Odds On Racing - Harness Racing

Violet & Cardinal Eliminations Held at Maywood
October 11, 2004
By Kimberly A. Rinker

Four $9,000 Cardinal & Violet dashes for pacers were held Friday night, October 8, Friday night at the Maywood Park oval that was literally a sea of mud after a day that saw constant rain in the Windy City.

The Violet Pace eliminations (October 8, 2004)
In the first Violet elimination for freshman pacing fillies driver Yannick Gingras made his Chicago driving debut a winning one as he piloted trainer Seldon Ledford's 25-1 shot Brianna Joy to a 1:56.2 clocking. Leaving hard from post seven the daughter of Sportsmaster knocked off fractions of :28.3, :58.2 and 1:27.2 to score her third victory in eight lifetime starts for owners James Jesk and Ledford Racing Inc., of Illinois.

"Seldon had asked me to race this filly from off the pace but she really just drug me out of the gate and I had no choice but to let her go," a mud-splattered Gingras said. "We got to the half as slow as I was able to hold her. Eric (regular driver Ledford) told me she'd be sharp tonight and she really was super, despite the off track."

Fox Valley Fussy (Tony Morgan) finished second with Sleazebiscuit (Mike Oosting) in third and Sounds of Silence (Dave Magee) all advancing to the $60,000 on October 15.

Studio Nine easily took the second Violet elim for driver Dale Hiteman and trainer Timothy Bredberg. Owned by Carol Rieken and Melvin Schonewies of Illinois, the Ft. Apache Hanover lass gamely paced to a 1:57.3 clocking in only her second career victory in 12 starts.

"This is a very green filly," Hiteman noted. "She matured late and still has a lot of growing up to do. I really thought she had a strong chance in here and I wanted to give her every chance to win in here."

Briley Shea nailed down the bridesmaid role for Tim Tetrick, while Alldressedinvelvet got up for third with Dave Magee. Regalia's Riches (Robert Talyor), who made a break just before the start, recovered to grab fourth.

The Cardinal Pace Eliminations (October 8, 2004)
After favorite Chevie Cash (Dale Hiteman) made a break in the first turn, the first of two Cardinal eliminations was a wide open event. Tony Morgan took advantage of the rail and had Brian And Kellie on the lead at every quarter marker, winning in 1:57 for owners M&M Harness Racing, and Dave McCaffrey, who also trains the altered son of Art's Conquest.

"This youngster has matured a little late," Morgan said. "In fact, they weren't real high on him in the beginning because he travels a little funky and is pretty rolly-gaited. But everything out of the mare (She's Redhot) travels this way, and I'm partial to this colt because I got my 9,000 win with him, so he's one of my 17 favorites! He likes this track and has a good attitude and is a pretty gritty little horse."

Longshot The Long Goodbye (Dave Magee) was second, with Larry Horse (Brent Holland) third and Team Hutch (Yannick Gingras) fourth.

Favorite Kennans Josh didn't disappoint his backers in the second Cardinal elim, scoring in 1:54.3 for Tim Tetrick and trainer Joel Smith. Owned by Ken Spurlock of Cedarlake, Indiana, it was the fourth victory in 14 tries for the son of Richess Hanover.

"This horse has been consistent all year long," Tetrick said. "I wanted to get an easy race under his belt to prepare for next week's final. He can really pace a fast last quarter and won easily tonight, so he'll definitely be sharp for the final. When I pulled the ear plugs, he just paced away from that other horse. Pacing a last quarter in :28 on a track like we have here tonight is no small feat. He did it like it was nothing."

Finishing four lengths behind the winner was That Thing (Dale Hiteman), with Fox Valley Rumble (Pat Berry) in third and New World Mover (Ryan Anderson) in fourth.

The Violet Trot Eliminations (October 6, 2004)
A pair of $9,000 Violet eliminations were contested on Wednesday night, October 6, for Illinois-bred freshman fillies trotters. Two fields of seven took to the half-mile oval, with the first four finishers in each set to return for the $50,000 Final on October 13 at Maywood.

In the first divison The Glimmer Girl scored easily in 2:002 for driver Dave Magee, establishing a new track standard for her age, sex and gait. Silhouette Star (Dale Hiteman) was second, with Meddow (Ron Marsh) third and Oasis Montana (Tim Tetrick) fourth.

"She's a game, aggressive filly at times," Magee notd. "She wants to go a lot, and had no problem getting around the half mile turns. She's a great gaited filly with a lot of heart and keeps on digging throughout the mile. She circled that horse handily on the backstretch and dug in at the wire without much urging."

The Glimmer Girl is conditioned by Dirk Simpson for Peter Karras of Sherman, Illinois and the victory was hre seventh in 16 career starts.

Arcola (Tim Tetrick) took the second Violet elimination in 2:03.4 for trainer Roger Welch and owners Morton and Michael Turndorf of California. In her last outing she had captured the $120,000 Lady Lincoln Land for Tetrick in 1:57.4 at Balmoral on September 23 and now has seven wins in 12 career starts and just over $125,000 in earnings.

Princess Caroline (Connel Willis) was second, while Miss Gertrude (Buddy Simpson) was third and Pandora (Dale Hiteman) nailed down fourth.

"This filly gets around Maywood really well," Tetrick said. "She was very relaxed tonight and trainer Roger (Welch) has done a great job of getting her to relax throughout these last couple of starts. When a horse comes alongside ofher she's very game and doesn't want to let them get by her. Tonight she came a very nice last quarter and I never turned her loose."

The Cardinal Trot Eliminations (October 8, 2004)
That same night a pair of $9,000 Cardinal eliminations were contested for ICF freshman colt and gelding trotters. Again, the first four finishers in each heat will return for the $50,000 Final set for October 13 at Maywood.

The first elimination went to favorite Victrola (Andy Miller) in 2:00.2. Trained by Tom Graham Sr and owned by Carol Graham of Salem, Illinois, it was the tenth win of the year in 16 tries for the gelded son of Valley Victor. The hobbled youngster won the $114,000 Lincoln Land Stake at Balmoral on September 23 for Miller in 1:57.3 and has nearings of just over $120,000.

Bear Claw (Tim Tetrick) nailed second, with Western March (Tony Morgan) third and The Vicster (Ryan Anderson) was fourth after a costly early miscue.

"This horse is not the best gaited horse in the world," Andy said. "He wears a very tight trotting hobble, which helps a lot of young, green trotters. He's raced a lot at the fairs and I figured he'd get around this track alright. My main concern was that I kept him out of trouble so that he'd have no trouble making the final. When I asked him to go, he really went tonight."

The second elimination went to Dabra (Tim Tetrick) who is conditioned by Roger Welch for Jesse DeLong of Clinton, Wisconsin. This Valley Victor gelding trotting in 2:03.1 en route to winning his first lifetime start in 10 tries. Vanished (Ron Marsh) was second, while Fox Valley Liberty (Dale Hiteman) was third, and Wire toWire Wally (Cathy Rutherford) garnered fourth.

"Jesse broke this horse and trained him down, but he was making breaks for him at the fairs in Wisconsin," Roger said. "So he called me and asked me to take him and try him myself. I think this youngster's main concern was a maturity problem. We trained him and he just got beat out of winning at Springfield. He's got gait speed and can really fly around a half-mile track. Tonight he had a fairly rough trip and still raced very well."

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