Odds On Racing - Harness Racing

Millennium Miller

March 16, 2006

David Miller, who since 2000 has accounted for nearly $60 million in earnings, will pass two milestones this year * 8,000 lifetime wins and $90 million in earnings * but the first 10 weeks of this year have been frustrating for a man who is coming off the second best season of his career [418 wins and $11.1 million]. He topped the $10 million mark for the fourth time in the last five years.

“It’s early in the season, yet I’m seventh in the standings and I don’t like that,” said the 41-year-old Miller. “I never considered myself the best driver, but I’m certainly not happy were I’m at right now. I know I can be better. Everybody goes through lulls or ruts. I could sit here, go through every excuse in the book, and say that I’m not getting live horses to drive. That’s not really the truth. It’s just things aren’t clicking. Usually, this happens for me in March; this time it started in January. Some nights I’ve left the track scratching my head and wondered what the hell I’m doing wrong.

“I haven’t changed anything in my routine,” added the Ohio native who has career totals of 7,832 wins and $87.7 million. “When I get a good horse to drive, it seems something comes up. Hopefully, it will turn around soon and things will get rolling for me. Like Shu Hanover for instance, and in the Horse & Groom Final I took Smooth Muscles. Well, I’ll be darned if he didn’t flip his palate. I had him in position, and he couldn’t get his air. Stuff like that happens. I know I’m established, but if you’re not winning races, you pick up the sheet and see yourself down on mostly horses you’ve driven before.”

Miller has rarely strayed out of the Top 5 since he arrived at the Meadowlands in 1989. Over the last five years, he has led all Meadowlands drivers with an average of 200 wins and $5 million in earnings. He had his best Meadowlands meet for money won in 2005 [nearly $5.2 million] and finished third in the standings by wins with 199. Through March 15, 2006, he has 40 wins at the Meadowlands, trailing Brian Sears [95 wins], Eric Ledford [70], Ron Pierce [68], Cat Manzi [48], George Brennan [48] and Yannick Gingras [46].

“This is my sixth year here, and some of the guys that were doing well then are starting to do better again, so it’s a cycle,” noted Miller, who is also spending his Saturday afternoons at Freehold and Mondays at Dover Downs. “You just have to wait it out.”