Pompano Beach, FL — On a normal night at Pompano Park, the race that gets the most ink is the featured Open, which Prairie Panther won on Sunday night (March 8). But, on this night, the spotlight was on a Florida Amateur Driving Club event supporting the cause of a fellow horseman, Steve Wiseman.

Wiseman is battling some serious health issues and the FADC joined the “Wiseman Strong” movement by making a donation in support of this well-known and respected gentleman.

The “Wiseman Strong” Army gathered in the winner’s circle in support of horseman Steve Wiseman. Dee Leftwich photo.

The race honoring Wiseman was won by the 14 year-old warrior Rompaway Beau, driven by Ron Cusimano. Trained by Don Harmon for owner Krista Harmon, Rompaway Beau earned his 68th career win with the time of 1:57.4 being his fastest winning mile in nearly four years.

After the race, a humble and elated Cusimano said, “I have won over 250 races and this is the most important one for me in honoring Steve and being a part of the “Wiseman Strong” movement. I’ll let you in on a little secret; before we went to the gate, I whispered in Rompaway’s ear, ‘this one is for Steve, so let’s get it done.’ He must have heard me because all I did was steer. He did it all.”

Leading from first long stride to last, Rompaway Beau had three lengths over Security Guard (Dein Spriggs) at the wire with You Cant Habit (Carl Garofalo) next. As second choice, Rompaway Beau paid $6.80 to win.

Several other horsemen chimed in for the winner’s circle presentation, among them Spriggs, Rick Plano (recovering from surgery himself) and Frank Petrelli.

Plano recalled the days when Steve worked for him relating, “He was — and still is — a grand individual with a great work ethic and a very valuable person to have around.”

Petrelli also had high praise for Wiseman saying, “I just can’t say enough great things about him and I know he can beat this health issue.”

Spriggs, an integral part of the Florida Amateur Driving Club, said, “It’s an honor for our club to be a part of the “Wiseman Strong” journey.”

In an emotional segment, Wiseman, himself, joined the festivities via the internet and expressed deep gratitude for the outpouring of sentiment and help during his plight.

He said, “There are really no words that can convey my feelings. It’s just overwhelming. We are all combatants on the racetrack trying to make a living but, to me, this is why I am involved in this business. Everybody really roots for everyone’s success. Truly remarkable!”

Now, back to the feature where Prairie Panther made his 2020 debut a winning one with a gate-to-wire romp in 1:52 for Wally Hennessey in the $10,000 Open Handicap Pace.

The 6-year-old gelded son of Royel Millennium posted panels of :27.3, :56.1 and 1:24.3 before a handy :27.2 romp home sealed the deal by a length over Mac Anover (the longest shot on the board) with John MacDonald in his bike. Turbo Hill, driven by Hunter Oakes, rallied for third after trailing for the first half-mile. Outkast Blue Chip and Rub Ofthe Green N completed the classy quintet.

Trained by Mike Deters, who co-owns with Laurie Poulin, Prairie Panther now sports a lifetime scorecard of 36-6-9 in 74 starts, good for $337,122. He paid $2.40 to win.

Racing continues on Monday night with the Super Hi-5 jackpot standing at $60,720.86. Post time is set for 7:20 p.m.