by Mike Paradise, publicity director, Maywood Park
Melrose Park, IL — Nationally ranked three-year-old pacing star Western Terror won’t have history on his side as the strong 4-5 morning line favorite in the $350,000 Windy City Pace Final at Maywood Park. Friday night’s 22nd consecutive edition of Chicago’s richest open pace much more often than not has indeed been “The Graveyard of Champions.”
Every Breeders Crown winner of this decade who raced in the Windy City Pace has gone down to defeat as the heavy favorite in Chicago. And we’re talking about the likes of such recent heralded past champions as No Pan Intended (2003), Real Desire (2001) and Gallo Blue Chip (2000).
In fact, there has NEVER been a pacer who has captured both the Breeders Crown and Windy City Pace in his three-year-old campaign, including other past Crown winners Life Sign (1993) and Jenna’s Beach Boy (1995), two more renowned pacers who failed on our half-miler.
Western Terrror will leave from post five on Grand Circuit Night in the fifth race for his regular driver Brian Sears, needing a victory not only to end another Chicago sports “hex,” but to also keep his hopes alive for national divisional honors. The son of Western Hanover is in a tight race with his stablemate Timesareachanging and Lloyd Arnold’s Quik Pulse Mindale for the top rated spot among three-year-old colt pacers.
Western Terror had to settle for third best in last Sunday night’s Progress Pace Final behind the winner Holborn Hanover and runner-up Quik Pulse Mindale. Western Terror‘s owner, Perfect World Enterprises, dished out $35,000 to supplement their star pacer to the Windy City Pace knowing it would be only five days in between major sophomore stakes events, flanked by an 825 mile van ride from Dover, Delaware to Chicago, Illinois.
Western Terror will bring a flashy $933,513 season’s bankroll into the Windy City Pace. Besides last month’s Breeders Crown championship at Woodbine, the Bret Pelling trained colt earlier captured divisions of a pair of Lexington stakes (the Bluegrass and Tattersalls), dead-heated for first with Timesareachanging in the Cane Final (Freehold, New Jersey), and won his Little Brown Jug elimination (Delaware, Ohio).
Starting inside of Western Terror in the fifth race feature is Artiology (12-1, Tony Morgan), Tarver Hanover (15-1, Pat Berry), last Friday’s 1:52.1 elimination winner Georgia Pacific (9-2, Andy Miller), and Live Out Loud (8-1, Dale Hiteman). From post six through eight you’ll find Peyote (20-1, Dave Magee), Fox Valley Gallant (6-1, Eric Ledford) and Marchard (30-1, Tim Tetrick), respectively.
Fox Valley Gallant was also a $35,000 Windy City Pace supplement by his Lemont, Illinois owner James Jesk. The Seldon Ledford-trained state-bred star boasts a 1:50.3 winning mile here on November 5, making him the fastest horse of any age or sex in Maywood Park’s long 57-year history.
Georgia Pacific proved last Friday he is a strong threat in the Windy City Pace Final for trainer Randall Bendis, who shares ownership of the speedster with Susan Castelli, William Varney and John F. Campbell. The bay colt made it look easy when he won the Windy City Pace elimination in front-end fashion for driver Andy Miller with a 1:52.1 clocking.
Another son of Western Hanover, Georgia Pacific grabbed the lead right before the :27.3 first quarter, paced :28.1 (:55.4) and :28.2 (1:24.1) middle quarters in comfortable fashion, and came the last panel in :28 flat without much urging.
While only Three Olives’ (John Campbell) 1:52.4 victory in 2002 is the only recent Windy City Pace favorite to prevail, that wasn’t the case through most of the stake showdowns in the 1990s. Jake And Elwood (1990), Precious Bunny (1991), Western Hanover (1992), Presidential Ball (1993), Arturo (1997) and Looking For Art (1999) all were public’s choices who came through, and most went on to earn national honors.