Racing Roundup: Blue Boy paces to track record at Yonkers
May 23, 2009,from Harness Publicists across North America
Saturday’s (May 23) edition of Racing Roundup features results stories from Yonkers Raceway, Mohawk Raceway, Scarborough Downs, Tioga Downs, Buffalo Raceway, Vernon Downs, Scioto Downs and Saratoga Raceway.
Blue Boy paces to track record at Yonkers
Yonkers, NY — Blue Boy sat well off a wicked Saturday night speed duel, then won a three-way battle to grab Yonkers Raceway’s $44,000 Open Pace.
Mike Lizzi photo
Blue Boy scored in 1:52, a Yonkers track record for a 4-year-old pacing gelding.
With Jason Bartlett driviing for trainer Julie Miller, Blue Boy — leaving from post position six — watched as Lucky Bettor (Greg Grismore) and J P Jackpot (Cat Manzi) waged a cut-throat early duel. The former, the even-money favorite from the pole, would not let the latter go. Real Nice (Stephane Bouchard) left just enough to keep the pocket closed. The result was a :26.3 quarter-mile and :54.2 intermission.
First to move was Four Trumps A (Larry Stalbaum), who had left for a seat. He went up and over the tiring leaders going toward the 1:23 three-quarters, but could not open any daylight. Blue Boy and King Cat Anvil N (Jordan Stratton) both improved their seats from the back of the bus, and it became a threesome to decide it.
Blue Boy went outside of Four Trumps A, with King Cat Anvil N ducking in. Blue Boy won a protracted stretch drive, defeating King Cat Anvil N by a half-length in a season’s-best 1:52, with Four Trumps A third. Psilvuheartbreaker (Jim Meittinis) and Real Nice earned the final pay envelopes.
The final time was also the fastest locally in 2009 and earned Blue Boy — with his second consecutive Open/Open Handicap victory — a place as the Raceway’s quickest-ever 4-year-old pacing gelding.
Blue Boy, owned by Mack Racing Stables, returned $9.10 (second choice) for his ninth win in 15 seasonal starts. The exacta paid $48, with the triple returning $219.50.
— Frank Drucker
Vertigo Hanover steps it up at Mohawk
Campbellville, ON — Vertigo Hanover bested two other Pepsi North America Cup hopefuls at Mohawk and gave notice that he is focused squarely on the road to the C$1.5 million race (scheduled for June 27).
New Image Media photo
Vertigo Hanover was a 1:52.2 winner for Steve Condren.
In the C$25,000 contest for 3-year-old pacers, 3-2 favorite Vertigo Hanover and Steve Condren made the early lead from post number five, but relinquished that position to fellow NA Cup hopeful Carnivore, with Chris Christoforou in the bike, at the three-eighths pole. Carnivore opened up a 1-1/2 length lead by the half in a pedestrian :57.1, with Vertigo Hanover drafting comfortably in second.
As the field entered the stretch, Vertigo Hanover angled out and took command, leaving Carnivore two lengths in his wake to win in 1:52.2. Power off (Rick Zeron) was third, with the field’s other NA Cup eligible, Stinger Blue Chip, well beaten in sixth for driver Jason Brewer and trainer Casie Coleman.
Trained by Duane Marfisi, Vertigo Hanover is listed at 38-1 in Standardbred Canada’s North America Cup Spring Book. A son of 1999 NA Cup champion The Panderosa, Vertigo Hanover won a division of the Niatross at The Meadowlands last year as well as a Woodrow Wilson elimination. So far at three, he has scored a 1:52.3 win in a conditioned event at The Meadowlands, and was third in his Berry’s Creek elimination before being caught at the wire in the May 9 final for a sixth-place finish.
He is owned by the Uncirculated Stable in partnership with JL Benson Stables Inc.
— Karen Briggs
Freedoms Call marches to victory at Scarborough
Scarborough, ME — Freedoms Call repelled all challengers on Saturday to claim top honors in the $6,000 Memorial Day weekend feature at Scarborough Downs and thereby serve notice to the local Open-level combatants that a new force to be reckoned with has arrived with authority at the southern Maine oval.
Driver Kevin Switzer, Jr. deftly secured an early spot at the rail behind post time favorites Ideal Conditions and Mr Nice Guy but was quick to pounce to the outer rim just past the three-eighths-mile marker, pressing onward to engage the pacesetters through a torrid :57 back-half.
When the dust had settled Freedoms Call had survived a gut-checking overland mile paced in a seasonal best 1:55.2 — equaling the fastest clocking of the 2009 state of Maine harness season.
Owned by Michael Pease, the 5-year-old son of Yankee Cam headlined a speed show spectacular at Scarborough on Saturday which saw five consecutive miles paced in 1:57.2 or better, including a 1:55.4 showing from Rupert Rupert (Shawn Gray) in the back-up class to the Open, marking the first time in the 59-year history of the Downs that sub-1:56 miles were recorded on the same program.
— Michael Sweeney
Big night at Tioga for McCarthy, Marohn
Nichols, NY — Andrew McCarthy and Jimmy Marohn, Jr. were not in a giving mood on Saturday night at Tioga Downs, each posting a driving grand slam on the night’s ten-race card.
Fred Brown Photography
Handsome Harry was one of four winners for Andrew McCarthy.
Handsome Harry and McCarthy stamped themselves as major contenders in the opening leg of the Tioga Country Club Pace. The duo left from post position seven and never relinquished the lead through fractions of :27.2, :57.1, and 1:25 before sprinting home with a final panel of :27.2 to stop the timer in 1:52.2. Mark Ford trains the 3-year-old son of Dragon Again-Princess Jocelyn for owners Ralph Del Priore and Harry Doyle.
Marohn would not be outdone as he scored a victory in the final division of the Tioga Country Club series, also in 1:52.2. Marohn and Tough Chip used the same tactics of cutting through fractions of :27.4, :56.1, and 1:24.2 before drawing off from the field with a final panel of :28. Ed Lohmeyer trains the 3-year-old son of Tough Sir-Stanyck Blue Chip for owner Grady Cooksey.
Guestimate and Andrew McCarthy took down the co-featured $14,000 Fillies and Mares Open Handicap Pace in 1:53.3. Guestimate put in a gutsy performance by grinding first over to score her third victory of the year. Mark Ford trains the 7-year-old The Panderosa-Beach Guest mare for Rose and George Bonomo.
— Dustin Ross
Arm And A Leg repeats in Open Pace at Buffalo
Hamburg, NY — Arm And A Leg, a 6-year-old Nobleland Sam gelding, out of the Towner’s Big Guy mare Kelly’s Hat Trick, won the $9,000 Open Pace in 1:54.4, the fastest pacing mile of the meet, for owners Mark J. Jakubik and John P. Cummings, Sr., at Buffalo Raceway on Saturday night.
It was the second Open win in a row for Arm And A Leg ($8.20), who received a perfect garden spot trip with regular reinsman Kevin Cummings at the controls.
Leaving from post two in the field of five, Arm And A Leg sat patiently as eventual second place finisher Triple Bars (Ken Holliday) cut all the fractions in the race, :29, :58, and 1:27. A very impressive :27.4 last quarter put the winner 1-1/2 lengths up at the finish. Arson Ant (Troy Boring) came in the show spot.
“He raced just super tonight,” said Cummings. “Getting good cover the whole race really helped.”
Trained by John P. Cummings, Sr., the $4,500 share of the purse put Arm And A Leg’s season’s bankroll at $36,090 and $167,451 lifetime. It was Arm And A Leg’s fifth win of the year.
— Sam Pendolino
Soldier Boy equals fastest mile of Vernon meet
Vernon, NY — Patricia Crawford’s speedy side-wheeler Soldier Boy equaled the fastest mile of the 15-night Vernon Downs meeting with a 1:53.1 performance in the $3,400 fourth race on Saturday night.
Fotowon photo
Soldier Boy marched home in 1:53.1.
Trainer Chris Lems did the driving as Soldier Boy started his march to the top from fourth at the half. The 7-year-old son of Rambaran-Lots Of Magic closed from third in the homestretch and drew off to a 3-3/4 length victory over Speedtrap Hall. Danger Signs, the favorite, finished third.
Having earned his first score in three current outings and ninth overall, the career-winner of $46,659 paid $29.80, $12.80 and $5.10 across the board.
Fellow pacer Four One One had established the 1:53.1 season’s speed standard here on May 2.
Lems, current dash leader Howard Okusko, Jr. and Jim Bailey each posted a pair of first-place finishes during Saturday’s nine-race program.
— Jim Moran
Six winners for driver Chris Page at Scioto
Columbus, OH — Driver Chris Page bagged a half-dozen winners on the 12-race program at Scioto Downs on Saturday night. The young native of Mt. Vernon, Ohio extended his lead in the drivers race at the central Ohio oval. He also finished second twice and third once on the program.
One of Page’s wins came in the featured pace when he drove Mach’s Tenor N (Mach Three) to a 1:53.2 score, winning by a length. The 4-year-old sat just off the leaders throughout much of the mile, then zoomed to the front in the final quarter. Noble Cruiser finished second while Caramel Dumpling was third.
The winner is trained by Virgil Morgan, Jr. and owned by Joseph Muscara.
Page took one division of the Billy Dart series with Nicole’s Dreamboat in 1:55.1 while Chip Noble drove Cruizin Bayou to victory in the other division with a 1:55.3 mile.
— Dean A. Hoffman
Maes Boy Blue runs streak to four at Saratoga
Saratoga Springs, NY — Maes Boy Blue took his win streak to the track on Saturday night at Saratoga Raceway and was looking to handle a step up in class while pursuing a fourth consecutive victory.
Last year’s top claiming pacer for his level at Saratoga, Maes Boy Blue was off to a bit of a slow start in 2009 and it appeared that he would be hard pressed to match last year’s win total of ten. Following three straight wins in the $7,500 claimers, the Colin
Johnson trainee moved up into the $10,000 claimers for the first time in two months.
Another Saturday night, another win for Maes Boy Blue as driver Denis St. Pierre was aggressive early with the 9-year-old veteran, putting him on the engine yet again. What resulted was a 1:56.2 victory, his fourth in four Saturday nights at Saratoga.
The win was one of three on the night for the meet’s leading trainer, Colin Johnson, who saw members of his stable record wins in three straight races on the Saturday night program. Star Artist (St. Pierre), Jacobs Western (Frank Coppola, Jr.) and Maes Boy Blue all recorded front running wins on the 13-race program.
— Mike Sardella