Harness Weekly Update: Fans Cash In Bulk

The TwinSpires Harness Blog Weekly Update covers our successes and failures from selected features and the horses-to-watch list (H2W).

Friday, June 18

The Indiana Sires Stakes (INSS) was mistakenly associated with Thursday, June 17, due to schedules mixed up from Covid-19 lockdown rescheduled dates. The INSS divisions covered in our Preview column took place on June 18:

For all of Friday’s features, only a pair of place finishes kept us from a win sweep.

We won a single $48k INSS division with Brookview Bolt ($3.20, $2.40, $2.20), In the other we completed a $10.00 exacta with Bluebird Maverick ($3.00, $3.20 OK).

Regularly scheduled Empire Breeders Classics at Vernon went perfectly for us with the filly winners—Iteration ($2.80, $2.10, $2.10 OK) and Darlene Hanover ($4.40, $2.90, $2.30). Both of their exacta-contending partners, Aela Jamieson (5-1) and What A Dame (45-1), broke and finished sixth.

The colt version found us second with Ambassador Hanover ($4.90, $3.20), completing a $25.20 exacta with the favorite.

Saturday, June 19

Our decision to back Keep Rockin A (5-1) in the Kissin In The Sand final at the Meadowlands did not pay off, though she was the fourth favorite. The pacing mare watched the other seven go around most of the way and saw them all go over the finish line before her — quite a disappointing mile.

The Graduate Trot went to the second choice as we wound up with the favorite, Hypnotic AM (1-1), who was third ($2.10) to other crowd favorites.

The Graduate Pace mile for our choice, Allywag Hanover (6-1) was strong leaving from the second tier finishing fourth behind the favorite.

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 34 active horses (a 15% win hit rate and a 35% ATB [across-the-board] hit). Horses with asterisks before their names were tweets @FrankCotolo. Follow for late choices.

Winners

Surfers Paradise, $20.40, $8.80, $2.60, Buffalo
Rosey Time, $13.60, $7.00, $5.40, Hawthorne
Shes A Fireball, $7.40, $4.00, $3.00, Plainridge
Cant Beach That, $3.60, $4.40, $2.80 OK, Scioto
Powertrain, $3.60, $2.20, $2.30, WoMo

Seconds

Burning Desire, $5.70, $4.00, Monticello
Quality Closer, $4.00, $2.60 (Exacta $8.80), Scioto
Carracci Hanover, $3.50, $2.70 (Exacta $7.90), Monticello
American Rebel, $3.10, $2.10, Monticello
Nytro J, $2.20, $2.10 (Exacta $3.20), Northville

Thirds

Yummy Candy, $4.60, Meadows
Battenberg, $3.60, Vernon

NEWS & NOTES

Yonkers has changed. Renovations began as did June and are completed. Tons of new surface material, recycled track material, and lime were introduced to the half-mile oval, which was resurfaced and regraded. This includes the turns raised a foot and placed at 14-degree banks to improve the racing experience and eliminate any unevenness. MGM Resorts says it has “transformed the track into a more durable surface that will sustain the arduous year-round racing schedule.” Upon completion of the renovation, “the photo-finish cameras were elevated and the all-new LED track lighting was adjusted and repositioned to enhance visibility.”

Batavia Downs will conduct a 59-day meet in 2021, up from 42 days during the 2020 pandemic’s upset in track schedules. Purse levels were raised at the end of the 2020 season, and this year they are expected to exceed those values. The 74th season of harness racing at America’s oldest lighted harness raceway kicks off July 21 and runs through Dec. 11.

Opinions for the top contenders of the Meadowlands Pace (July 17) continue. Dave Little’s week seven list of the top 10 contenders is official. We compare our choices for the top five next to his.

1. Southwind Gentry / Always A Miki
2. Abuckabett Hanover / Lawless Shadow
3. Perfect Sting / Abuckabett Hanover
4. Exploit / Perfect Sting
5. One Eight Hundred / Southwind Gentry

For Ken Warkentin’s 2021 Hambletonian top 10 contenders, week three, we compare our top five choices.

1. Venerate / Venerate
2. In Range / Sonofamistery
3. On A Streak / On A Streak
4. Really Fast / Captain Corey
5. Cuatro De Julio / Mon Amour