Racing Roundup: Moon Lake fastest in NYSS Late Closer
July 24, 2009,from Harness Publicists across North America
Thursday’s (July 23) edition of Racing Roundup features results stories from Saratoga Raceway, Ocean Downs, Vernon Downs, Scioto Downs, and Cal-Expo.
Moon Lake fastest in NYSS Late Closer
Saratoga Springs, NY — Local filly Moon Lake was at her home track on Thursday night when she took her second shot this year at the New York Sire Stakes Late Closers. The Mickey McGivern trained filly came up third best in her previous start in the Late Closers at Monticello Raceway just nine days ago.
Dave Oxford photo
Moon Lake was the fastest NYSS Late Closer winner, tripping the timer in 1:56.3.
The third place finish looked even better by the time Moon Lake’s race came up on Thursday, the ninth race on the program. The horses who finished one-two in Moon Lake’s previous start went on to win their divisions of the Late Closers on Thursday previous to the evening’s ninth race.
Lizzie’s Dream (Joe Moeykens) and She Rocks (Frank Coppola, Jr.) each scored victories in their Late Closers but it would be the Dream Away filly Moon Lake who would not only win, but do so in a career best effort on Thursday. Brian Cross was at the lines as the sophomore filly sat behind the race’s big favorite, Majorette Hanover, and tracked her down in the final eighth of a mile. Moon Lake was the fastest winner of the five divisions of the Late Closers on the evening as she stopped the timer in 1:56.3.
The other Late Closer winners on the overcast evening were Luxury Cruise and Sinful Cindy, who each scored front running wins from their rail positions.
Trainer Ed Hart and driver Mark Beckwith teamed up for a double on the evening with the two 3-year-old old fillies.
— Mike Sardella
Better to be lucky than good
Berlin, MD — Ocean Downs featured the second leg of the Michelob Light Pace on Thursday. Crossing the finish line first was Alice’s Restaurant. However, the judges disqualified the 4-year-old mare because her driver, Ridge Warren, hit Sentinelle Hanover with his whip. The strike caused Sentinelle Hanover to make a break and interfere with other horses.
Sometimes it is better to be lucky than good and that was the case for Twin B Scamper ($22.80). The judges awarded the 9-year-old the win, giving the mare trained by Don Milby her second victory at Ocean Downs this meet.
Twin B Scamper’s driver, Frank Milby, took the win in stride.
“I just got lucky,” said Milby, who is currently leading the driver’s title chase at Ocean Downs with 27 wins. “I’m not sure that I deserve it, but I’ll take a win any day.”
Marjay Dreams ($7.00), a 3-year-old filly, picked up the first win of her young career by winning the first race on the card. Chuck Perry, Jr. drove the filly by Allamerican Native across the wire in 1:58. Marjay Dreams is owned and trained by Jeffery Jester.
— Ozi Menakaya
Lems wins four, including feature, at Vernon
Vernon, NY — Chris Lems, one of the top young drivers at Vernon Downs, collected four victories during Thursday night’s nine-race program, including a 1:54.4 score with Bille Bella Chick in the week’s feature for female pacers.
Fotowon photo
Bille Bella Chick was one of four winners for driver Chris Lems.
On the lead early in Thursday’s $3,200 eighth event, Bille Bella Chick ($6.20) beat back a challenge from the favorite Houndbeach midway through the mile, and continued on to a 3-3/4 length triumph over Lesley’s Jlo Belle.
Recording her first victory since May 29, the 5-year-old daughter Rambaran-Windy Witch hiked her win total for the meet to five and her all-time count to 10. Lonny Hale trains the career winner of $52,187 for Dr. Michael Kessler and the Speed To Burn Racing Stable.
While hitting for the cycle for the first time at the meet, Lems, the track’s top provisional pilot in 2007 and 2008, also won with the freshman pacer He’s The Bomb (1:59.1), the 3-year-old trotter Nowerland Nathan (1:58), and his own sophomore side-wheeler Manvincible (1:56).
Defending driving champion Josh Marks recorded his fifth hat trick at the meet, winning with the trotters Sailingon The Edge (1:59) and PJ’s Niagara (1:58.4), both trained by Tracy Brainard, and Brilliant Thunder, conditioned by Barry Dodge.
— Jim Moran
Yankee Glide colt triumphs at Scioto
Columbus, OH — In To Win got his first career win on Thursday evening at Scioto Downs as he won in 2:01.1 for trainer Jim Arledge and driver Chris Page.
The son of Yankee Glide is out of Victory My Way 3, 1:54.3 ($508,291) and was making his first start of the season. He is owned by Kentuckiana Racing Stable.
Page sent his trotter to the front before the half-mile station, then yielded to Four Starz Motor (Credit Winner) in the third quarter. Once they turned into the homestretch, however, In To Win pulled out of the pocket and eased by Four Starz Motor to win by a length. Favored CSI What’s My Name finished third but was placed seventh for breaking stride in the stretch. That moved Black Fortune (Fame N Fortune) up to third.
— Dean A. Hoffman
Aeronaut puts her best feet forward at Cal-Expo
Sacramento, CA — Filly and mare conditioned pacers, racing for a purse of $5,300, were featured at Cal-Expo on Thursday night, in which Aeronaut scored.
In advance of starting from post position two in the field of seven, driver Rick Plano was given the word that his charge might be better than she looked.
“Last week after I raced her, I didn’t think she felt comfortable,” noted Plano. “So I suggested to her trainers, Tom and Jill Wine, to look her over. Tonight they told me that it was her feet that were the problem and that they had been terrible, so they had done some vet work on her. As a result I thought she’d throw in a better race than last week.”
Leaving and getting the lead a sixteenth of a mile plus after the start, the 4-year-old would yield an eighth of a mile later while eventually finding herself in the three hole at the quarter-mile pole, timed in :28.4, and in that same spot at the half-mile marker, timed in :58.
“I knew I was going to get away, but just for a spot because they had said that she doesn’t race good on the front — where she had been last week. So once I was in a seat, I was staying there.”
With the field at the five-eighths-mile pole, Plano felt it was time to go. Moving steadily and just three-quarters of a length back at the three-quarter marker, timed in 1:27.2, Plano was sure of one thing.
“I knew I had Blue Note (Steve Wiseman) beat on the front, plus my horse had pace, but I didn’t know who was coming from the back and if she could hold off those rivals.”
Taking over the lead at the head of the lane and drawing clear by 1-1/2 lengths with an eighth of a mile to go, Plano’s charge would duck in pretty sharply at mid-stretch.
“I don’t know why she ducked in, but since there was no one inside of her, I let her drift in because I didn’t want to straighten her out and stop her momentum because she was pacing strongly. She hung tough down the stretch and was trying every time I hit her and was able to hold on.”
Owned by Lester Hunsucker and William Petzolt, and trained by Tom Wine ll, Aeronaut held on to win ($16.80) under a drive by three-quarters of a length in 1:56.4. Castle Oaks (Tim Maier) only found room in the final sixteenth of a mile and closed to be second, while Mamahaswhiskerstoo (Jim Marino) finished just a neck farther back in third.
“The time wasn’t there, but compared to the way she raced the week before I thought she raced much better,” concluded Plano, who had four winners on the card.
— Scott Ehrlich