by Ken Weingartner, Harness Racing Communications

Ken Weingartner

Freehold, NJ — Tye Loy was not sent to look at I Am Scootin at the 2007 Lexington Selected Sale, but when the trainer saw the filly standing in the stall next to one of the horses on his list, he made a detour. It proved to be a fortuitous diversion. Bill Sanders ended up buying the yearling for $9,000 and — renamed Sand E Fiftyfive — she won $103,631 last season as a 2-year-old.

“I raced against her mother, and I knew her mother was tough,” Loy said, referring to Ohio star Scootin Mercedes. “She (Sand E Fiftyfive) had no conformation flaws, other than being a little small. She was a late foal, too. She’s not real big, but she’s built pretty good; she’s pretty solid.”

Sand E Fiftyfive, by I Am A Fool, is among the eight horses entered in Saturday’s $101,700 Courageous Lady at Northfield Park. She is coming off a sixth-place finish in a Pennsylvania Sire Stakes race at The Meadows on May 18 and is 0-for-2 this year.

“She didn’t race well the other day, but I’m going back to the shoes that she wore last year,” Loy said. “I’m trying my best to get her ready for this weekend.”

Last season, Sand E Fiftyfive won once on the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes circuit and also won a division of the Keystone Classic. She finished third in the sire stakes final, behind Ginger And Fred and Pedigree Snob. She was second to Pedigree Snob in a division of the Standardbred Stakes at the Delaware County Fairgrounds in Ohio.

“Training down, sometimes she showed a lot, and other times it was so-so,” Loy said. “After she got racing, that’s when she started coming on. Each start got better and better. A lot of them will do that.”

Below is the field, in post position order, for the Courageous Lady.

$101,700 Miller Lite Courageous Lady
Post-Horse-Driver-Trainer-Morning Line
1-Palazzo Princess-Aaron Merriman-Paul Kennedy, Jr.-1-1
2-Up Front Darlin-Wyatt Irvine-Kelly O’Donnell-20-1
3-Save My Shark-Keith Kash, Jr.-Jim Arledge, Jr.-8-1
4-Angel Of The West-Dan Charlino-Jim Arledge, Jr.-12-1
5-Sand E Fiftyfive-Tony Hall-Tye Loy-10-1
6-Singnoevil Hanover-Mike Wilder-Dan Altmeyer-4-1
7-Moira’s Bliss-Ryan Stahl-Scott Cox-15-1
8-Cams Van Go-Kurt Sugg-Marty Wollam-6-1