Lebanon, OH – Walk With Me, driven by “Big Ticket” Brandon Bates, emerged as the champion of the Robert J. Brown Memorial late closing series for non-winners of two commercial track races on Monday (April 3) at Miami Valley. Although Walk With Me was the most experienced and richest trotter in the field, the result of 11 wins at the Indiana fairs while a two and 3-year-old in the Doug Rideout barn, she was dispatched at 14-1 odds in the $22,500 Brown Memorial after being bought late last year by Jeff Fought and Brian Carsey and moving to the Walter Haynes Jr. stable.

Walk With Me holds off Bidenurtime and Starflower to capture the $22,500 Fine of the Robert J. Brown Memorial at Miami Valley. Conrad photo.

Bates was content to travel in third from the start until the head of the stretch, then found a seam down the lane to produce the 1:55 upset triumph. Heavily favored Bidenurtime (Sandy Beatty) chose to avoid the :27.1 and :56.3 speed duel during the first half and was still eighth as the field bunched up down the backstretch. The winner of the first two legs then swung wide and began a furious rally around the final turn and through the stretch, but came up a neck short. Starflower (Kayne Kauffman) turned a pocket ride into a show finish after briefly fronting the field in midstretch.

Walk With Me was a second place finisher to Bidenurtime in the first leg of the series, then drew the outermost post position in the second and finished seventh. Patrons who remained confident in the 4-year-old daughter of Striking Lindsey were rewarded with a $30.20 win mutual. Coupling her with Bidenurtime resulted in a handsome $87 exacta payoff.

Racing will take place Tuesday (April 4), Wednesday (April 5) and Thursday (April 6) with the normal 4 p.m. post time. Miami Valley will be dark on Easter weekend, then resume live action on Monday (April 10).