by Ellen Harvey and Ken Weingartner, Harness Racing Communications

East Rutherford, NJ — “Royalty is King of the Hambletonian,” was the call from Ken Warkentin as Brian Sears guided the Massachusetts born and raised colt to the finish line in 1:52.1 in the $1 million final of the Hambletonian for 3-year-old trotters on Saturday before a crowd of 24,210 at Meadowlands Racetrack.

USTA/Mark Hall photo

Brian Sears guided Royalty For Life to the finish line in 1:52.1 in the final of the Hambletonian for 3-year-old trotters.

After winning his elimination heat, Royalty For Life raced from the inside post one and was off the gate and settled in at the lead at the :26.2 first quarter, with Smilin Eli (Tim Tetrick), who’d gunned out of post nine to get a spot, in behind him in second.

Those two led the field to the :55 half.

By the 1:23.3 three-quarters, third elimination winner Spider Blue Chip (Ron Pierce) was up to make his move at the leader, but as the finish line came in to view off the turn, many tried but no one could advance on Royalty For Life. He trotted away from the field to win by 3-1/4 lengths.

Three horses trotted together behind Royalty For Life and Smilin Eli got closest in finishing second, with Corky (David Miller) third. Aperfectyankee (Jim Oscarsson) was fourth and Spider Blue Chip was fifth.

The son of RC Royalty-Bourbon ‘n Grits is owned by Chip Campbell, Al Ross and Paul Fontaine.

“This colts digs and fights and he really wants to win,” said winning trainer George Ducharme. “I’m stunned. I’m absolutely stunned. I wasn’t sure we’d ever get this far. The pressure’s off, I feel a lot better.

“I thought he came out of it (the elim) really good, I was real happy with him and when he drew the rail, I really didn’t think that would be a problem. I thought it would be a benefit and that’s the way it worked out.

USTA/Mark Hall photo

Winning driver Brian Sears (left) and trainer George Ducharme.

“It was a little frustrating (when the colt was making breaks earlier in the season), but the owners stayed by me and let me figure a few things out. Words can’t describe it. I never ever thought I’d be at this spot, being a little guy from Massachusetts, training a bunch of homebreds and for it to turn out like this is just amazing.”

It turned out to be a big day for driver Brian Sears, who won the Hambletonian Oaks with Bee A Magician one race earlier. It was the second time in his career he pulled off the Hambletonian-Hambletonian Oaks double. In 2009 he won the Hambletonian with Muscle Hill and the Oaks with Broadway Schooner.

“The more racing he (Royalty For Life) gets in him, his manners are just getting better and better,” said Sears. “I’m sure he had a big fan base back in Vernon (where Ducharme is based) this afternoon and it was my dad’s (Jay) first Hambo and we had a pretty good day.

“In the back of your mind you know you’ve got a shot to have a good day. But you also know it could be a very disappointing day. So I try not to get too excited or think about the future. I just think about the task at hand and you need a little racing luck to have things go your way.

“It is very difficult. It’s hard for me to put into words right now. I’m just glad I’m here.

“He (Royalty For Life) has settled into a groove pretty good. He’s a big strong horse and he likes to race, but I think he needed a few more starts, a little more work, to become consistent. I thought he would really fare well with the two heats, and he showed that.

“He’s had some disappointments this year, but he definitely made up for them.”

Trio of front-end winners in Hambletonian elims

A trio of $70,000 eliminations were carded on Saturday at Meadowlands Racetrack in the $1.21 million Hambletonian, the second leg of Trotting’s Triple Crown.

Royalty For Life put room between himself and the field to win the first $70,000 elimination race in 1:52.

Driver Brian Sears wasted no time in getting Royalty For Life off the starting gate from post eight and into the lead by the :26.4 first quarter, with High Bridge (Yannick Gingras) on his back. Those two led the field to the :54.3 half.

USTA/Mark Hall photo

Royalty For Life led from start to finish to win the first and fastest elimination of the Hambletonian in 1:52 for driver Brian Sears.

Royalty For Life was still on the lead at the 1:23.1 three-quarters with Smilin Eli off the rail and trying to advance on the leaders. As the field straightened for home, though, there was no one close enough to catch Brian Sears, who had the lines in his lap as he guided Royalty For Life to the win by 1-3/4 lengths.

“He was a little aggressive but not terrible,” said winning driver Brian Sears. “I’ve seen him a lot worse. Getting some more starts in him, he has more confidence and he’s getting to know what we want him to do out there. He’s a little more comfortable I think. He was two fingers calm. He was a little more excitable in the Dancer but the more races he gets under his belt, the more confident he’s going to be and I look for him to be even better in the second heat. (In the last eighth) I was just getting the bit in his mouth and letting him roll along. I think he had a little more in the tank.”

Trainer George Ducharme said he did not anticipate any changes in the final.

“I don’t think we will do anything, the way he was that trip. I think I will leave everything about the same. I don’t know if it’s safe to say, I’m always going to be apprehensive (about him making a break) but now that he’s got in a regular schedule racing every week, we’re ahead of the curve. The way he’s trained, he’s been behind horses. He’s not just a dead front runner.”

Creatine went to the front and never looked back to win the second of three Hambletonian eliminations. Driven by four-time Hambo winner Mike Lachance for trainer Bob Stewart, Creatine won by two lengths over Wheeling N Dealin in 1:52.4.

Aperfectyankee finished third to join Creatine and Wheeling N Dealin in the Hambo final. Dontyouforgetit was fourth and with more than $569,000 in lifetime earnings gained the fourth-place finisher spot in the final.

Sent off at odds of 5-1, Creatine (Andover Hall-Berry Nice Muscles) has won three of seven races this year and six of 14 lifetime starts. He set fractions of :27, :55 and 1:23.4 on his way to the victory.

“My horse can leave good and what am I going to do there, take back? You almost have no chance to come back in the first three,” Lachance said. “He’s a very talented horse. It didn’t bother him one bit to go to the half in :55. It might bother some of the others that were following me.”

Stewart said he planned on no changes heading to the Hambletonian final.

“I don’t think so; I think we’ll stick with Mike,” he said with a laugh.

USTA/Mark Hall photo

Spider Blue Chip won the third Hambletonian Elimination in 1:53.4 for driver Ron Pierce.

Spider Blue Chip won the third of three elimination races in 1:53.4.

Driver Ron Pierce got Spider Blue Chip to the lead by the :27.1 first quarter with Corky (David Miller) at his back. Those two led the field to the :56.2 half. Possessed Fashion and driver John Campbell were off the rail from third to challenge going into the turn toward the 1:25.2 three-quarters.

Possessed Fashion could not rally to get past the leader who trotted off to win by a half-length. Corky was second and Lauderdale (Corey Callahan) was third, getting the last two spots in the $1 million final.

Spider Blue Chip (Andover Hall-Southwind Catlin) is trained by Chuck Sylvester and owned by David McDuffee and Mel Hartman.

“So far it seems like you want to be (on the front to win),” said winning driver Ron Pierce. “But I don’t think that’s the way it has to be. I think the second heat will help him quite a bit. I didn’t ask him to go much at all. He had plenty left in his tank just now.”

“After they went in (1):52 (elim win by Royalty For Life) I thought, ‘Oh my, we have our work cut out for us,’” said Sylvester. “The only thing I told Ron was to try to bring us a horse back for the second heat and he sure did. He protected him.

“We’re going to change something but I’m not going to say. The first heat winner was very impressive. That impressed me more than anybody. He’s a nice horse, he gets better every start. He fits now. Bobby Stewart’s horse (Creatine) is a horse I knew would come back after being off a little while.”