Harness Racing 2021 launches With Spot-Play Success

Here is TwinSpires Harness Blog Weekly Update to open the new decade.

Thursday, Dec. 31

Freehold’s Pick 4 started the lone harness program of New Year’s Eve. We barely touched it.

Our two seconds—Bad Day Black Rock ($3.40, $3.20) in leg two and Im Sid The Kid ($4.20, $3.20) were the best of our four failures to stay in contention. Also, in leg two, Saydence scratched.

In leg one our single Yer So Bad (10-1) finished fourth to the public’s second choice. In leg two, the third choice won at 3-1, while we finished second (see above).

In leg three a 15-1 winner defeated our choice, Dalton Did It (2-1), who finished fourth, while our other pick to second (see above). In leg four we were fourth and seventh with If I Must (10-1) and Charlie Ona Harley (9-2), respectively.

Saturday, Jan. 2

At the Meadowlands we addressed two selected features.

In Race 5 the favorite delighted the masses as we finished fourth with Fizzing N (22-1) and fifth with Benhope Rulz N (13-1).

The favorite thwarted another chance for Springsteen (12-1) to engage in a comeback, while Highallator (9-2) was not his own self as they finished fifth and seventh respectively.

H2W LIST RESULTS

The H2W results list across-the-board prices. Exactas listed include a H2W horse finishing second to a race-favorite or if the first two finishers are H2W horses (an asterisk appears when both horses are listed—a cold exacta). The note “ok” determines that prices are correct (even when a show price exceeds a place price or all prices are the same).

Please note that some results reflect horses racing after the blog posts (they appear the following week).

This week, there were 20 active horses (a 20-percent win hit rate and a 35-percent ATB [across-the-board] hit rate).

Winners

Alexa Skye, $4.40, $3.00, $2.60, Freehold
Italian Delight, $3.20, $2.60, $2.20, Philly
Look Kimbo, $3.20, $2.40, $2.20, Northfield
Live Lucky, $3.00, $2.20, $2.20 ok

Seconds

The Time To Win, $$4.20, $3.40, Charlottetown

Thirds

Ideal Feeling, $5.00, Pompano
Te Kawau N, $3.60, Freehold
 
NEWS & NOTES

Northfield Park kicks off 2021 with a revamped wagering menu highlighted by a 50-cent Pick-6 each night. The wager offers a low 14-percent takeout rate. The non-jackpot wager will pay out a consolation of 25 percent of that night’s total pool and feature a 75-percent carryover if the wager is not hit. Northfield’s wagering menu features a few changes as well—an Early Pick 4 movew to Race 2 and the Pick 5 moves to race 6. Racing continues every Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday through the winter. Post time is currently 4:20 p.m.

Pompano announced an across-the-board guaranteed pool increase in their Pick-4 wager with the industry-low 12-percent takeout. The Sunday Pick 4 features a $20,000 guaranteed pool. The Monday Pick-4 pool features a $30,000 guarantee. Tuesday’s Pick-4 has a $20,000 guaranteed pool. Wednesday and Thursday feature $15,000 guaranteed pools. 

Jay Bergman and Joe Kyle were voted into the Communicators Hall of Fame by USHWA, the sport’s leading journalism organization. Bergman achieved recognition during 27 years at Sports Eye, a daily racing newspaper in the east. Jay became editor-in-chief in the 1980s, boldly offering criticism on many issues. He won a 1984 Hervey Award for news and commentary. Kyle covered Midwest racing for years, then with The Horseman And Fair World magazine. He wrote about and photographed stars of game during the Grand Circuit at Red Mile. His photography won him a Smallsreed Award

Captaintreacherous three-year-olds topped the sophomore charts for the second-straight season. His 84-starter crop earned $5,952,183 in 2020, averaging $70,859 per starter. Bettors Delight’s strong sophomore crop carried him into second among earnings by pacing sophs, earning $4,767,607 from 97 starters. His progeny beat Somebeachsomewhere’s 101-starter crop, which banked $4,105,993.

Extraordinary Extras

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