from Harness Publicists across North America

Monday’s (September 8) edition of Racing Roundup features results stories from The Meadows, The Red Mile, Plainridge Racecourse, the York, Pa. Fair, and the Billings Series.

Palone wins eight at The Meadows

Meadow Lands, PA — Dave Palone drove eight winners on Monday at The Meadows while Mike Wilder had four, as the two drivers took a combined 75 percent of the 16 races on the card.

Four of Palone’s winners were for trainer Mickey Burke. Win prices on Palone’s victories ranged from $3.40 to $10.60.

Wilder scored three consecutive victories, including two for trainer Jim Arledge, Jr.

— Evan Pattak

Youngsters shine at The Red Mile

Lexington, KY — Plenty of youngsters were in action on the 17-race Monday night card at The Red Mile, which included eight late losing events for 2-year-olds.

Nigel Soult photo

Western Dakota was a 1:52.3 winner for Jeff Nisonger.

One of the most amazing efforts came courtesy of Western Dakota, a gelded son of Western Hanover-Ladysox, in the night’s seventh race, a $6,000 late closing event for 2-year-old colt and gelding pacers.

Jeff Nisonger was in the bike as Western Dakota blasted off the wings of the gate and led the field through solid fractions of :28, :55.2, and 1:24.4, before drawing clear by six lengths with a :27.4 final quarter to win in 1:52.3, a new lifetime mark. Don Swick trains the gelding for the Royal Wire Products, Inc.

Western Dakota won for the third time in his career, with all three victories coming in his only three starts over the Lexington oval.

Also earning a lifetime mark and showing up with a stellar performance was Western Posse, who was the impressive winner of the night’s second division of the $6,000 late closing event for 2-year-old colt and gelding pacers.

The result was very much the same, as the son of Western Ideal-Coochie Mama drew away to win by the same six lengths in a very similar 1:52.2. However, the tactics employed by driver Andrew McCarthy could not have been much more opposite.

McCarthy grabbed leather out of the gate and settled his colt in fourth as the field entered the first turn. He would stay there until pulling first over as the field entered the final turn, where he came with a full head of steam, actually making up over a four length deficit and opening up three lengths in what seemed like a blink of an eye.

Western Posse is conditioned by leading trainer Noel Daley for the Brittany Farms, Dynasty Stable, and Mac T. Nichol.

— Gabe Prewitt

Prime Time Talent leads Plainridge winners

Marlborough, MA — Dan Cappello, Jr., fresh off his 4,000th career win Sunday at Saratoga Raceway, drove Prime Time Talent to victory in Monday’s Massachusetts Sire Stakes program at Plainridge Racecourse.

The race was for 3-year-old pacing colts and geldings and carried a purse of $5,550. Artie Bacardi finished a length back in the race that went in a swift 1:54.1.

In other stakes action, Kevin Switzer was an upset winner with Visioness K (2:01.1), while RC Gumption was second in the $6,280 trotting test for 3-year-old fillies. The favorite, RC Biscuit, led the race for three-quarters but gave up the lead heading for home after experiencing broken equipment.

Al Ross’s Bet On Betty, with John Hogan driving, bested the field in the $5,070 pace for 3-year-old fillies with a 1:54.2 mile. MS Jet Setter, with Jim Hardy in the bike, finished second by two lengths.

— Jack Ginnetti

Hammer does it again at York

York, PA — They don’t call him “The King of the Pennsylvania County Fairs” for nothin.’

A day after Roger Hammer guided Alastor Hanover to a 1:55.3 all-age pacing track record at the York (Pa.) fair, he came right back to set two divisional track records and come within a fifth of tying the track trotting mark.

The squaregaiter in the spotlight was Pizzazzed, a sophomore son of Kadabra who toured the York twicearound in 2:01.4 in capturing a division of the FFA trot for trainer/driver Hammer and Fox Valley Standardbreds.

The time shattered the 3-year-old colt trot mark of 2:02.2 co-held by Jet Ranger and Shark Kosmos, and came within a fifth of a second of an older Shark Kosmos trotting mark of 2:01.3. Hammer of course drove Shark Kosmos — just as he did in taking the other division of the FFA trot Monday!

Alastor Hanover’s record mile came in the first race of the meeting; Hammer again showed himself to be a quick starter as he chauffeured the sophomore pacing filly Ty’s Artist to a 1:57.3 win in a division of the PA Fair Sire Stakes. The daughter of Real Artist, owned and trained as well as driven by Hammer, is out of the Western Hanover mare Ty Wish — who was the previous divisional standardbearer at York with a 1:59.4 mark! (And no extra points for guessing who the driver of Ty Wish was, either.)

— Jerry Connors

Taddeo and Markoff are Billings winners

Monticello, NY — Eric “Cowboy” Taddeo, a 30-year-old New York City firefighter and newcomer to the sport of harness racing, notched his second seasonal triumph in the C.K.G. Billings Amateur Driving Series when he guided his 6-year–old trotting gelding Highmaker to a 2:02.2 victory in the second of two eastern region Billings trots on Monday card at Yonkers.

The other split turned out to be a walk-in-the-park for Steve “the driver formerly known as Cannonball” Markoff when he reined his CR Mr Bean to a 2:01.3 triumph.

Taddeo, whose other Billings triumph this season came at Vernon Downs, got away in third position and moved first-up at the half. That move gave cover to a few others that followed him but Highmaker was full of trot and by the time the field had reached the final turn Highmaker ranged alongside the pacesetter Super Cat Begonia and driver Tony “the Capo” Verruso, only to wave bye- bye in the stretch. Highmaker then scooted off to a two length triumph over Jay A Novak, with Terry “the Dairy Queen” Donnelly aboard, who also out-footed Super Cat Begonia to the wire. Verruso’s trotter did, however, hold on for the show dough.

CR Mr Bean made a laugher out of his contest. With Markoff, a money manager from Denville, N.J., at the controls, CR Mr Bean trotted to the front from post position five and once on top never had an anxious moment the rest of the journey.

Markoff then guided his trotter through three individual quarters timed in :30.1 before posting a :31 final stanza en route to an easy four length, 2:01.3 triumph over Final Legacy, who was in rein to Peter “the President” Gerry. George “the Brooklyn Cowboy” Casale and his veteran trotter Perfect Gerry came from far back to finish third, only a short nose behind Final Legacy at the wire.

For Markoff, it was his third Billings victory in just seven starts and his 53rd in his amateur career.

— John Manzi