Odds On Racing - Harness Racing

Breeders Crown Saturday Elimination

Saturday, November 19, 2005

$25,000 BC Prep Two-Year-Old Filly Pace
PP Horse                     Driver
6 Lonesome Day           David Miller
3 Darlin’s Delight           Y Gingras
5 Little Miss K                Eric Ledford
1 Caviart Sydney          D Palone
7 Western Gallie            G Brennan
8 Katies Western           MLachance
4 Mommy Robin Q         B Sears
2 Mythical                     Mike Macdonald
Scratched: My Little Dragon
Time 1:52.4
The Skinny: Lonesome Day scored her fourth straight in the $25,000 Breeders Crown Prep for two-year-old pacing fillies Saturday night at the Meadowlands. The non-betting event was a tune up for fillies who will be in next Saturday’s $500,000 final. Lonesome Day, racing for the Let It Ride Stables of Del Ray Beach, Florida, and Docs Farm Inc., of Gainesville, Florida, paced the mile in 1:52.4. She now has seven wins and two seconds in nine lifetime starts.
The Ross Croghan-trainee was driven by David Miller.

“It was a very nice prep for her,” said Croghan. “I couldn’t have asked for a nicer trip for her tonight. She has been good for a solid couple of months. She’s very easy to train and takes very good care of herself. I think we really have a shot with her.”

$25,000 BC Elim Two-Year-Old Colt Trot
PP Horse                Driver
5 Chocolatier            DR Ackerman
2 Mr Pine Chip         Dave Palone
3 Global Glide           Ron Pierce
1 Ebony Strike          Steve Condren
4 Ira K                      Yannick Gingras
Time 28.4 59.3 1:28.3 1:56.4
The Skinny: The Doug Ackerman Stables’ Chocolatier won the first of two $25,000 Breeders Crown eliminations for two-year-old trotting colts and geldings. The brown son of Credit Winner improved his record to seven wins in nine starts with Doug R. Ackerman in the sulky.
Chocolatier trotted the mile in 1:56.4, well off his world record time of 1:54.4 posted in the International Stallion Stakes at the Red Mile on October 6.

“He made a break in his Valley Victory elim, but that wasn’t his fault, that was our fault,” Ackerman said in the winner’s circle. “He’s a very nice horse and couldn’t be any better mannered. He just literally drives with two fingers, and he’s just as comfortable as he can be. He really just takes care of himself.”

$25,000 BC Elim Two-Year-Old Colt Trot
PP Horse Driver
4 Make You Mine M Lachance
5 Rc Royalty Dan Daley
8 EL Mikko Mike MacDonald
3 Capetown Hall Brian Sears
1 Double Player J Campbell
Time 28.3 57.3 1:27 1:56.2
The Skinny: Make You Mine won the second Breeders Crown trot elim in a lifetime best of 1:56.2 for driver Mike Lachance & trainer Ron Gurfein, and pushed his record to six wins, two seconds and one third in 13 starts. The gelded son of Self Possessed is owned by the Brittany Farms of Versailles, Kentucky; Sampson Street Stables of Old Forge, Pennsylvania, Jerry Silva of Bellmore, New York and Mathias Meinzinger of Central Islip, New York.

“I was sitting six or seven on the outside, like third over,” said Lachance. “My horse is a one-run horse. That’s why a big track helps him. He’s got a lot of trot at the end if you use him just one time in the stretch. I don’t know if he can beat Chocolatier but if he gets any kind of trip and he’s not too far that he can reach at the top of the stretch, he’s got a good lick at the end.”

$25,000 BC Elim Two-Year-Old Filly Trot
PP Horse                Driver
8 Pure Ivory            Steve Condren
1 Flamingo Bingo      Brian Sears
9 Merles Pearl          J Hebert
3 Quick Credit          J Campbell
5 Azalea Gal            Ron Pierce
Times 28.4 58.2 1:27.4 1:57
The Skinny: Pure Ivory won the first of two $25,000 Breeders Crown elims for two-year-old trotting fillies, for driver and co-woner Steve Condren and trainer Brad Maxwell.

“I wasn’t really leaving too hard with her,” said Condren. “She was leaving with me a little bit tonight. She was a little bit rambunctious. Once I got her in, it took her a little while to settle, but I got in a good position and caught some good cover. She’s been pretty nice since day one. We started off kind of slow. She’s worked out to be pretty good. She had a little bump in the road the middle of the season, but she’s had too little breaks, and she’s just as fresh now as she ever was.”

Pure Ivory, daughter of Striking Sahbra, swept the Ontario Sire Stakes before shipping to the Meadowlands for the Breeders Crown. She now has 10 wins and one second in 13 starts and earnings in excess of $335,000. Breeder Harry Rutherford of Mount Pleasant, Ontario owns the colt in partnership with Condren, Christine Maxwell of Ayr, Ontario and Jerry Vanboekel of Bright, Ontario.

$25,000 BC Elim Two-Year-Old Filly Trot
PP Horse                   Driver
9 Macaria Hanover       D Palone
7 Passionate Glide        Pierce
6 Love On The Rocks    Manzi
10 Susie’s Magic           D Miller
8 Miss Wisconsin           Lachance
Time 27.4 56 1:25.4 1:55
The Skinny: Macaria Hanover won the second division and in the process set a world record for two-year-old trotting fillies when she cover the mile in 1:55 flat, eclipsing the 1:55.1 race mark set by CR Kay Suzie in 1994. Macaria Hanover, a daughter of Lindy Lane, is owned by William B. Weaver III of Freehold, New Jersey. She now has five wins, a second and a third in eight starts for trainer Doug Miller.

“She raced good,” said driver Dave Palone. “Tonight we drew the nine so we thought we’d take our chances. She likes to be upfront. We’ve put the Evolution race bike on her, and she seems to like it a lot.

$25,000 BC Elim Two-Year-Old Colt Pace
PP Horse                     Driver
6 Western Cyclone         D Miller
1 Jereme’s Jet                Paul MacDonell
3 Artstanding                 Mike Lachance
5 Faust Blue Chip           J Campbell
2 Sea Dragon                Eric Ledford
Time 28.2 57.4 1:27.0 1:54
The Skinny: Western Cyclone won the first of two $25,000 Breeders Crown elims for two-year-old pacing colts in 1:54. The top five from each of the two elims advance to the $575,400 final next Saturday night. Western Cyclone, bred and owned by Arlene and Jules Siegel of New Hope, Pennsylvania, now has five wins, three seconds and one third in 10 starts for trainer Travis Alexander.

“It worked out good,” said winning driver David Miller. “I left the gate and got covered up by Jereme’s Jet and got the pocket trip, and he just raced good. At the top of the stretch, he was loaded with pace. I was just looking for a way to get out. I wasn’t sure I could beat him until I got out. But he raced great. The track’s in great shape.”

$25,000 BC Elim Two-Year-Old Colt Pace
PP Horse                 Driver
4 Shark Gesture        David Miller
5 Western Ace           Cat Manzi
6 Perfect Union          G Brennan
3 Palone Ranger        Brian Sears
7 Bartolomeo N        Y Gingras
2 Feelin Friskie          John Campbell
Time :28.2 :56.2 1:25 1:53.2
The Skinny: Shark Gesture won the second elim, pacing the mile in 1:53.2 for his third win with three seconds and one third in nine starts. Driven by David Miller and trained by Mark Harder, is owned by Norman Smiley of Boca Raton, Florida; Gerald Smiley of Cote Saint-Luc, Quebec and the TLP Stable of Kearny, New Jersey.

$25,000 BC Elim Three-Year-Old Colt Pace
PP Horse                     Driver
5 Up Front Charlie       D Palone
6 Gold Dust Beach        Campbell
4 Roddy’s Bags Again    Manzi
1 Village Jolt                 Ron Pierce
1A Cam’s Fool              Brian Sears
Time 27.2 54.2 1:22.2 1:50.1
The Skinny: Up Front Charlie won the first of two $25,000 elimination races for three-year-old pacing colts and geldings, in 1:50.1, a lifetime best for the son of Dragon Again. Driven by Dave Palone and racing for C. Ed Mullinax of Amherst, Ohio, Up Front Charlie is trained by Kelly O’Donnell, and now has five wins, one second and two thirds in 10 starts this year.

“I really didn’t have my mind made up about what I was going to do and a couple guys were just taken back,” said Palone. “I think, maybe to follow Ronnie [Ron Pierce with Village Jolt]. I got him crossed over. But it really didn’t set up the way I thought. They bounced over there. In a seven-horse field, you don’t expect to go with these kinds of numbers, but it just worked out perfect when I was able to get out in the last turn and I got lucky.

$25,000 BC Elim Three-Year-Old Colt Pace
PP Horse                     Driver
6 Rocknroll Hanover       B Sears
2 American Ideal           MacDonald
7 Leading X Ample        E Ledford
5 I Zee                         John Campbell
4 Gryffindor                   David Miller
Time :26.4 :54.3 1:22.2 1:49.2
The Skinny: Rocknroll Hanover captured the second of two elims in 1:49.2 for the mile and was driven to victory by Brian Sears. The Brett Pelling trainee now has 11 wins, four seconds and two thirds in 17 starts and nearly $2 million in earnings in 2005. Lifetime, he has banked in excess of $2.6 million. The Meadowlands Pace and North America Cup winner is owned by Jeff Snyder of New York City, the Lothlorien Equestrien Center of Mississauga, Ontario and Perretti Racing Stable of Cream Ridge, New Jersey.

“It was a marquis match up,” noted Pelling. “He raced great. He’s been racing every week. He hasn’t been sitting around. I can’t see a benefit or negative to that. Tonight he came in after four weeks and four races. Next week will be five and five. He’s a pretty smart horse and takes care of himself. He’ll probably appreciate the win after some incidental trips at Dover. We don’t like to miss a day with him. He’ll jog on Monday. We’ll see how he recovers after tonight, which he usually does, so I’m planning on a normal week ahead. He’s a big, robust horse so he needs to say active. If he’s not eating, he’s sleeping.”

“It was a very sharp effort,” Sears said. “He races good off the pace, catching the speed horses. You got to give credit to American Ideal. He raced super, also.”