Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Dayton offers derbies for elder eligibles

This Friday, Oct. 24, the newest harness track, Dayton Raceway in Ohio, lays out $282,000 worth of purses for older pacers and trotters in the wake of its first meet.

Breeders Crown hopefuls from the aged categories on both gaits add one more event to their agenda before the “Crown” elims in November with these two hefty pursed races and some of the best have come west for the chances to pump their payrolls.

The pacing field features seven that shoot for the best chunk of $122,000.

Two of Ron Burke’s best free-for-allers, Clear Vision and Foiled Again leave behind the consistent Midwesterner Night Pro. That one is 11 for 21 and as fast as them all.

Apprentice Hanover is always a challenger and from post 7 comes Dancin Yankee, who seems to scoot the best when not up against the big Burke boys on the stakes circuit.

Brian Brown brings two with Santa Fe Beachboy and Beach Memories. These two need some awesome trips to nail a win here.

In the scheme of things, Apprentice Hanover should go off at higher odds than his chances. Those chances are so good because he could get the kind of trip that gives him a big paycheck, that is, pacing off of the Burke boys. That pair will get some battle action from the Brown pair because they are not going to roll around the three turns without making a move.

But one move by either will only be enough to discourage the steps needed for Foiled Again to win and Clear Vision may be tangled in those moves, too. Night Pro probably won’t try to strike until late and could be second in a large exacta with “Apprentice,” who could fly while relaxing in stride as the battles commence around him.

The trotting derby is worth $160,000 and with the Yonkers International Trot Preview taking some of the star power out of this event there are still nine stalwart trotters, including the “now” horse, Creatine.

Some names not bantered about line the field’s list and make this a fine betting race. For instance, Opening Night, who shone a bit in a Hambletonian final a few seasons back; Dw’s Ny Yank, a Burke earner that has cashed some big checks; Wishing Stone, the internationally experienced bloke who has been working hard for team Burke; and Daylon Magician, who carries trainer/driver Jack Moiseyev around (it has been a bit since Jack left the Ontario circuit).

While Creatine collects the most bets in the win pool and Market Share takes his fans’ support, we would like to see Dw’s Ny Yank dismissed, his odds bulging from post 2. He should get one hell of a trip in the catbird seat while his stable mate, Wishing Stone, guns for a good position early. “Daylon” may be a part of the first-half speed that could collapse. Certainly Market Share hopes it will, as he will probably be first up and firing late.

All of this could give Dw’s Ny Yank the few extra steps he needs to tap dance over the finish line and beat Creatine for a strong-paying win. 

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Follow major BC hopefuls on their road to the November Breeders Crown at the Meadowlands at the Breeders Crown Countdown blog and the TwinSpires harness blog weekly, with archived reports on the results at the Hambletonian Society web site.

Cartoons by Thom Pye

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