from harness publicists across North America

Thursday’s (April 14) edition of Racing Roundup features a results story from Cal Expo.

Castle Oaks is perfect in many ways at Cal Expo

Sacramento, CA — A perfect trip off a perfect drive saw Castle Oaks draw away as the pocket-rocket. A field of four ladies, reduced in size by a scratch, were featured at Cal Expo on Thursday night for a purse of $3,900, in which Castle Oaks got back on the winning track.

Leaving and joined in forward motion by Bewareofthisaffair (James Kennedy) to his inside and Biggest Big Bertha (Rick Plano) to his outside, trainer/driver Tim Maier was required to secure position with Castle Oaks. Getting the lead after an eighth of a mile into the race, it “appeared” Maier pushed the pace until yielding to Biggest Big Bertha to the quarter pole.

“I really didn’t push Biggest Big Bertha,” Maier said, “it was just that I had started my mare up. I didn’t think Biggest Big Bertha was stung off the :28.2 first quarter, and all I did was just use my horse to get around Bewareofthisaffair.”

Sitting a tight pocket into a :59.1 half-mile and past the three-quarter station in 1:28 when her earplugs were popped, the 5-year-old soon popped out of the pocket with 3-16ths of a mile to go and knew what to do.

Taking over the lead at the seven-eighths pole, then getting urged at mid-stretch, the Alan Kirschenbaum owned lass expanded her lead in the last sixteenth of a mile to score ($4.00) by 4-1/4 lengths in 1:55.4, thus recording her 20th career victory. Biggest Big Bertha finished a clear second, and Blue Note (Scott Cisco) finished another 4-1/4 lengths farther back in third.

“It was a good effort on her part,” finished Maier, who had a driving and training triple on the 10-race card.

— Scott Ehrlich