Showing posts with label Hoof Beats. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hoof Beats. Show all posts

  • Cotolo’s Harness Review, News And Notes

    POSTED Sep 21, 2013 By Frank Cotolo

    Before the weekend results and news, here is how the best of our suggested contenders did at the Delaware County Fair meet from Sunday, Sept. 15 through Thursday, Sept. 19 (Little Brown Jug day). All horses are in order of price paid, highest to lowest amounts, with show prices included for place horses. 

    Winners:

    Kennairnmachmagic, $18.60
    Supreme Day, $8.40
    Lismaraslady, $7.80
    Future Night Train, $5.60
    I Luv The Nitelife, $3.20

    Seconds:

    Jerseylicious, $5.40, $3.80
    Crown Time Keeper, $5.00, $5.00
    Coffeecake Hanover, $3.20

    Thirds:

    Emeritus Maximus, $5.00
    Wake Up Peter, $3.80
    Mannerism, $3.60
    Sailer Eddie, $3.60
    Zambrano, $3.00
    Milliron Pete, $2.60

    Our highest priced winner, if played with the race favorite in an exacta (perfecta), paid $48.20. The Jugette first elim heat exacta paid $9.60. 
     
    With the bridge-jumpers out in full force—$215,000 in the show pool—Captaintreacherous swayed home wire to wire at Hoosier on Sept. 21 in 1:49.4. The brilliant pacer faced practically nothing like the talent he has beaten this season in a display much like a qualifier. 
     
    We supported two trotters to strongly contend the Centaur Trotting Classic at Hoosier and the better-paying steed won. Uncle Peter was all out late and won, paying $15.40. 
     
    At our The Breeders Crown Countdown blog we analyzed the Milton Final at Mohawk with aplomb, nabbing Rocklamation with a correct scenario of failed speed late. The crafty closer paid $27.10. 
     
    The countdown blog, in cooperation with the Hambletonian Society and TwinSpires, is your exclusive bettors’ aid for handicapping top contenders’ events heading toward the October classics.  Check it out each week in league with our Thursday TwinSpires blog.

    H2W RESULTS

    $15.20 Lady Ashlyn, Northfield
    $4.60 Shadowonthebeach, Rosecroft
    $4.40 Painite, Vernon
    $3.00 Michael’s Dream, Rosecroft 

     

    The following are the horses that finished second or third along with their post-time odds. Special notes on those finishes follow. 

     

    Seconds:
    Townline Kriss (9-1), Northfield; Livelikeurdying (5-1), Lebanon    

     

    Thirds:
    Masked Lover (22-1), Northfield; Caveat Empton (8-5), Vernon; Leg Up (10-1), Freehold 


    Oddly enough, one of our list members at Lebanon, Big Ben’s Canyon, was beaten by Milliron Pete, who you can see above was one of our Ohio contenders. Also, “Canyon” went off higher than any horse we ever included on the H2W. Canyon finished seventh at 385-1. 
     
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
     
    News And Notes
     
    A horse we gave out last year when he won and paid the best price to date of his career (winning the Art Rooney Final at Yonkers) is now the fastest winner on a half-mile track in the history of the sport. At the Delaware County Fairground, on Little Brown Jug day, Pet Rock nipped A Rocknroll Dance to win the Winbak Pace in 1:48.1. Now a four-year-old, Pet Rock holds the world record for a mile, five-eighths and half, all established within the past two months. 
     
    The connections of Hambletonian-winner Royalty For Life skipped action in Ohio and announced the colt will compete at The Red Mile in the Kentucky Futurity on Sunday, Oct. 6. 
     
    Trainer George Duchame told Kathy Parker of Horsemen & Fair World about the plans. After the colt won the Hambletonian, Ducharme mapped out a conservative schedule for the trotter, with a start in the Bluegrass the first week at Lexington and then skipping the Kentucky Futurity. Royalty For Life’s powerful victory in the Canadian Trotting Classic prompted the change in plans. 
     
    Trainer Chuck Sylvester also plans for Pennsylvania Sires Stakes champion and Hambo third-place finisher Spider Blue Chip, who lost in Ohio, to compete in the “Futurity.” And Creatine, who we supported in the TwinSpires Player Pool when he won an elim for the Hambo at 5-1, will also start in the Futurity.
     
    Googoo Gaagaa, last year’s trotting star with a pacing sire, was upset in a FFA trot at Maryland’s Great Frederick Fair. Cool Colby defeated “Goo,” whose owner-trainer is Richard Hans (he also drove Goo). The 2012 sensation, who was defeating all the Hambo contenders before August (not having a trotting sire, Goo was never eligible to the classic race), Goo had health issues that dowsed his sophomore season. At four he has not had much success, racing mostly in his home state of Maryland. 
     
    Last Sunday was the final night of live harness racing at Toledo’s Raceway Park, an historic half-mile track actie since opening in 1959. Among various events throughout the evening were guest announcers who had called the action at Raceway Park, including Sam McKee, Steve Cross, John Pawlak, Ayers Ratliff and Ron Sobczack. Two brand new harness tracks are being built in Ohio and will offer better purses and increased opportunities to the Ohio horse industry than had Raceway. The 2014 racing season will be held at a brand new facility, Hollywood Gaming at Dayton Raceway.
     
    Extraordinary Extras
     
    Indulge in many standardbred topics at my Hoof Beats blog titled Vast Performances. 
     
    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

  • Cotolo’s Harness Review, News And Notes

    POSTED Mar 17, 2013 By Frank Cotolo

    There were only two minor features in the sport this week, both at the New Meadowlands and both dominated by public choices. Our picks, Yo Cheyenne Rocky finished third at an astounding 51-1 and Volare De Vie watched all of his foes make it over the finish line before him.   

    Next week Yonkers’ stakes season gets going, so check in with us on Thursday for the weekend preview.  

    Our abbreviated exclusive horses-to-watch (H2W) list was updated (as we studied more trips from raceways around the continent) last Thursday and even with a smaller dose of suggested contenders it performed well. We will add more to next week’s list. Let’s catch up with the results of all the wins, places and shows from this extraordinary list.    

    H2W    


    Here they are from the highest paying to the lowest paying winners from the H2W for March to date:

     
    $51.20 Bubba Mcgee, Cal Expo
    $9.00 Hesagreateclipse, Lebanon
    $8.60 Lutetium, Buffalo
    $7.40 Love To Rock, Freehold
    $6.60 Sterling Chris, Lebanon
    $6.00 Jimmy Rip, Maywood
    $4.20 Monet’s Lily, Freehold
    $4.00 I Think Im Dreamin, Northfield
    $3.40 Worker C, Lebanon
    $3.20 Zapata, Freehold
     

    The following are the horses that finished second or third along with their post-time odds. Special notes on their affects in those positions follow (where two sets of odds appear it reflects two races in as many weeks). Be aware that some of them were second-timers on the list and will not return next week (you may continue following them on your own, using them as you see fit).   

    Seconds:
    Whats Your Fantasy (5-2), Northfield; Hot Cha Cha (3-5), Freehold; Big Sky Bats (7-1), Freehold   

    Thirds
    Windy City Paige (2-1), Cal Expo; In Good Hands (9-1), Buffalo; Redford Hall (22-1), Buffalo; Urban Art (11-1), Buffalo; Buddy Lou (6-1), Lebanon; Cute And Cruising (9-5), Northfield; Lennox Blue Chip (6-1), Balmoral

    All adjustments for returnees to the list and additions will be in the Thursday blog.

    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

    News And Notes

    Rocknroll Hanover, one great racehorse that turned into one of the best pacing sires of modern time, is dead. The 2005 Horse of the Year winner earned more than $3 million in on the track and in the breeding shed, last year alone, and his offspring won $17 million, which was number one among all harness racing sires. Rocknroll Hanover was standing at Perretti Farms of Pennsylvania.

    The 11-year old son of Western Hanover was euthanized last week at the Mid-Atlantic Equine Clinic after suffering from irreparable colic. Brett Pelling trained the champion pacer during his racing career, where the colt won many of the top stakes.

    As a sire, Rocknroll Hanover (pictured left) has six millionaire performers to date including Rock N Roll Heaven ($2,774,478), Put On A Show ($2,459,903), A Rocknroll Dance ($1,926,152), Rocklamation ($1,193,315), Ticket To Rock ($1,131,163) and Pet Rock ($1,010,236).   

    “He’s made a hell of a contribution to the breed,” said Bob Marks, the marketing manager for Perretti Farms. “I think it was remarkable what he did last year [as a sire]; he was the leading money-winning stallion even though his oldest foals were only five. He’ll be remembered as one of the great stallions; a stallion who was done too soon. Certainly he’s left some sons who will carry on.”  

    To die at 11 is very young for any racehorse and yet death came before the age of 20 to many great harness horses, including Taurus Dream, Bonefish, Malabar Man, Nihilator, Merrie Annabelle and Tyler B to name a few. 
    The New Meadowlands announced that the Nat Ray Free For All trot has been re-named the John Cashman, Jr. Memorial. The event is traditionally on the Hambletonian program the first Saturday in August. 
    First raced in 1981, the event counts among its winners many of trotting’s greatest champs. Moni Maker won the Nat Ray three times and Lucky Jim set his 1:50.1 world record in the race.
    John Cashman’s distinguished career included several high-profile positions, including his tenure at Castleton Farms and in the launching of the Breeders Crown championships.

    Grand Circuit President John Campbell announced that all open stakes raced in North America that were not previously considered as Grand Circuit (GC) would now carry that designation, beginning with the 2013 season. Several racetracks that had not previously been GC members and a few that lapsed have agreed to join and consider their non-state restricted stakes as GC races. Those tracks include Yonkers, Northfield, Saratoga, Hazel and Red Shores Racetrack. Dover and Harrah’s Philadelphia will return after a brief absence.   

    “We hope to help create better awareness of our top races and provide the tracks with a more promotable [sic] product,” Campbell said. “I recently read an account of Dan Patch’s career and many of the stakes he won held the Grand Circuit designation at tracks now long gone. It added to the excitement of those races. We hope to help recreate the some of the enthusiasm of those times in our modern product.”  

    A brand new GC logo has been created in the hope that it will be included in the program for GC events and on any trophy coolers presented to those stake winners. A formula has been devised to monitor the success of all horsemen in GC races. More information will be made available as the details are finalized.

    Buffalo Raceway will begin racing four days week in April. Thursdays will be added with a first post of 5 p.m. (EDT) starting April 4. This is in addition to the Wednesday, Friday and Saturday schedule. This is one week earlier than originally scheduled, to make up for a cancellation due to winter weather. The 71st year of racing at the New York oval continues with racing on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights. Sunday afternoons will be added in June and July.

    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.     

    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.


    Cotolo blog cartoons by Thom Pye

  • Cotolo’s Harness Review, News And Notes

    POSTED Jan 6, 2013 By Frank Cotolo
    It was another weekend with horses-to-watch (H2W) success, which, if you are following closely, is defined by more than the winners listed. Within the lists for second and third are live horses that have contributed to exotics as well as some handed out nifty place and show prices, if you are playing those mutuels or across the board.  

    We intend to keep the list going as the stakes season creeps in because we want to continue to publish the most valuable harness-betting blog on the Internet through TwinSpires. We want to stack wagering information here for you, stakes or no stakes.  

    You might say it is our New Year resolution. This season we won’t simply cover the high-profile events, we will make it our business to help your wagering business by keeping the H2W going, allowing you to evaluate overnight racing at many of the tracks carried by TwinSpires and hopefully, helping you strike more wins, places, shows and exotics in 2013.

    H2W


    Here they are from the highest paying to the lowest paying winners from the list on our blog last Thursday:
     

    $16.40, Dan Lowe, Maywood
    $6.80, Cien, Northfield
    $6.00, Red Star Brooklyn, Fraser
    $4.20, Harmony Oaks Rebel, Northfield
    $3.60, Majestic Lass, Cal Expo
    $3.20, Cruisin Inmybeamber, Cal Expo


    Here are the horses that finished second and third that will return to the H2W list next week and how they finished, along with their post-time odds. Special notes on their affects in those positions follow.
     

    Seconds:
    TE’s Zenyatta (3-1), Maywood; Chevie Balboa (3-2), Cal Expo; Little Box Out (7-1), Cal Expo; Armbro Billow (14-1), Meadowlands; Mousseline Hanover (7-1), Cal Expo; Laugh Away, (7-2), Cal Expo; Succulent (8-5), Fraser; Milbanks Ariel (6-1), Fraser; Marlene’s Angel (4-1), Cal Expo
     

    Thirds
    Don’t Point At (16-1), Meadowlands; Cannes (10-1), Freehold; Komodas Fantasy (4-1), Cal Expo; AJ’s Little One (48-1), Cal Expo; Racetrack Diva (2-1), Cal Expo; Bring It On Kaajay (5-2), Balmoral; Pureform Goodtogo (37-1), Fraser; Bring The Rain (7-2), Maywood
     

    At Cal Expo, the pair of Cruisin Inmybeamer and Marlene’s Angel created a $5.90 exacta. At Fraser, Millbanks Ariel and Pureform Goodtogo were the second and third elements in a $2,770 triactor.  From this week’s win list, four of the six winners were second-timers on the list.  

    All adjustments for returnees to the list and additions will be in the Thursday blog. 

    We always suggest you follow Ray Cotolo @RayCotolo on Twitter as he tweets harness picks on Sundays. Last week he had a fiesta with winning horses. At Dover he had Rusty’s Gamble, $6.80, Littlebitofthunder, $7.80; Timmylynn, $6.40 (plus $90.60 exacta) exacta, and Fill My Pockets, $7.00. At Fraser he tweeted Boom Shazam, $6.30 and Im Dynamite, $7.10 ($37.40 exacta). At Flamboro he won with Lynos Regalo, $4.40, Gothic Crusader, $3.00, Machnazetrois, $4.60, Bronte Wine, $6.50 and Machal Jackson, $2.20.  

    News And Notes

    At Dover Downs, weekend racing shifts to a 1 p.m. start for January and February. Monday through Thursday racing remains a 4:30 p.m. post time.

    Here is some driver and trainer news from the Delaware track. Corey Callahan is off to a fast start in quest of a fourth-consecutive leading driver title. Through the meet’s first 100 days Callahan reached three figures in winners. Ross Wolfenden is second and Allan Davis is third. Ron Pierce is fourth and Jim Morand completes the top five. 

    It has been a long time since Josh Green was not atop the meet’s leading trainer standings (he has seven-consecutive trainer titles). Now, Mike Hall of the Doug Lewis Stable, has vaulted into first place. Green is second, Wayne Givens is third, Joe Hundertpfund is fourth spot and Ben Stafford holds fifth.

    Canadian horse racing is going through some very tough times as the government divorces financial input from the casino business. To read a story on the current perils of pacers, trotters and thoroughbreds in the Great White North, click here.

    For the fourth consecutive year, Ron Burke led all trainers in North America in wins and purses. He did it with record-breaking totals again as well. Burke won 906 races in 2012, breaking harness racing’s training record of 842, established by his stable in 2010. He saw his horses win $19.69 million in purses in 2012, breaking the record of $18.54 million set by his stable in 2011.

    He was not prominent as a driver on the stakes schedule this season but George Brennan has scored again as Driver of the Year, according to Harness Tracks of America. For the second year in a row Brennan is HTA’s choice. It is an achievement that remains the most difficult award in the sport of harness racing to win.

    The 45-year-old Brennan won over 3,438 drivers who competed for purses in North America in 2012. Under the HTA formula, points are awarded on the basis of 25 for first down to one for 25th in the standings in money won, races won, and UDR, with a 25-point bonus for finishing in the top 25 in all three categories.

    Brennan, who works mostly at Yonkers, took the title with most wins in overnights at the New York half-mile. He received 622 points over Dave Palone, Tim Tetrick, Jim Morrill, Jr., George Napolitano, Brian Sears and Trevor Henry. Raw finishing power makes the HTA award an audience pleaser, highlighting drivers in their ordinary campaigns, which far outnumber stakes performances. This is why you see contenders on the list who rarely show up for the high-profile races.

    Northfield Park, Ohio’s premier racetrack, offers live harness racing four nights a week in 2013. January through June 7, Northfield will be race every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday evening with a 6:30 p.m. post. There is no live racing on Memorial Day Monday, May 27. From the middle of June through the end of July, the track will add Saturday night racing and be dark on Wednesdays except for a special edition holiday card on Wednesday July 3. Beginning in August, Northfield returns to the Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday evening racing schedule through October. The only exception is that there will be no live racing on Labor Day Monday, Sept. 2.

    A five-night a week schedule, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, will be in effect during the final two months of the year. There is no live racing on Christmas Eve and Christmas day, although the Northfield oval will offer two special Sunday holiday cards on Dec. 22 and Dec. 29.  

    Extraordinary Extras

    Here’s a free ride for my column in Hoof Beats (the analog mag). My January, 2013 column offers a way to become an organized harness racing investor. Check it out my clicking here. It’s the featured article of the issue and the best advice you will get all year about your wagering campaign. 

    Indulge in many standardbred topics at my Hoof Beats blog titled Vast Performances. Every weekend as part of that blog we we offer Balmoral Pick-4-and-win picks at the USTA’s Strategic Wagering Program page which includes suggested win bets. On Saturday, our fourth-leg single, Catmando, won and paid $37.20.  

    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.