from Harness Publicists across North America

Saturday’s (July 4) edition of Racing Roundup features results stories from Yonkers Raceway, Tioga Downs, Vernon Downs, Ocean Downs, Saratoga Raceway, Buffalo Raceway and Cal-Expo.

Four Trumps A wins Yonkers Open Handicap Pace

Yonkers, NY — The Fourth of July produced few feature-race fireworks, with favored Four Trumps A romping over Yonkers Raceway’s $48,000 Open Handicap Pace.

With Larry Stalbaum (three winners on the 13-race card) doing the honors, Four Trumps A — as the 1-2 choice — left from post position five. He took a brief three-hole while another leaver, Eagle Real One (Ray Schnittker), jumped it off in the first turn.

The favorite then moved past pole-sitting Tenant In Chief (Brent Holland) just after a :27.2 opening quarter-mile. He then rated a :56.3 half before accelerating down the backside. King Cat Anvil N (Jordan Stratton) gave it a go first-up toward the 1:24 three-quarters.

That one was easily dismissed while Four Trumps A opened a five length lead turning for home. He prevailed by 5-3/4 lengths in 1:51.4, matching his own fastest local ’09 effort. King Cat Anvil N did hold off the rest, with Forensic Z Tam (Pat Lachance), Sadie’s Soloist (Jason Bartlett, like Stalbaum three winners Saturday) and Tenant In Chief completing the cashers.

Four Trumps A, a 7-year-old Down Under son of Trump Casino co-owned by (trainer) Kimberly Asher and Mike Sorentino, Jr., paid $3 for his seventh win in 13 North American seasonal tries. The exacta paid $19, with the triple returning $145.

— Frank Drucker

Lucy Lucy scores in Distaff Open at Tioga

Nichols, NY — Newcomer Lucy Lucy helped leading driver Jimmy Marohn, Jr. post a driving grand slam on Saturday night at Tioga Downs in the $13,000 Fillies and Mares Open Handicap Pace.

Fred Brown Photography

Lucy Lucy was a 1:53.1 winner for Jimmy Marohn, Jr.

Marohn waited until the backside to move first over and unleashed a :27.3 third quarter to trip the three-quarter timer in 1:24.4. The duo opened up on the rest of the field and were on cruise control through the stretch, pacing home to victory in 1:53.1. Allamerican Celeb (Fern Paquet, Jr.) finished second, while Shady Matilda (Bruce Clarke) hung on for third.

Lucy Lucy, a 5-year old Tough Sir-Small Change mare, is trained by Michael Deters for Jay Sears. With the victory Lucy Lucy increased her seasonal bankroll to more than $43,000 and notched win number five in 16 starts.

Marohn also scored a victory in the five-eighth-mile dash with Ideally Magic in a new track record time of 1:10. Ideally Magic sat in the two hole behind pacesetter Real Yankee (Phil Fluet) until halfway through the lane and pounced on the leader.

Phil Fluet and Corey Braden each posted driving doubles on the night’s nine-race card.

— Dustin Ross

Pacinello wins Vernon Open

Vernon, NY — Newcomer Pacinello proved the best in Saturday afternoon’s $9,000 Open Pace at Vernon Downs.

Fotowon photo

Pacinello scored in 1:54 in the Open Pace at Vernon Downs.

A consistent winner at California’s Cal-Expo mile track earlier in the campaign for trainer Rick Plano, Pacinello found Vernon’s seven-eighths-mile oval to his liking, as well. With former Downs driving champion Dude Goodblood, Jr. doing the steering in Saturday’s eighth event, the homebred Little Steven-Princess Klara sophomore colt took over from early pacesetter Smoky Bonz going to the half, and then gradually drew off for a convincing 4-3/4 length victory in 1:54.

As the crowd wagering choice, Pacinello paid $3.50 after recording his seventh score in 12 season’s starts. The D&E Racing/breeding group still owns the career winner of $55,750.

Jimmy Whittemore, the meet’s second-leading dash-winning driver, completed his 11th local double of 2009 after guiding Rocco Manzi’s 4-year-old pacer Kingsandqueens to a 1:55 tally in the day’s $7,000 sixth session, the week’s Open-2 contest. Former multiple Downs training champ Lonny Hale conditions the 12-time lifetime winner.

Jim Bailey also picked up a pair of first-place finishes during the Independence Day nine-race card.

— Jim Moran

Mr Thinker wins Bud Light final at Ocean Downs

Berlin, MD — The final of the Bud Light Series Pace at Ocean Downs featured 9-year-old horse Mr Thinker, winner of the first and third legs of the series. Also, heavily favored was Ohwhataknight. This horse, trained and owned by Sheila Kosiorowski, won the second leg of the series. The stage was set for a showdown between the two and the horses did not disappoint.

Mr Thinker started off in the five post and took the early lead after the first turn, while Ohwhataknight was right behind him in second position. Mr Thinker fought hard, holding off attempts by Ohwhataknight to break into the lead until the homestretch where the latter horse began to fade. Storming to the finish line to win the $7,800 race was Mr Thinker ($3.60).

“He is just a good horse,” explained driver Frank Milby. “If he gets off to a good start then he will usually finish the race very well and his trainers have done a really fine job.”

Mr Thinker is trained by Charlene Polk and owned by Christopher Ryan Sharpe.

Also going off like fireworks Saturday night was driver Chuck Perry, Jr. The leading driver in the Ocean Downs title chase added three more victories, to give him a total of 18.

Perry pulled away from the pack to win the first race in grand fashion with 3-year-old filly Onedayatatime ($2.80).

“No one really expected her to perform like that. She looks as if she is bow-legged,” Perry said. “But let me tell you, she is a racehorse.”

Onedayatatime is trained by Joseph Eisenhower Sr. and owned by William Camp.

— Ozi Menakaya

Atoka Woodstock returns to Saratoga winner’s circle

Saratoga Springs, NY — The 2008 Pacer of the Year at Saratoga made his first local try of 2009 on Saturday.

Dave Oxford photo

Atoka Woodstock outdueled Armbro Animate at the wire to win the Saratoga Open.

Atoka Woodstock tallied over $92,000 in earnings in his award winning ‘08 campaign but got off to a bit of a late start to this season. Atoka Woodstock had seven races under his belt before making his first local start of the year and recorded one win up in Canada while hitting the board in five of his seven tries north of the border.

On Saturday, in his return, the 6-year-old pacer was put on the lead early by the meet’s leading driver, Frank Coppola, Jr. Behind matching halves of :56.4, Atoka Woodstock held on by a nose in 1:53.3 to record his first Saratoga Open win of the year. The stretch drive was a good one between the eventual winner and Armbro Animate in the $17,000 feature with the Colin Johnson trainee getting the best of his rival in the lane.

The win was one of three on the night for Frank Coppola, Jr., who book ended the evening with victories, earning wins in the night’s opener with Jackpot Riz and in the finale with BJ’s Tsunami.

Coppola currently sits atop the driver standings at Saratoga while trying to repeat as the leading driver at the track.

— Mike Sardella

Kermunn ties lifetime mark in Buffalo Open

Hamburg, NY — Kermunn, a 5-year-old Pacific Fella gelding out of the Albatross mare Sydra, won the $9,000 Open Handicap Pace for owner James T. Dunn at Buffalo Raceway on Saturday night.

With trainer-driver Ron Beback, Jr. in the bike, Kermunn ($31.60), going off as the longest shot on the board at 14-1 in the field of six, settled in fourth as eventual second place finisher Oh Gee Whiz (Jim McNeight) cut all the fractions in the race, :28.2, :57.3, and 1:26.1. Beback swung Kermunn to the outside, and with a first over trip the whole way, nailed Oh Gee Whiz at the wire by a nose in 1:55.2, which tied his lifetime mark set at Vernon Downs. Nifty Prescott (Ken Holliday), the favorite in the race, came in third.

“He likes it first over so that’s where I put him,” said Beback. “He hasn’t had much luck lately, but tonight it just worked out great for him.”

It was the fourth win of the year for Kermunn and the $4,500 share of the purse put his season’s bankroll at $33,380 and $91,757 lifetime.

— Sam Pendolino

Machine Maker sparkles at Cal-Expo

Sacramento, CA — A field of four conditioned pacers and two in for a tag were featured at Cal-Expo on Saturday night for a purse of $5,300, in which Machine Maker was very solid.

In advance of starting from post position five, driver Rick Plano knew what was needed to get the best results.

“I thought he had a small chance if he had the right type of run,” stated Plano. “But I didn’t think he was the horse to beat with Keystone Eli (Lemoyne Svendsen) and D Jokerman (James Kennedy) dropping (in class).”

Coming away in fifth position into a :27.4 opening quarter, Plano was pleased, but still knew what was best for his charge.

“The :27.4 was a legitimate quarter, but I was going to try to stay in as long as I could regardless of what they were going.”

With the pacesetting Keystone Eli reaching the half-mile station in :56.1, Plano still knew what was best for his gelding.

“They were still moving along pretty good and I thought if I could find some cover that I could have a chance.”

On the move first-over past the half-mile pole and moving nicely on the final turn, was Plano concerned, given he didn’t have cover, as well as where the two horses to beat were positioned?

“I was definitely concerned because I didn’t know if I was good enough to catch Keystone Eli and D Jokerman — who had lined up 1-2.”

Picking up even more speed midway through the final turn and forcing Svendsen to ask and open up the lead with Keystone Eli, an unsure Plano would now find himself second, while 2-1/4 lengths back at the three-quarter marker, timed in 1:24.4.

“I still didn’t know if I was good enough to catch Keystone Eli.”

Now under urging late in the final turn and into the stretch, Machine Maker kept moving forward.

“He started to get to Keystone Eli at mid-stretch and at that point I was looking good and feeling better than I thought — especially since there was no one following me.”

Wearing down Keystone Eli to take over the lead at mid-stretch, the 7-year-old drew clear to the wire to win ($10.60) by 2-1/4 lengths. Owned by KC Carvalho and Jill Wine, the Tom Wine ll trained pacer stopped the timer at 1:54, thus recording his 22nd career victory. Keystone Eli finished in second, and Rich And Roll (Jim Marino) closed sharply in the lane to be third, just a head farther back.

“He went a very big mile and I’m very happy for the people that train and own him — they did a good job,” concluded the meet’s leading driver.

— Scott Ehrlich