by Bob Heyden

Although records are made to be broken, here is a Top 10, in reverse order, that will probably stand for a while longer.

10. Redskin’s 2-year-old money mark in 1986 of $1,407,263. It’s been threatened. Heck, three freshman made a million in 1990 alone: Artsplace, Die Laughing and Miss Easy. But with fewer bigger pots to shoot for and nobody ever even thinking more than a dozen starts or so, this record has been slowly drifting out to sea and getting a touch further away each year.

9. Ron Pierce winning at least one million-dollar race in six consecutive years (2006-11): Total Truth (2006) in the $1,350,000 North America Cup, Donato Hanover (2007) in the $1,500,000 Hambletonian, Art Official (2008) in the $1,100,000 Meadowlands Pace, Well Said (2009) in the $1,305,000 NA Cup and $1,000,000 Meadowlands Pace, Muscle Massive (2010) in the $1,500,000 Hambletonian, Roll With Joe (2011) in the $1,000,000 Meadowlands Pace, and, lastly, Simply Business (2011) in the $1,020,000 Metro Pace. Did I mention that the streak started the year he turned 50?

8. Muscle Hill’s earnings per start record from 2009 of $204,670. The previous year, Somebeachsomewhere set it at $163,200. Last year, Jiggy Jog S set the all-time record ($154,265) for a horse not named HOY.

7. John Campbell’s incredible record of four straight North America Cups (1994-97), for four different trainers: Cams Card Shark (1994) for Bill Robinson, David’s Pass (1995) for Brett Pelling, Arizona Jack (1996) for Gary Machiz, and Gothic Dream (1997) for Jack Darling.

6. Another incredible Campbell daily double of 16 national earnings titles and 16 Meadowlands driving titles.

5. Stars Pride siring eight Hambletonian winners in a 15-year stretch (1958-72).

4. Tim Tetrick setting the earnings record in 2008 ($19,752,066) the year after the wins record (1,189) in 2007. Neither touched since.

3. Stanley Dancer’s three Triple Crown winners in a five year stretch: Nevele Pride (1968) also HOY, Most Happy Fella (1970) and Super Bowl (1972). No other harness trainer has had more than one.

2. Jimmy Takter and Yannick Gingras combining for five-straight Hambletonian Oaks wins (2014-18): Lifetime Pursuit ($22) by 2½ lengths in 2014, Wild Honey ($4.60) by 1¾ lengths in 2015, All The Time ($9.20) by 3¾ lengths in 2016, Ariana G ($2.40) by 4¾ lengths in 2017, and Manchego ($4.40 as the non-favorite) by a length in 2018. Manchego’s winning time of 1:50 flat is faster than any of the 99 Hambletonians.

1. How can this ever be topped? At 18 years and six months old, Walter “Butch” Paisley driving Algiers

Eblis in the 1959 Hambletonian, at his dad’s insistence. He was 12-15 and 14th overall in the summary.

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

• Marcus Melander getting Hambletonian checks in four straight years while in his 20s.

• Bill O’Donnell winning 10 races on Aug. 16 1984 — five during the day and five more at night — with a Horse of the Year (Fancy Crown, 1984) by day and by night (Nihilator, 1985). Did I mention they both set world records? 1:53.4 for her and 1:52.4 for him.

• And my personal favorite, the youngest driver to win a Triple Crown race on each gait — Peter Haughton (22) who won the 1976 Kentucky Futurity with Quick Pay and Scott Zeron (23) who won the 2012 Little Brown Jug with Michaels Power — was younger than the sire of their winning mount: trotter Stars Pride (29) and pacer Camluck (25).