Harness racing hodgepodge
by Bob Heyden
Just like the potpourri category on Jeopardy, let’s take a look at some stats and facts that cover several different topics.
WALLY WORLD
Hall of Famer Wally Hennessey is starting back up on April 25 at Saratoga. The last driver of a back-to-back HOY (Moni Maker (1998-99)), said, “What was crazy about her early is that she never did anything flashy. She just won races. I qualified her at Pompano when she returned at 3 and I could sense there was something special about her. I told Bill Andrews that I thought we were going to have some fun with her that summer. Just a horse of a lifetime. Everybody knows Moni Maker and Niatross on the pacing side. I was fortunate to be involved with her and all the connections. No doubt the highlight of my career.”
Lost in the Moni Maker years a touch was Hennessey’s success with a couple of trotting colts Running Sea, third in the 1996 Hambletonian, and Take Chances, runner-up in the 1997 Classic. Running Sea was just 6 1-0-1 good for just $26,528 entering that 1996 Hambletonian Day. “[Running Sea] didn’t lose a race after the World Trotting Derby, he really got good,” Hennessey said.
ALL-TIME LEADING SIRES
No. 1 on the trotting side is Cantab Hall at $129.6 million a touch over still active Muscle Hill (now 20 years old) at $119.8. Credit Winner is No. 3 at $111.4, followed by Kadabra ($107.2), Yankee Glide ($105.3), and longtime leader Speedy Crown ($103.5). Balanced Image is seventh of nine over $100 million at $102.7, followed by Muscles Yankee and Angus Hall, both at $100.8. Closing fast is Chapter Seven, currently 12th at $91.7 and his dynamic son Walner in 19th at $49.8.
On the pacing side, Bettors Delight has an astounding $351.2 million and is $120 million up on Camluck at $231. Somebeachsomewhere ($211.3) has edged past Western Hanover ($210.6) in the past several months, followed by American Ideal with an amazing $189.3, the only two-time HOY sire of the 21st century Art Major ($170.7), and Mach Three ($169.3) a touch past Artsplace (168.4). There are four others in the dozen past $150 million: Dragon Again ($160.4), Abercrombie ($156.2), Western Ideal ($154.3), and Cam’s Card Shark ($152.1).
SUPERWOMAN
Muscle Hill was Superman on Hambletonian Day 2009, but my runner-up vote goes to Superwoman Marcie Wilson of the Jonas Czernyson barn. She was the caretaker of two Hambletonian finalists that day, Symphonic Hanover and Hot Shot Blue Chip. Neither hit the board.
CONNECTIONS
In 2008, Dr. Ian Moore campaigned Shadow Play to a 25 14-3-1 season with $1,173,446 in earnings. That same year Somebeachsomewhere competed and he is the grand-sire of the Moore-trained HOY Beau Jangles.
YES CHEF
In 1980, French Chef was the lone vote-getter the year Niatross was almost unanimous in Horse of the Year voting. At 2, French Chef was a 21-time winner, but at 3 he was just 14 3-1-2 with $92,846. Yet he almost pulled off a hat trick for the ages. Had Amity Chef not encountered severe road trouble and finished third in the 1986 Meadowlands Pace final, French Chef could have won the Pace as a sire with his very first crop. He did win it with his second crop in 1987 (Frugal Gourmet) and with his fifth crop in 1990 with HOY Beach Towel.
MEADOWLANDS SOUTH?
We are coming up on the 25th anniversary of the closing of Garden State Park in Cherry Hill, NJ which happened on May 3, 2001. It originally opened during the war in 1942 but a fire on April 14, 1977 brought down the then, only thoroughbred track. On July 13, 1977 with 19 days left in the full first Meadowlands’ season, an article appeared about “Meadowlands South Envisioned.” Remember not even a full calendar year in, and already there were plans for watering down their at-the-time stand-alone phenomena. Those dreaded words did become reality in 1983, when later-to-be-convicted fraudster Bob Brennan spearheaded the project to resurrect from the ashes a brand spanking new (keyword: huge) facility for both breeds. The “Racetrack of the 21st Century” never quite made that (1985-2000) for harness and into 2001 for the thoroughbreds. A lesson in humility, of lemonade stands in the Sahara Desert, of “Hey, we can do that too,” was learned the hard way. Opening a racetrack 90 minutes south of The Meadowlands wasn’t total folly. Even understandable on certain levels. But the pomposity, the grandiosity, the arrogance, all came back like the see-saw does when you’re not looking, to hit you right in the face. Cavernous surroundings, too much too soon, too good to be true, often leaves you waking up the next morning wondering what just happened. In the final tally, the powers that were simply didn’t recognize the unique, whirlwind, perfect time, perfect place, phenomenon that The Meadowlands was. Everything came together then, and there in East Rutherford. To make any assumption that this can be re-done came from those who clearly never saw Grease II and instead sat through Waterworld.
BEST WISHES BRETT BECKWITH
We are wishing Brett Beckwith the very best after his recent accident. If precedent matters, Aaron Merriman on June 11th, 2010, broke both wrists and shattered an elbow. His return was on Oct. 15 that year.
SAD MEMORIES
The horrible fire at Hanover Shoe Farms brought back awful memories from Thanksgiving night 2000 when Barn 5 at Gaitway went up in flames. Steve Pothier and Bob Siegelman stabled there and 20 horses were lost including Jug runner-up Cam Knows Best as well as Drivers Ed.
