New York Sires Stakes (NYSS) on June 28 at Yonkers produced
obvious winners, Romantic Moment at $2.20 and Handsoffmycookie at $2.60. Our
other choice, Brownsville Bomber, was second.
NYSS at Yonkers on June 29 featured a $7.50 winner: Forever
Just. Steelhead Hanover finished second and Breakin The Law was off the board.
At the Meadowlands on June 29 we lost the Titan Cup to the
big favorite, Chapter Seven. Then, on Saturday, we scored in a division of the
Reynolds stake with Verdad at $13.60. Our other two Reynolds picks completed a
triple, with Gottaseeaboutagirl and Blackjack Princess coming in second and
third, respectively.
Pocono Downs
hosted the highlighted stakes of the weekend. We suggested a pass on American
Jewel in the James Lynch because we figured she would pay little to nothing and
that is what happened; she paid $2.10.
In the Ben Franklin Final we were third with Aracache
Hanover and Hurrikane Kingcole shocked the crowd when he was burned to a crisp
going first over in a scorching three-quarters in the Max Hempt Final to finish
off the board. A Rocknroll Dance won at an astounding 17-1.
It’s the last month of our exclusive Hambletonian Trail blog. We
offer previews of races through the week for both divisions with Hambo hopes,
with reviews of those events at the
Hambletonian Society site.
Every weekend get Balmoral Pick-4-and-win picks at the
USTA’s Strategic Wagering Program
page which includes suggested win bets. Last week we hit with Sand Starla
at $10.80.
Also, enjoy our latest harness racing musings and the
archive of articles on a host of topics at my Hoof Beats blog, Vast Performances.
At Twitter you can easily follow Frank and Ray Cotolo and get up-to-the-minute
suggestions for wagers at many harness raceways. As you do, make your decisions
and wager from TwinSpires.
There is an easy way to get on our mailing list for exciting
information to help you play for profit. By clicking here you will be added to the
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anyone).
News And Notes
Yonkers Raceway
raises the guarantee for its Tuesday late Pick 4 to $25,000 beginning July 3.
The late Pick 4 consists of races seven through 10 every racing night.
Tioga Downs, in
league with the United States Trotting Association’s strategic wagering
program, will offer a $5,000 guaranteed Pick 4 each Sunday in July. The Pick 4
will be offered on the last four races of the day on each Sunday afternoon
racing program. The post time 1:30 p.m. EST. Tioga Downs began its weekend of
live racing action on June 29 at 6:50 p.m.
At the most recent USTA annual meeting in February,
President Phil Langley appointed a committee of horsemen and track operators to
study drug testing and to investigate what the industry can do to improve
testing procedures, including providing more financial support.
The committee aims to identify and eliminate exotic and
unknown drugs suspected as performance enhancers. A very positive development
has been the financial support of the Pennsylvania horsemen, who have stepped
forward and committed a portion of their revenue to working on processes that
will identify strange substances.
“As this process moves on we will keep the industry up to
date with timely reports,” said Langley.
The racing schedule at both Tioga and Vernon will change for the
upcoming ‘Fourth of July’ holiday week. Tioga picks up an extra
live date on Wednesday, July 4.
Vernon will race on Tuesday evening July 3 and
have a matinee card at 1:15 p.m. on Wednesday, July 4t, then
continue with Wednesday evening racing throughout July and August.
We promised updates about Sweet Lou and here is the latest.
Trainer Ron Burke said that for the July 7 Meadowlands Pace eliminations,
“We’re going with aluminum shoes instead of steel shoes,” Burke said. “They may
help him be more aggressive.”
Burke also let out
the hopples for the sophomore colt pacer. “I tried an open bridle but he was
too busy with it. He just wanted to play with me.”
Burke said he plans to ship the colt to the Meadowlands this
week to familiarize him with the track. “We’ll either qualify him there or
train him — one or the other,” Burke said. “I want him to go over the track. I
don’t think racing on a big track will be an issue. He won at Indiana Downs and
the Red Mile at two. I think we’ll see multiple divisions in the Meadowlands
Pace. There are some vicious three-year-olds out there. It’s amazing how many
good ones … this will prove to be a strong crop.”
Eric Carlson won his first race at the Meadowlands, a week after Ray Cotolo got an exclusive interview with him. You can read that by clicking here.
Cartoon by Thom Pye