East Rutherford, NJ — After going off stride just after the half a week ago as the 4-5 favorite on the way to a ninth-place finish, Southwind Chrome rebounded in a big way Friday night (Dec. 6), taking the featured $30,000 Preferred for trotters at The Meadowlands.

Southwind Chrome (inside) and driver Tim Tetrick hold off Muscle M Up to take the featured Preferred for trotters at The Meadowlands on Friday night. Lisa Photo.

Sent off this time as the 5-2 second choice in the wagering, Southwind Chrome raced with cover past the quarter behind 9-5 public choice Muscle M Up and ending up clearing the top before the half, which was timed in a quick :54.4 with strong winds at their backs.

Midway around the far turn, Åke Svanstedt directed Muscle M Up to vacate the pocket, and the duo then dueled all the way to the finish from there. Muscle M Up was determined, but Southwind Chrome was just a bit better, hanging on to win by a neck in 1:51.4 after a contentious stretch battle. JL Cruze finished third.

“He was super,” said winning driver Tim Tetrick of Southwind Chrome. “We went a very fast middle half with a nice horse following us. My horse showed a lot of toughness to hold off Muscle M Up. My horse went a big mile. I’m very happy with his effort.”

Southwind Chrome, a 4-year-old son of Chapter Seven and Counter Pointe who is trained by Jeff Cullipher and owned by Pollack Racing and Cullipher, returned $7.20 to his backers. He has won 10 of his 30 lifetime starts and earned $181,085.

A LITTLE MORE: Leading driver Dexter Dunn, fresh off a month of November that saw him win 23 Big M races, had three winners on the card. Dunn and trainer Harry Landy teamed up to take the 11th and 12th races. One shrewd handicapper betting into the Oregon hub was the only player to last six legs in the 20-cent Survivor Pick-10 and cashed in for $7,480.

All-source handle totaled $2,252,358 on the 13-race program.

Racing resumes Saturday (Dec. 7) at 7:15 p.m.