from harness publicists across North America

Friday’s (March 27) edition of Racing Roundup features results stories from Miami Valley Raceway, Harrah’s Philadelphia and Buffalo Raceway.

Rev Me Up proves experience counts in Miami Valley Open

Lebanon, OH — Rev Me Up, at age eight the oldest mare in the field, found room up the pylons just in time to zoom by pacesetter Shine N Shimmer and capture the $17,050 Fillies and Mares Open Handicap Pace at Miami Valley on Friday (March 27).

Conrad photo

Rev Me Up topped a field of younger lasses in Miami Valley’s Mares Open on Friday.

Driver Randy Tharps left alertly with the winning daughter of Park Place before turning Shine N Shimmer (Chris Page) loose and accepting the pocket just prior to the first quarter beam, tripped in :27.1. The field raced single file through a pedestrian :29.4 second panel until Beat The Beat (Kyle Ater) pulled from fifth and launched an outside attack just past the :57 midway clocking.

With Arties Last Party (Jeff Nisonger) and Multiple Sources (Greg Grismore) in tow in the outer flow the classy mares cut through a 25 mile per hour wind and freezing temperatures to the 1:26.2 three-quarter station.

Double tiered around the final turn and well bunched and fanned four wide at the head of the stretch the field tried valiantly to gain ground through the final sixteenth of a mile, but only Rev Me Up could get by Shine N Shimmer for the 1:55.2 score. Beat The Beat never faltered and held for the show spot.

Merl P’pool leases Rev Me Up who notched her sixth win in a dozen 2015 starts for trainer Kathy Millman. Her $41,421 in seasonal earnings brings her lifetime bounty to $575,497. Off at 9-2 odds, Rev Me Up paid $11.80 to her faithful.

— Miami Valley Raceway

Harrah’s Philadelphia
A field of six classy mares lined up behind the starter for the opening day feature from Harrah’s Philadelphia, a winner’s over $25,000 lifetime on the pace. The wagering public sent Bamond Racing’s Venus Delight off as the 7-5 favorite. The daughter of Bettor’s Delight was coming off a solid victory in a division of the Blue Chip Matchmaker Series at Yonkers. At the start, it was the public’s second choice Radar Contact (Andrew McCarthy) firing quickly off the wings, securing the lead before the quarter (:28.1). The 7-year-old held the lead until the five-eighths. That’s when Ron Burke trainee Charisma Hanover (Brett Miller) powered past first-over, with Venus Delight (Tim Tetrick) loosely tracking that live cover. After a :55.1 middle half, Charisma Hanover turned for home well clear as the others battled for minor awards. It was the 20th career win for Burke Racing and Weaver Bruscemi’s 5-year-old daughter of Dragon Again, who went on to complete the mile in 1:51.3. Radar Contact battled back for place, while Venus Delight settled for third. The winner returned $10.00. Last season’s leading driver George Napolitano Jr. had four wins on the program.

Buffalo Raceway
Trainer JD Perrin scored the hat trick and was assisted by three different drivers in doing so to highlight the Friday night program at Buffalo Raceway. Perrin, who leads the trainer’s standings at Buffalo Raceway with a 35-24 edge over John Mungillo, swept the early daily double. Yosemite Camn ($12.80) took the opener with Jack Flanigen in the bike while Retail ($7.80) took the second race with Shawn McDonough aboard. The Perrin-trained daily double returned $93.50. RA’s Shakenbake ($3.40) then completed the thee-bagger for Perrin by taking the sixth race with Ron Beback Jr. in the sulky. It also started a nice streak for Beback as he also posted wins in the seventh race with Stonebridge Saga ($6.50) and Tsunami Dream ($23.80) in the eighth. Driver Shawn Gray, who had four wins on the evening, took both halves of the mid daily double. He first guided The Ring King ($11.00) to the victory in the fourth race and then rallied Jettison ($22.60) to the upset win in the fifth. The Gray double returned a healthy $180.00 for a $2 wager. Big prices continued in the tenth race as Vintage Fenom ($12.00) topped a $4,780 trifecta for $1. Second place finisher Genuine Star N (Ken Koch), sent off at 47-1, helped boost the big trifecta mutuel while McArdle Direct rounded out the winning triple ticket.