2011 HAMBLETONIAN NEWS

Transcription

1 2011 HAMBLETONIAN DAY AT A GLANCE SATURDAY, AUGUST 6 Post time: 11:30 a.m.; Gates open: 9:30 a.m. $1,500,000 million Hambletonian [3yoct] Race 9 - Post time: 3:43 p.m. $750,000 Hambletonian Oaks [3yoft] Race 8 - Post time: 3:09 p.m. Web site: TheHambletonian.com and MeadowlandsRacetrack.com NBC Broadcast 3 to 4 p.m. -- The $1.5 million Hambletonian, and its companion event, the Hambletonian Oaks for fillies, will be broadcast live on NBC Sports. The Hambletonian remains the only harness race to be nationally televised by one of the four major networks. Live broadcasts: WFAN 66 AM, hosted by Marc Malusis, 10 a.m. - 1 p.m. Sirius-XM Radio Channel :30 p.m. Special Wagering Options: $150,000 guaranteed Pick 4 pool - races 6-9; $50,000 guaranteed Pacing Pick 4 (races TBA); $50,000 guaranteed Pick 5 pool - races 9-13; $200,000 guaranteed trifecta pool on the Hambletonian - race 9; full card dime superfectas. Music: Bitter, 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. in Paddock Park Parade: On-track parade at 10:10 a.m., featuring horses of all different breeds, last year s Hambletonian winners and the Big Apple Corps Marching Band. Giveaways: All paid admissions receive a free 2011 commemorative Hambletonian baseball cap. Children receive a Hambletonian water bottle (both while supply lasts). Family Fun: Clydesdale pony rides, carnival games, amusement rides, giant slide, rock wall, face painting and more! Supporting Stakes: Peter Haughton Memorial [2yoct], Lady Liberty [Mare Pace], Merrie Annabelle [2yoft], Mistletoe Shalee [3yofp], Perretti Farms Matchmaker [Mare Trot], Nat Ray [FFA trot], Oliver Wendell Holmes [3yocp], US Pacing Championship [FFA pace], Vincennes Trot [Invitational] Kings Super Markets Food Drive: Donate a non-perishable food item to the Community Food Bank of NJ and receive free admission and a coupon for a baseball cap. Autograph Session: The stars of harness racing will sign autographs in Paddock Park from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.

2 Millers Have Man On A Hambletonian Mission Manofmanymissions has just one assignment now win Saturday s $1.5 million Hambletonian at Meadowlands Racetrack. Last weekend, Manofmanymissions won his Hambletonian elimination race by one length over Magnum Kosmos in 1:52.4. The colt, trained by Erv Miller and driven by Miller s brother, Andy, stamped himself as the likely favorite for harness racing s premier event for 3-year-old trotters. The race will be televised live from 3-4 p.m. EDT on NBC. Erv Miller sent out the 2005 Hambletonian favorite, Classic Photo, who finished second to Vivid Photo. I think it s just another week, said Miller, who was the sport s Trainer of the Year in You do the best you can. I can t think of any mistake I made in the first one that would have made a difference. If there s a difference, it s the horses. (Classic Photo) was a very nice horse and didn t have the quirks of Manofmanymissions, but this horse is very fast. This horse, if I get him to where he behaves and gets around there good, I think he s fast enough to get the job done. The other horse was fast enough, but needed the right trip and for things to work out. I don t think this one needs the right trip, I think he just needs to be healthy. Manofmanymissions was hampered earlier this year by an abscess in his left front foot and has had vet work done recently on his ankles. Since then, the colt has won a division of the Stanley Dancer by 6-1/4 lengths in 1:52.1 at the Meadowlands in addition to capturing his Hambletonian elim. We repeated some of the vet work we d done a couple weeks ago with him, Miller said. The other night I didn t think he was quite as good and I think his one ankle (right front) was bothering him a little bit. Hopefully we got that straightened out. It seems like we re getting it figured out. We d done some work two weeks prior to the Stanley Dancer and he raced very good. So it s encouraging going forward. I m thinking it will help him quite a bit. It s not that he s got horrible ankles, but he s one of those horses that if a little something bothers him it s enough to get him out of being good. A change in the horse s training regimen also seems to have helped. Rather than jog on the racetrack, Miller jogs Manofmanymissions on a grass straightaway at Gaitway Farm.

3 We just started that about a month and a half ago and he really enjoys it, Miller said. It s two straightaways in the grass, one uphill and one downhill, and he seems to enjoy it. He s got a good attitude. He s happier to do that than be on the racetrack every day. Last year, Manofmanymissions won four of six races and earned $432,900. His wins included the Breeders Crown, in a world-record 1:53.2 mile, and a division of the International Stallion Stakes. This year, the colt has won three of five races and earned $134,500 for owners Manofmanymissions Stable, Mystical Marker Farms and Maurizio Biasuzzi Stable. In his career, Manofmanymissions has won seven of 11 races and earned $567,400. Dennis Lakomy, who along with his son Kevin makes up Mystical Marker Farms, was one of the owners of Classic Photo. He also finished fifth in the 2000 Hambletonian with Dreamaster. This is the third time, and I hope the third time will be a charm, Lakomy said. If he comes with his A game, he s going to be very difficult to beat. He can race on the front end, he can race from behind, he s got a lot of speed; he just has his little quirks where sometimes he doesn t fire. The emotions leading up to the race are part of the excitement of the game, he added. I m just enjoying the moment. Just to be at the dance is a big deal. If for some reason the racing gods look favorably upon us and we can see (Manofmanymissions) under the wire first, we ll be in good shape. Andy Miller is driving in his fourth Hambletonian final, but first for his brother. He finished sixth with Mystery Photo last year, fourth with The Chancellor in 2009 and ninth with Xactly Hanover in Mystery Photo and The Chancellor were both trained by his wife, Julie. It s special to have my brother driving, Erv Miller said. It s always been a dream of ours to do it together rather than just one of us getting there. It s a lot more fun. It means a lot to me.

4 Broad Bahn Looking for Quickest Route To Victory Lane While his owner and family managed to travel the longest distance to reach the Hambletonian, trainer Noel Daley hopes his sophomore trotter Broad Bahn is prepared to take the shortest route to the winner s circle in this year s edition of trotting s most prestigious prize. Owner Leif Alber, his wife and three children elected to forgo conventional means traveling from their native Denmark to the metropolitan New York area for the sport s biggest race. Instead, Alber and company hopped a plane from Copenhagen to Los Angeles where they rented an auto and embarked on a cross-country journey, through places like Las Vegas and Memphis (two homes of Elvis Presley). Then they turned north hitting the nation s capital before making it to the Meadowlands winner s circle in the Hambletonian eliminations. Broad Bahn made the lead before the quarter and held off a late charge by Chapter Seven to win his Hambletonian elimination by three-quarters of a length in 1:53. Mr. Alber loves to drive, said his business manager Ole Bach. This was his chance to see the country in a different way with his family. For Bach, who along with Alber selected Broad Bahn from the Standardbred Horse Sale s auction in 2009, there is much reason for enthusiasm heading into Saturday s final. After a promising two-year-old campaign ended one-race too soon, Broad Bahn, already a big horse, has come back stronger in Mr. Alber loves to look at the videos of the yearlings, said Bach, He goes through the book and then sends me his information before I go to the sales. Once Bach is at the sales he must approve the conformation before any bidding takes place. With Broad Bahn he was a very big yearling and on the video he showed an enormous stride. Mr. Alber really liked that, recalled Bach. Because Broadway Hall (Broad Bahn s sire) isn t syndicated he doesn t get the greatest book of mares. I think that s why the yearlings are somewhat undervalued at auction, noted Bach. Bach and owner Alber elected to give trainer Noel Daley a chance with the youngster after the yearling sale. According to Bach, Daley wasn t so sure what exactly he d been given when the horse showed up in his barn in the fall of That first impression of Broad Bahn changed dramatically once Daley put him on the racetrack. Daley, who made a name for himself with another large-sized trotter in Mr. Muscleman, found that Broad Bahn exhibited long range speed even if he lacked a little quickness due to his size. One thing Broad Bahn did have at two was a solid gait and the ability to put himself in front of the action. Those attributes can go a long way towards juvenile success. In fact Broad Bahn seemed well on his way to capturing last year s Breeders Crown. A solid placing in the rich Wellwood Memorial at Mohawk to then division leader Pastor Stephen, had Daley and Bach optimistic they could win the big one. He had something bothering him for six weeks leading up to the Breeders Crown, said Daley. We thought it was a gravel that would eventually pop so we kept going with him.

5 Each week he would go out before the race and look horribly lame warming up, recalled Daley, then somehow in the race he would throw it all aside and race well. In the Breeders Crown elimination Daley sent the horse onto the track and couldn t believe just how bad he looked warming up. We were definitely thinking about scratching him, remembered Bach. I think all of the other horsemen watched him warm up and figured if they put pressure on him he would give way or make a break, said Bach. Instead Broad Bahn pulled off a miraculous mile turning away every attacker that looked him in the eye. Broad Bahn reeled off fractions of :27.3, :55.3, 1:24.3 on his way to a resounding 1:55.1 victory for driver Jack Moiseyev. What repeated X-rays hadn t revealed to the team in the weeks prior to the Crown elimination they did in fact after when it was discovered Broad Bahn had suffered a fracture of the hind coffin bone. Obviously not being able to race in the Breeders Crown final was a letdown, but knowing how tough the colt had to be to continue to race despite his discomfort was reassuring. An uneventful winter brought Broad Bahn back this year and physically the colt has never been better. We wanted to get a driver we could stick with, said Bach. Leif really doesn t like it when we have to switch from driver to driver with each race. The team was able to secure Yonkers leading driver George Brennan. For Daley, who s been to the big dance before with high expectations, Broad Bahn is a different horse than his last contender, Explosive Matter, colt who finished a solid second in Muscle Hill s record-setting 2009 Hambletonian. Explosive Matter was in many ways a just a brilliant horse. But Daley and others in this year s edition of the Hambletonian, see no horse closely resembling Muscle Hill. I think Manofmanymissions definitely has the speed. I don t know what his problems are but he seems a bit difficult to drive, remarked Daley. Owner Alber had a fleeting moment of Hambletonian success back in 2008 when his 22-1 shot Atomic Hall captured an elimination heat only to finish ninth in the final. This year Broad Bahn gives him the opportunity to go the distance. And you can bet that s just the way he likes it!

6 Chapter Seven Looks To Pay Off In Hambletonian Richard Gutnick knows he should be nervous. But for some reason, he isn t. Maybe it is the fact that his horse, Chapter Seven, has overcome enough health issues in his career that trying to win the biggest harness racing event of the year will almost pale in comparison. It won t, of course. Winning Saturday s $1.5 million Hambletonian would be huge for all involved owners Gutnick, Gary Cocco, Jerry Silva and Southwind Farm as well as trainer Linda Toscano and driver Mike Lachance. But considering the horse is competing at all after a long bout with pneumonia this year makes it a feel-good story worth enjoying. The funny part is I m really not nervous, Gutnick said. I should be and I m not. I m nervous about the post draw. If we get the seven on in, we should be OK. If we get an eight, nine or 10 it will be very tough. But I think he s good enough to overcome anything. Hopefully (Lachance) will give him a good trip and hopefully we ll beat the other horses. Chapter Seven finished a late-closing second to Broad Bahn in his Hambletonian elimination last weekend to give Gutnick his first Hambletonian finalist. While he waited 28 years for this moment, Cocco is enjoying the ride with the first horse he ever purchased. The Newtown Square, Pa., resident bought 25 percent of Chapter Seven, which was set in motion by Gutnick s association with Cocco s son, Lou. I wasn t planning to sell but I said Why not? said Gutnick, who also resides in suburban Philadelphia. I knew Gary through another person I worked for but I really didn t know him that well. We ve become friendly ever since. It had been a trying year up to this point for the two friends, as Chapter Seven was shut down nearly all summer after having an outstanding 2010 season. Last year, the colt won seven of eight races, including the Matron Stakes at Dover Downs and the New Jersey Sire Stakes fall championship at Freehold Raceway. He earned $211,549. Slowed by the pneumonia, Chapter Seven raced only once this year prior to the Hambletonian elim, winning a $166,000 division of the Stanley Dancer Memorial on July 16 at the Meadowlands.

7 Trainer Linda Toscano felt it was best to hold him out of the New Jersey Sire Stakes the week prior to the Hambletonian eliminations. We started five weeks behind everybody else, Toscano said after the elim. I have leaned on him to get him to this point. I discussed it with the owners and told them don t be surprised if I give him the week off. When I heard the weather report and that it was going to be 110 degrees and we just had the Dancer and we had to come back in six days I just said to myself, How can that benefit him? I had to believe the week off made the difference. He was trotting strongest at the wire. Gutnick approved of the move to hold Chapter Seven out of the sire stakes. After getting involved in racing as an owner in the mid-1980s, Gutnick got licenses to drive and train horses, and even picked up a training win at the Meadowlands, because he wanted to learn more about the sport. I know enough to be dangerous, so I give my input to the trainer, said Gutnick, who is the CFO of a medical supply company. But I know they re working with the horse day in and day out, so the final decision is theirs. Chapter Seven s ability to overcome obstacles is nothing new. A son of Windsong s Legacy-La Riviera Lindy, he was purchased for $42,000 at the Standardbred Horse Sale (under the name Windsongs Proxy) and his family includes stakes-winner Sir Taurus. His career got off to a tough start. First, he required stitches in an ankle after jumping a fence ( At least we know he s athletic, Toscano told Gutnick) and he later needed surgery to correct throat troubles. After paying the medical bills, Gutnick, a former bankruptcy trustee for the state of Delaware, told his wife he was going to rename the horse Chapter Seven. When she laughed heartily, he decided to use the name. To me it s amazing what he s overcome, Gutnick said. I know Linda has done everything in her power to get him here and it s really now up to the horse. I ve always had enough confidence in the horse and his desire. Because of that confidence, anticipation is replacing jitters as the big day approaches.

8 Campbell Brothers To Co-Star In Hambletonian With Opening Night The stage is set for Opening Night and its original lead is back at the helm for a possible encore. John Campbell, who was unsuccessful in his bid to reach the Hambletonian with Live Jazz, will drive Opening Night in Saturday s $1.5 million final. Opening Night finished fourth in Saturday s second Hambletonian elimination, flying down the stretch with a :28.2 final quarter to advance to harness racing s richest and most-celebrated event. He was driven by Brian Sears for trainer Jim Campbell. Jim now turns to a familiar face, his brother and no stranger to this race, John Campbell, who is seeking his record seventh Hambletonian crown and his first since leading Glidemaster in the 2006 final. In last year s race, John drove favorite Lucky Chucky and finished second as Muscle Massive and Ron Pierce rallied for the victory with a 1:51 finish, the second fastest time ever recorded in the Hambletonian. John, who will be the fifth driver change in Opening Night s last five races, had the horse s first drive this year, on May 17, and finished second in a division of the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes at The Meadows. John was then unfortunately sidelined as the result of a racing accident on May 30 at Harrah's Chester. His injuries included a broken right shoulder and broken right knee. He got off crutches two weeks ago and returned to the track Saturday night to drive Live Jazz, a colt he co-owns, in the Hambletonian eliminations. Live Jazz finished ninth, ironically in the same elim with Opening Night. Originally, this was John s mount all along, Jim said. The owners and I spoke Sunday morning and we wanted him back on. I spoke with Brian earlier this morning and he did a great job getting us here and we have no hard feelings towards him at all, but we just wanted to go this route. Physically, I feel fine, really no issues whatsoever, I just wished my horse raced better, said John. I got the call this morning (Sunday) and I never say no to a Hambletonian opportunity, so I m looking forward to it. This is only the second time the brother tandem has teamed up in the Hambo final. The other: 1995 as they won the 70th edition of the race by two lengths with Tagliabue, recording a time of 1:54.4. Two weeks ago, Jim made a slight adjustment to Opening Night, which he hoped would pay off in Saturday s elimination. I made an adjustment at Pocono Downs (where he won his last two races) by lightening his shoes for the speed, to get ready for the elim, said Jim. I think we're pretty much set in leaving him the same for the final. I didn t like the trip (in the elim), but you know he got to the final and that is the main thing, he added. I thought the horse raced very good. He had lots of trot finishing. I wasn t sure how it was going to work out because we got shuffled back to last, but I was happy to get the chance to go for this week s final. With the way he has been racing, I think we would have been crazy not to take a shot and go for it. We did and it paid off for us. In eight starts this year, Opening Night has three victories and two seconds. In 2010, he had the same amount of starts with two wins, a second and two third-place finishes. The horse came out really good after the race and we hope we have a great week and a decent post position. That s all you can ask for, Jim said.

9 Pastor Stephen Racing For Charity In Hambletonian Pastor Stephen is racing for more than Hambletonian glory on Saturday at Meadowlands Racetrack. Pastor Stephen is racing for Africa. Earlier this year, Pastor Stephen s connections announced they would donate five percent of the horse s earnings to benefit Villages in Partnership, an organization founded by the Rev. Stephen Heinzel-Nelson and his wife, Liz, to assist the people of Malawi. The effort is called Pastor Stephen Racing for Africa. Pastor Stephen, owned by Christina Takter, John Fielding and Brittany Farms, was the Dan Patch Award-winner as the sport s best 2-year-old male trotter in 2010 after winning six of 11 races and earning $653,748. On Saturday, he will try to add the $1.5 million Hambletonian to his list of accomplishments. Trainer Jimmy Takter named Pastor Stephen in honor of the Rev. Heinzel-Nelson, the pastor of Allentown Presbyterian Church in central New Jersey, and a longtime family friend. The Rev. Heinzel-Nelson and family spent nearly the entire year of 2008 in Malawi, which led to the creation of Villages in Partnership. We ve always been very interested in mission, the Rev. Heinzel-Nelson said. We thought it might be a real exciting thing for us personally as well as the church as a whole. It was very vague at that time. But we really felt that Africa was the place of greatest need in the world. We met some people that had been to Africa, and then met some people that had been to Malawi, which we never even had heard about. It s an English-speaking country, so that was a big plus for us. It has a lot of Presbyterian churches, so that was another big plus for us. We met people who had gone there or lived there, and all of them said it was a tremendous experience. We felt like that was where the Lord was leading us to go. It was an eye-opening year living in one of the poorest countries in the world. Villages in Partnership brings assistance on a multitude of levels, from building wells for clean water, to constructing schools and medical clinics, to initiating agricultural improvements and reforestation projects.

10 In recent weeks, the organization has been selling Pastor Stephen T-shirts at the Meadowlands in addition to providing information about Villages in Partnership. The group will be at the track again Saturday. If people hear about it and become inspired and want to make a donation or get involved in some way, it s a win-win, the Rev. Heinzel-Nelson said. That s what it s all about. It s using this opportunity to call attention to people whose lives are really, really difficult on a day-to-day basis and how we can help and make a difference. Every little bit makes a big difference over there. One member of Pastor Stephen s cheering section will be absent Saturday. Liz Heinzel-Nelson recently returned to Malawi and will be gone for several more weeks. There is a six-hour time difference. She ll be the first phone call from the track, for sure, the Rev. Heinzel-Nelson said, adding with a laugh, It might be late, but she ll wait up. So far this season, Pastor Stephen the horse has won three of seven races and earned $196,801. He won his first three starts before finishing second in the $500,000 Earl Beal Jr. Memorial at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs. After another second-place finish in the 3-Year-Old Open at the Meadowlands on July 8, he was seventh in a division of the Stanley Dancer Memorial. Pastor Stephen was discovered to be fighting a virus. He bounced back to finish third in his Hambletonian elimination last weekend, finishing 2-1/4 lengths behind Manofmanymissions. He trotted well and looked good and was more comfortable with what he did, Takter said. His last start was really bad. Two weeks is a short time. You know yourself if you ve been sick it takes a week for it to clear up and it takes another week to get strong again. He needed this. He could pop up a little bit here. I ve got a ticket (to the final). Hopefully, I don t get a bad post, but that s something I can t control. After a pause, the trainer added, Hopefully we can do something for Africa on Saturday. That would be very good. For more information about Villages in Partnership, visit the organization s Web site at

11 Jezzy Seeks Redemption In Hambletonian Oaks The multiple stakes winner and betting favorite, Jezzy, found herself in an unenviable position on Saturday, July 30 in her Hambletonian Oaks elimination. As the starting gate rolled down the stretch the Trotting Queen of the New York Sire Stakes had spotted the field nearly 15 lengths and was trying to play catch-up. Miraculously, and despite being dead last at the half and back 12 lengths, the tough filly with the big engine powered down the stretch passing horses and finished fourth, beaten just five lengths. For her tremendous comeback effort she will be rewarded with a post position in the $750,000 Hambletonian Oaks on Saturday, August 6 at the Meadowlands. Jezzy s actual race time in the Oaks elim was listed as 1:54.3, with an individual last quarter in :27.4. However, her breeder and co-owner Jeff Gural proclaimed that she probably trotted in 1:52. I looked back in horror, I was in a state of shock, explained the man who is also credited with saving the Meadowlands. Gural continued, She has never made a break, but the hopeless reality was that she was back 15 lengths. Ironically, Gural s Little E LLC, the stable name he utilizes for his breeding operation, is now the only breeder with a finalist in both the Hambletonian Open and Oaks events this year. Before Saturday night, Jezzy was the leading money-winning 3-year-old trotting filly in the country. After the elims, her 2011 seasonal earnings of $353,192 places her in a very respectable second place, just $4,000 shy of Crys Dream. Jezzy s road to the Hambletonian Oaks has been a fun, yet grueling journey for the swift daughter of Credit Winner. Prior to last Saturday, in a 10-week span she had won a perfect 8-out-of-8 starts. All of which were stakes races. In fact, she tied the stakes record in the $237,714 Hudson Filly Trot at Yonkers in 1:56.3h, and took a new record of 1:55s at Vernon while winning the $238,225 Empire Breeders Classic. The talented lass also won the Simpson, Coaching Club Trotting Oaks, and two New York Sire Stakes all from post position seven! It all started when the filly sold for $70,000 to Ray Schnittker at the 2009 Lexington Selected Yearling Sale. When approached by Schnittker to keep a quarter, Gural gladly agreed. We have had some horses together before and always got along good, noted the successful conditioner. Jerry Silva and Ted Gewertz rounded out the yearling s partnership. Since then, the future Hall-of-Fame trainer has called Jezzy the second best horse I have ever had.

12 She was very, very good the first three weeks we broke her, explained Schnittker between training trips at his home base at Goshen Historic Track. Then she got sick like most colts and fillies do. She had an allergic reaction to the SMZ s (antibiotics) we were giving her. She had no platelet count so we took her to Cornell (University Veterinary Hospital). I thought she had cancer, I never thought we would see her again. Schnittker continued, Then all of a sudden they figured that out, which is very rare, and three months later she came around again. That is why she was not staked to too much at two. She had some knee issues last year so her regular mid-week routine is to swim and be turned out all night long with two other fillies. Sometimes she will be ridden. I have had some good luck with my older horses and of course Dewey (Hambletonian winner Deweycheatumnhowe) with this, and it seems to work for (Jezzy) also. When I get one that I think is above average and I think it can help them, I do that. Above average indeed, as a 2-year-old the filly posted 10 stakes wins in 11 starts. Her only defeat came in the New York Sire Stakes final, where she finished second beaten just one length at the wire after cutting the mile. When questioned about any training adjustments for this week, co-owner and trainer Ray Schnittker remarked, She is kind of a nervous, high-strung filly like most Credit Winner s are. She does not need much work, she s coming right back. We don t do much with her. She has only trained once this year, so I may or may not train her a slow mile this week. She just raced so she is fit and tight. I may just ride her one day. Following the Oaks elim, there was plenty of added attention surrounding the filly s demeanor behind the gate. She has done this before, she got a little pacey. You have to keep her closer to the gate; Tim (Tetrick) has not driven her that much. He has driven her a few times; I think if he had her up closer to the gate she would have been perfect. She has always been good like that for me. I don t think we will have any problems next week. An inquiry into what makes this filly so special evoked the following response from Schnittker, She has a great mouth, nice to drive, very comfortable and easy to drive. She can come from behind and when she sees another horse in front of her she wants to get her. About her future plans as a 4- year-old, the optimistic conditioner offered, Hopefully we will race her at 7 or 8. She will be around for a while I think!

13 Fawkes Rises Out Of Obscurity, Into Hambletonian Spotlight Author J.K. Rowling presented her first Harry Potter manuscript to 12 publishing houses and was rejected by all 12. Experts looked at the pages and didn t see potential, let alone greatness. Perhaps the same could be said for Fawkes, a surprise qualifier for Saturday s $1.5 million Hambletonian. The colt, named for Professor Dumbledore s mythical bird, hasn t shown much on the program page over the last two years but perhaps now will get noticed on the sport s biggest stage. As a 70-1 shot in one of two $70,000 Hambletonian eliminations last Saturday night at the Meadowlands, it was hard to take Fawkes seriously. Prior to entry in the big dance the son of S J s Caviar had enjoyed just one victory in seven starts this season. Oh yes, it was a big win coming in the $125,000 Currier & Ives final at The Meadows. But, at the same time Fawkes was essentially reborn out of the ashes scoring at 48-1 in the June 6 contest. Former owner, and world-class horse agent, Ole Bach seized the opportunity to sell Fawkes after the Currier & Ives. Though he wouldn t release the sale price it was clear that Swemab Inc., a combination of trainer Jonas Czernyson and Swedish owner Mats Bergman, were looking for a Hambletonian-type horse. The dam of Fawkes is a half-sister to Pearsall Hanover, a colt who finished fourth in a Hambletonian elimination in Pearsall went on to become one of Sweden s elite stallions in the last decade. He s credited with siring the Elitlopp champion of 2006 Conny Nobell and 2010 Nat Ray winner Slave Dream. Pedigree will only get you so far, but in early July the colt gave indication that he could write his own story on the racetrack. A solid third place finish in an overnight at the Meadowlands assured his place in last week s trial. Yannick Gingras was asked to drive the colt in his final Meadowlands prep on July 22 where the colt was doing fine until the late stages when slipped offstride but held for fifth. I got after him a bit too much, said Gingras of the race. It really wasn t his fault. Gingras had seen the colt display enough quickness and staying power to feel comfortable leaving the gate from post seven in his Hambletonian elim. Fortunately for the horse and his backers, Gingras didn t look at the tote board to see what the public thought of his chances. Fawkes raced admirably chasing eventual winner Broad Bahn around the track and keeping pace in the stretch in the 1:53 mile. It was the first time the colt had traveled that speed in his life and the results were encouraging. He s just getting into himself and dropping time each time we race, said trainer Czernyson. He was a slow starter last year and didn t really figure out what racing was about. As a freshman Fawkes raced primarily on the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes circuit earning $30,327 with two wins in nine starts.

14 Agent Bach, who manages one of the Hambo favorites in elimination winner Broad Bahn, is excited about his former horse. You know being in the Hambletonian is a very big thing in Sweden. This is a great race to be in and obviously would be even better to win. It s been a big year for Harry Potter, with the final movie setting box office records upon its release last month. It s pretty safe to say that should Fawkes find the wings to upset this Hambletonian field on Saturday it would be a story of mythical proportions.

15 Owner Enjoying Slapstick Journey With Magnum Kosmos As a rule, Frank DeLiberti is a pretty even keeled guy. But Magnum Kosmos turned his owner into Cosmo Kramer, or Kosmos Kramer, as the case may be. At Saturday s Hambletonian eliminations, DeLiberti looked like he was reenacting an episode of Seinfeld, when a frenzied Kramer beat himself silly with a racing form in an OTB parlor as his horse came home a winner. Magnum Kosmos came in second in his Hambletonian elim, getting edged by Manofmanymissions by one length at odds of nearly But the scene was the same. I thought fourth or fifth would be the best we could do, but we came awful close to winning, DeLiberti said. Coming down the stretch, fighting Manofmanymissions, I thought we had it and we lost it by a little bit. That was really exciting. I don t show many emotions. But I had the program in my hand and I was just whipping on my leg. Like Kramer? Yes, exactly, he said with a laugh. A special agent for the federal government, DeLiberti retired at age 50 and got into the racing business in 1998 by owning a share of a horse at Rosecroft Raceway. Horse racing always appealed to the Brooklyn native, who went to Yonkers regularly as a child. That was always the biggest excitement of the day, going there with my parents, he said. After I got out of the government I wanted to do something and since I enjoyed the racetrack so much, I got into it. Five years after entering the business, DeLiberti started his Dover, Del.-based The Wiz Kids Stable. He owns some three dozen horses. Because Dover is near Philadelphia, many locals think DeLiberti named his stable after the 1950 Phillies Whiz Kids pennant winner. But it actually resulted from when he was based in California. While in Silicon Valley, DeLiberti noticed that a street named Wiz Kids was named in honor of Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, the co-founders of Apple Inc. who were known as the Wiz Kids.

16 I named my stable going on the theory of bringing in trainers on the bottom end who want an opportunity to go up the ladder, DeLiberti said. The one thing I try to find in these trainers is that they want to work hard and they re honest. We ve had a variety of trainers who have stepped up to the plate and done great things with limited resources. Trainer Tony Dinges purchased Magnum Kosmos for just $6,000 at the Standardbred Horse Sale. Since then, Magnum Kosmos (SJ s Caviar-Mega Magic Vita) has won $230,250 and is DeLiberti s first Hambletonian finalist. In keeping with his common practice, DeLiberti gave Dinges a $10,000 cap and sent him to market. Ever since then, I said Here s $10,000, go shopping, DeLiberti said. Tony s got a knack for picking out horses, breaking them, training them down. He also has a knack of not only going forward, but knowing when it s time to quit. That s very valuable. Last year, Magnum Kosmos won a division of the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes and finished fifth in the final. This year, he has won four of eight starts, including divisions of the sire stakes and Reynolds Memorial. He was riding a three-race victory streak entering the Hambletonian elims. In the elim, Magnum Kosmos took the lead at the halfway point and held it into deep stretch before yielding to Manofmanymissions. He has been a nice horse all along, Dinges said. We just skipped the (Stanley) Dancer, trying to miss the good ones. We didn t want to beat him up before the Hambo. We are just trying to prep him the right way. DeLiberti said that was the plan from the beginning. We wanted to stay below the radar until we knew we d be in competition, he said. We wanted to stay low; now we re like a stealth bomber coming in. The only question at the start of this week was who would be piloting the plane. George Brennan drove Magnum Kosmos in the elimination, but will drive Broad Bahn in the Hambletonian final. Broad Bahn won the other elim. Whoever ends up driving Magnum Kosmos, one thing is certain. If he makes it exciting, someone better take DeLiberti s program away from him before he hurts himself.

17 Hambletoninan Simulcast Continues To Grow In Europe The Hambletonian is not only America s Trotting Classic; it is one of the most significant racing events across the globe. Once again Hambletonian Day will be part of an international simulcasting distribution that sees the races from the Meadowlands beamed to trotting enthusiasts in Europe. A total of eight trotting races will be simulcast to the French PMU, which conducts all pari-mutuel wagering in France and will make the signal available in other nations including Monaco, Germany, Austria and Switzerland. PMU will offer an incentive on the eight-race bundle from the Meadowlands, marking the first time Europe s largest wagering outlet has featured such a promotion on foreign races. They will match two Euros on every 10-Euro quinella bet. The Swedish trotting association ATG will receive the first 10 races from the Meadowlands and will host a Scandinavian pool with wagering from Norway, Denmark, Finland, Estonia and Malta. The international wagering will each be separate pools and will not be commingled with the traditional domestic wagering. Last year a record $2.4 million was bet on Hambletonian Day from international locations. That helped total handle reach $8,391,600, trailing only the $8.8 million wagered in 2002 and $9 million wagered in 2005.

18 Big Guarantees Highlight Hambletonian Day Wagering The big Pick 4 guarantee returns on Hambletonian Day! A $150,000 Pick 4 will be offered on races 6-9 on the Saturday, August 6 card. The $150,000 guarantee on the Meadowlands Pace Night Pick 4 handled more than $200,000. A special Pacing Pick 4 will also be guaranteed at $50,000 later in the Hambletonian Day card. The Pick 4 is a $1 base wager that features a low 15 percent takeout and high returnrate. The average Pick 4 payout this meet is $2,335 for a $1 ticket. The new Pick 5 wager is also becoming a popular option for Meadowlands players. A.50 cent wager on the first five races, the Pick 5 kicks off at 11:30 a.m. An additional Pick 5 wager on Races 9-13 will carry a special $50,000 guarantee. And for those that aren't interested in multi-leg wagers, the main event of the day, the 9th race Hambletonian will have a $200,000 guaranteed trifecta pool.

19 NBC TO BROADCAST HAMBLETONIAN IN HD NBC, whose sports division was recognized this year with nine Emmy Awards, the most of any network, will provide high-definition live coverage of this year s Hambletonian at the Meadowlands Saturday afternoon, Aug. 6. The Hambletonian is the only harness racing event broadcast on network television and will air on NBC for a fifth consecutive year, following a 13-year run on CBS. The hour-long show will run from 3:00-4:00 p.m., and include live coverage of the Hambletonian Oaks. The award-winning NBC team of hosts Tom Hammond and Gary Seibel will anchor the broadcast. Joining them for the fourth consecutive year will be Kenny Rice, who is familiar to harness racing fans as a former host of the Breeders Crown Championship series. Seibel was recently inducted to the Communicators Corner of the harness racing Hall of Fame. Also on the broadcast to serve as analyst and provide a closer look at the competitors from horseback is jockey and horsewoman Donna Brothers. Meadowlands announcer Ken Warkentin will provide his racing expertise and race call. A long time staff producer at NBC, Billy Matthews, will take the helm of his first Hambletonian broadcast, while director Jeff Simon, returns from the 2010 broadcast. Both have extensive horse racing TV experience, as does associate producer Billy Rapaport, who has assisted with all of the Hambletonians on NBC, as well Triple Crown races and both Breeders Crown and Breeders Cup telecasts. This is the final year of the NBC contract, according to broadcast partners the Meadowlands Racetrack and the Hambletonian Society, who share the expense of the telecast. Next year NBC hosts the Summer Olympics from the U.K. and did not have the Saturday afternoon television time available. Other televisions avenues are being explored by the Hambletonian Society and its host partner, New Meadowlands Racetrack.

20 Field Set For Harness Horse Youth Foundation Finals at Meadowlands Representatives of three of the Harness Horse Youth Foundation s summer camps will be racing at the Meadowalnds on Hambletonian Day, piloting Trottingbreds in an exhibition race, while being assisted by professional drivers Yannick Gingras, Andy Miller and Tim Tetrick Olivia Marshall, age 12, Stephanie Detwiler, age 14, and Alicia Andreano, age 13, will be competing at The Meadowlands. Marshall, of Munnsville, New York, is representing the Vernon Downs camp; Detwiler, of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, is representing the Pocono Downs camp, and Andreano, of Monroe Township, NJ, represents the Gaitway Farms cam which just concluded July 30. The exhibition race, at a half-mile, the standard Trottingbred distance, is slated for just after 11 a.m. on Hambletonian Day. Here is the field: PP Horse Driver Age Assistant Driver 1 Royal Attire Alicia Andreano 13 Tim Tetrick 2 Jandi Tuff As Sky Stephanie Detwiler 14 Andy Miller 3 CD s Miss M Olivia Marshall 12 Yannick Gingras The Harness Horse Youth Foundation is a charitable 501(c)3 organization dedicated to providing young people and their families educational opportunities with harness horses, in order to foster the next generation of participants and fans. The Foundation has been making a difference in young people s lives since 1976, and its programs include interactive learning experiences with these versatile animals, scholarship programs, and creation and distribution of educational materials. For more information on opportunities through HHYF, or to support its mission, go to For more information, contact Ellen Taylor, ellen@hhyf.org, or