by Kimberly French, USTA Web Newsroom Senior Correspondent

Kimberly French

Louisville, KY — She’s always been on the small side, but 5-year-old pacing mare Ramona DiSomma compensates for her lack of stature by the size of her heart.

The daughter of Pacific Fella-Cinplicity has earned $424,578 during her three year career with a mark of 1:52 and a lifetime record of 74-16-16-13. Owned and bred by Anatolia Racing Stable of Hopewell Junction, New York, and conditioned by Jacob Hartline, the New York-bred mare has been a model of consistency while competing primarily at Yonkers Raceway and the Meadowlands.

Ramona DiSomma just finished second to Chancey Lady in the $80,000 Cape and Cutter Final at the Meadowlands on February 19 and will tackle that same opponent in Friday night’s (March 5) first leg of the Overbid Series at the Big M.

Although she did not make her debut until her sophomore season, the reason her connections decided to postpone her first start had nothing to do with an injury.

Mike Lizzi photo

Ramona DiSomma has hit the board in five of her seven starts this year, with earnings of $61,040.

“She is really small, so small that when she was two, her owners decided just to quit with her and let her mature a little bit,” Hartline, who in 2009 earned the most purse money of his career with more than $1.6 million, explained.

Unlike most members of gender, the little bay mare with a white star is extremely low maintenance and doesn’t require much effort to obtain her best.

“She’s really the perfect little horse, even around the barn and you couldn’t ask for much better than her,” Hartline said. “She’s been consistent from day one and the only (equipment) she wears are boots. No headpoles or anything like that. She’s really very simple.”

It seems her best races are when she comes off a helmet, but her trainer acknowledges Ramona DiSomma does have enough gate speed to place herself near the front early.

“She leaves fast, but if you leave with her she doesn’t finish,” Hartline said. “That’s why we tend to race her from behind. That is when she has the good kick home and the way we think she likes to race.”

The size of the track also seems to have no bearing on how the mare will pace.

“I always thought since she is so small that she would be a small-track horse, but she’s proved me wrong,” Hartline said. “She’s actually probably better on a larger track.”

After this month’s Overbid Series at the Meadowlands, Ramona DiSomma will be pointed towards the Matchmaker Series at Yonkers and her future will depend largely on how she performs throughout the year.

“Her owners are thinking of breeding her, but it’s tough to stop with her as long as she keeps making money and she doesn’t usually miss out on that,” Hartline said with a laugh. “As long as she can keep going the way she has been, she will continue to race for quite awhile.”

$50,000 Overbid-Free For All Mares-1st Leg
PP-Horse-Driver-Trainer
1-Knock Three Times-Ron Pierce-Casie Coleman
2-Letitia Franco N-Daniel Dube-Peter Walsh
3-Sportsfancy-Brian Sears-Josh Green
4-Ramona DiSomma-George Brennan-Jacob Hartline
5-Chancey Lady-John Campbell-Mark Kesmodel
6-Flirtiscape-Brian Sears-Lou Pena
7-Nights Kreeation-Yannick Gingras-Delvy Llopez
8-Ginger And Fred-Tim Tetrick-Ron Burke