Odds On Racing - Harness Racing

Muscovite wins Merrie Annabelle

Muscovite & Mike Lachance Thursday at The Big M

August 3, 2007

A rare mistake by 1-9 favorite Snow White created a prime opportunity for Muscovite's first career win in the $458,550 Merrie Annabelle for two-year-old filly trotters on Thursday night at the Meadowlands. Mike Lachance steered Muscovite to the front and led the field through opening fractions of :27.3 and :56, before yielding to Snow White and John Campbell mid-way through the final turn.

Snow White opened up to a five-length lead in the stretch, then broke stride, giving Muscovite the chance to snap up the victory in 1:57. Pinery finished second, while Snow White held third.

Muscovite was sent off at odds of 42-1 and paid $86.60. Ron Gurfein trains the daughter of Muscles Yankee for Toss Out LLC of Fort Pierce, Florida. She was a $70,000 yearling purchase at the Harrisburg Sale.

"She's a beautiful filly, well-bred, nice-gaited and has a lot of speed," said driver Mike Lachance. "We've been nursing her every start. Tonight, she had an outside post and she warmed up really, really good and so I took a shot behind the gate to get her close to the front. I didn't think I could win but I thought, for that kind of money, if I could get her to the front or close to the front, she's going to get a good check and it turned out she got it all. I was just trying to finish second. When John [Campbell and Snow White] came on the last turn, she still had a lot of trot, so I grabbed her to let her go. When she opened a couple of lengths she got green on me and started to wait a little bit and I was just concerned about trying to finish second. By the wire, she stared to get back on trot. I had a little horse at the end."

Snow White, the dominant filly in the freshman division, suffered her first career loss.

"She lost her gait mid-stretch," said John Campbell. "She had been flawless to this point. She just lost her gait at the most inopportune time. I could tell she was losing her gait, but there was nothing I could do with her. At the head of the stretch, I thought she was home free, but 10 strides before it happened, I could feel it coming."