo.
Agenda Tom Ridge takes Hidden Viggorish division
Washington, PA — Agenda Tom Ridge unleashed a stunning backside brush that propelled her from fifth to first in a heartbeat and went on to win a division of the Hidden Viggorish, a series for 3-year-old trotting fillies, Thursday at The Meadows. Rosey Chick captured the other $15,000 opening-leg split.
Agenda Tom Ridge had collected two victories and a close-up second since adding Lasix, but Thursday’s triumph was her most impressive. She left alertly for Dave Palone from post 8 and settled in before blitzing the leaders with her uncovered move. She prevailed by 3/4 lengths over Miss Poinsettia, with Flawless Lindy a rallying third.
Ron Burke trains and Fulton Nine Partners owns Agenda Tom Ridge a daughter of Tom Ridge-Agenda Hanover.
Rosey Chick’s win was nearly as noteworthy although not quite as dramatic. Opening her sophomore campaign off a layoff of more then six months, she grabbed the lead at the quarter pole for Aaron Merriman and notched a facile victory in 2:00.2. Cantab Lady was 3-1/2 lengths back in second while TSM Meadow Miss closed well for show.
David Brickell trains Rosey Chick, a daughter of SJ’s Caviar-Rosalita who won for the sixth time in 20 career starts, for Jack and Sharon Claypoole. The series is named for world champion Hidden Viggorish, whose 2006 mile at The Meadows in 1:53.1 remains the fastest ever trotted by a sophomore filly on a 5/8-mile track.
In the $25,000 Preferred Handicap Trot, Rembrandt Spur had the winners’ circle all to himself after dead-heating last week with Diamond Hunter in world-record time. Rembrandt Spur moved first over from fourth for trainer/driver Dick Stillings and scored in 1:54.1, 1-1/4 lengths better than Chips And Wings, with Diamond Hunter third. The trifecta was unusual in that it featured three track record-holders — two of them also world-record holders.
Roy Davis owns Rembrandt Spur, a 4-year-old gelded son of Pegasus Spur-Marty E. It was one of three driving victories for Stillings on the 13-race card.
— Evan Pattak
Big night for Wiseman at Cal-Expo
Sacramento, CA — A Thursday night at Cal-Expo that started out with four straight winners by driver Steve Wiseman was capped off when he won the $3,300 feature with Stop Calling.
Remaining in the three hole through a first half, timed in :58.3, Wiseman moved Stop Calling to the outside well after the 9-16ths pole. With the pace clearly picking up in the latter part of the third quarter, Stop Calling and a confident Wiseman drew even just to the three-quarter marker, timed in 1:28.1, but there was still more left to do.
“I thought I had a good shot because I still hadn’t pulled the earplugs,” said Wiseman.
Taking a parked-out lead late in the final turn, Wiseman knew it was time to push the button.
“I popped his earplugs at the top of the lane and he responded well. That was good because I wanted to get the jump on the rest of the field, and I did.”
Drawing clear by 2-1/2 lengths with less than 3-16ths of a mile to go, Wiseman soon had reason to urge his horse.
“He kind of let up a little inside the final sixteenth of a mile, but when he heard them coming again he started in again and had enough to hold them off.”
Holding on to a dwindling lead, the Mark Anderson owned and trained 4-year-old won ($5.20) by a head in 1:55.4. Got No Troubles (John Chappell) rallied nicely to be second and Stanza (James Kennedy) finished just a head farther back in third.
“It was a very good race for him and it gave me six winners on a super night for me where everything was falling in the right place,” finished Wiseman.
On the Thursday night card, leading driver Luke Plano matched Wiseman after the first four races when he won races five through eight.
— Scott Ehrlich