Captaintreacherous, again denied by many, this time due to
his outside post position in the Max Hempt Final at Pocono on June 29, paid a
remarkable $4.80 by winning the race with defiance toward every harness-handicapping
notion available.
The ever-so-great sophomore pacer, with Tim Tetrick aboard
again, left from post 9 and raced on the outside for all three turns of the
mile, sometimes three wide, and got up by a neck to defeat Vegas Vacation in
1:49.2. And he did it on the surface that was pelted by rain an hour before the
event, turning the condition of the surface to “sloppy.”
Raised eyebrows are yet to fall back into place; the
“Captain” is going every bit as perfectly as we predicted from the start of his
soph career. It could be that we have seen the last time he will win at
anywhere near 7-5. Twice now we have urged readers to wager on him over even
money and twice the Captain came through. This is indeed a special pacer, a
racer of greatness, able to avert adversity for the sake of winning.
We were also correct about the Ben Franklin Final, as Bolt
The Duer received the trip needed to win, paying $6.80.
Our speculation into the onslaught of freshman races over
the weekend produced only one winner and it was very obvious to all. He’s
Watching won at Saratoga Harness and paid a paltry $2.90. The remainder of our
ventures into the frosh world were all failures from 8-5 to 51-1.
For result stories and our winners on soph-colt-and-filly
trotters’ stakes, visit the Hambletonian
Society’s special archive page for the Hambletonian Trail stories.
H2W
$9.40 Cheyenne Cam, Buffalo
$6.80 Columbia Art, Northfield
$3.60 Hillbilly, Pompano
$2.40 Vodka Is Terror, Saratoga
$6.80 Columbia Art, Northfield
$3.60 Hillbilly, Pompano
$2.40 Vodka Is Terror, Saratoga
The following are the horses that finished
second or third along with their post-time odds. Special notes on those
finishes follow.
Seconds:
The Riddler (8-5), Maywood
The Riddler (8-5), Maywood
Thirds:
Guts N Glory (2-1), Maywood; Misty’s Dignity (6-1), Northfield; MJ’s Victory (3-1), Northfield; Lislea Bonita (7-1), Scarborough; Parthenon (3-1), Running Aces; Twentyone Guns (5-1), Running Aces
Guts N Glory (2-1), Maywood; Misty’s Dignity (6-1), Northfield; MJ’s Victory (3-1), Northfield; Lislea Bonita (7-1), Scarborough; Parthenon (3-1), Running Aces; Twentyone Guns (5-1), Running Aces
All adjustments for returnees to the list
and additions will be in the Thursday blog.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
News And Notes
Also at Pocono on June 29, Foiled
Again’s win in the Ben Franklin Final put the stalwart pacer’s earnings over
the $5-million mark, putting him third to Varenne and Moni Maker on the list of
standardbred’s highest earners. Much like Captaintreacherous did in his win on
the same program, Foiled Again took an overland journey to win, catching Pet
Rock and Razzle Dazzle at the wire. Now a nine-year-old, Foiled Again joined
the Ron Burke stable in 2008.
With Arch Madness cutting the
fractions in Pocono’s opening race on June 29, Uncle Peter got the perfect trip
right behind him to come out in the stretch and win in 1:50.3. That is the
fastest mile won by a trotter on a five-eighths track. Arch Madness fired major
fractions of :26.2, :55 and 1:22.1 to allow Uncle Peter the speed badge.
Though we offered an alternative to
the mighty I Luv The Nitelife in the June 29 James Lynch Final at Pocono, we
also warned of this filly’s dominance over her soph division. When she won the
“Lynch” she became the sport’s newest millionaire. This is rare so early in the
season but she could be as special for her sex as the Captain is for his
division. It was her fourth-straight win this year, having taken the Fan
Hanover in Canada and winning her Lynch elim last week.
More baby races at the Meadowlands
over the weekend offered some tips on youngsters looking in fine fettle to
battle as the frosh season ensues. Trotting colts Flacco and Trixton, both
trained by Jimmy Takter were impressive in wins. Trixton was the most expensive
trotting yearling sold at auction last year, bringing a final bid of $360,000.
He won for the second time in baby events.
Dottie Major won at first asking for trainer Nick Surick; Put On A Display,
a $175,000 Somebeachsomewhere filly led all way to win; colt pacers Murder He
Wrote and Winds Of Change looked strong in victory. Two-year-old colts Stay Up
Late and Avalanche Hanover also made good impressions.
Extraordinary Extras
Indulge in many standardbred topics at my Hoof Beats
blog titled Vast
Performances.
Every weekend as part of that blog we offer Balmoral
Pick-4-and-win picks at the USTA’s Strategic
Wagering Program page which includes suggested win bets.
Recent Balmoral winners in tickets include:
TE's Zenyatta, $32.40; Bring It All, $20.00; Galactic Star, $8.40; Shiswell's Delight, $8.40; Dontbeachatme, $8.00; Make Me Fly, $4.60; Mister Virgin, $4.00; Justlivinthedream, $2.80, $2.20.
Connect to Twitter and follow Frank and Ray Cotolo for up-to-the-minute
suggestions on wagers at many harness raceways. Then, wager from your
TwinSpires accounts.
Ray
Cotolo contributed to this blog.
Cartoons by Thom Pye