​CHESTER PA – A trio of $11,200 events for developing younger horses, two on the trot and one on the pace, topped the action on Friday at Harrah’s Philadelphia.
 
In the faster of the two sections of the featured trot, the newcomer Stravinsky made short work of his opposition, flying home in :56.2 - :28 for an easy 1:55.2 victory, 1¼ lengths ahead of favored Romanee Blue Chip. Andrew McCarthy, top driver of the afternoon with four victories, handled the impressive sophomore Sebastian K S gelding for trainer Andrew Harris and owners Thomas and Elizabeth Rankin.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
CHESTER PA – The Yankee Glide gelding Yankees Beast, a noted closer, got his preferred second-over trip and had the most late in winning the $13,600 feature on the “Trottin’ Thursday” card at Harrah’s Philadelphia.
 
Marcus Miller swung the Anette Lorentzon trainee three-wide late on the far turn and overhauled pacesetting Macmorris Hanover by a length at the end of the 1:54.3 mile. Patriarch Hanover, parked a long way before making the lead and then surrendering it to Macmorris Hanover, was third, another three-quarters of a length behind the winner of two of his last three starts, who is owned by Anna Kristina Lorentzon.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
CHESTER PA – Driver George Napolitano Jr. and trainer Gilbert Garcia-Owen captured both of the pacing features on “Distaff Day” Wednesday at Harrah’s Philadelphia as part of a giant day for both horsemen.
 
Despite having to go first-over against pacesetting favorite Machnhope in the $14,400 top-line event, the veteran McArdle mare Lispatty was able to get to the line first, and the seven-year-old did it in 1:49.4 to take a new lifetime mark. After a classic “ding-dong” stretch battle, Lispatty proved a half-length better to earn her 40th career victory and raise her bankroll to $986,726. Garcia-Owen is also the owner of the classy pacer.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA – Surfer Beach may be starting to pace into his considerable pedigree, as he won a $10,400 pace on Tuesday afternoon at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono.
 
An altered son of Somebeachsomewhere out of the $2.3M+-winning Southwind Tempo, two-time divisional champion, Surfer Beach did not race at two, and he won only one of his first thirteen races at three. But he has now won two of his last four, including this 1:52.3 triumph, where he went to the front for the track’s leading driver, George Napolitano Jr., and proved much the best, winning by 5 1/2  lengths for trainer Brian Malone and owner Peter Paul Venturini.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
​WILKES-BARRE PA – Loud Splash, a son of Thinking Out Loud who was the longest shot on the board in the $16,000 claiming handicap pacing feature at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono on Saturday afternoon, came from way back to post a 1:51.2 victory in a race where seven of the eight entrants were within 1¼ lengths of each other at the finish.
 
Despite showing good closing ability in his last four starts, Loud Splash was dismissed at 27-1, probably because he was going up to the track’s highest price level and drew the disadvantageous post six. But driver Jim Taggart Jr. had him out in a good cover flow, tipped him four-wide from sixth at headstretch, and guided him home strongly to win by a head over Burning Midnight, whose cover he followed most of the way, with Daamericansky another head shy coming up the Pocono Pike. But Loud Splash proved most photogenic in the contentious affair for trainer Tee Wine and owner Samuel Abdoo, and now has won three of his last four trips behind the gate.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
​CHESTER PA – On a cold and wet Friday afternoon at Harrah’s Philadelphia, over a surface rated “good,” the younger horses took the spotlight, competing in three $11,200 features – two on the trot and one on the pace.
 
The pacing group was dominated by the Captaintreacherous sophomore colt Sea Of Life, whose resume showed a 1:50 victory at The Meadows and a fourth-place finish in his division’s Kentucky stakes final. Here driver George Napolitano Jr. kept him off a wicked early battle (:27 and :54.4), brushed him to the lead well before a 1:22.2 three-quarters, and went on to an in-hand 1¾ lengths victory over Bipbopnallie, a Pennsylvania fairs star, in 1:50.4, a remarkable time under the circumstances; the third-place horse was some thirteen lengths behind this duo. Tony Alagna trains the winner for Brittany Farms LLC, Marvin Katz, Brad Grant, and Captain Kirk Racing.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
​CHESTER PA – As is often the case at Harrah’s Philadelphia, the front end was the place to be for the winners of the two featured trots during the track’s Thursday afternoon program, raced over a “sloppy” surface rated two seconds off par.
 
The Donato Hanover colt Big Nudge scratched into the $12,800 top purse event from the “also eligible” list and had the dreaded post eight, but then had his load lightened considerably when there were three more scratches from the programmed starters. David Miller promptly sent him to the top in the short field, and the pair had no trouble controlling the throttle, coming home in :28.4 to post a 1:57.1 victory by 1¾ lengths over Lucy Mae Hanover. Jake Leamon conditions the three-year-old for Charles Elliott, A And B Stable, and Hutt Racing Stable.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
CHESTER PA – The John Simpson Sr. stakes for three-year-old colts, the Ayres for trotters and the Albatross for pacers, were each conducted in three $33,067 divisions on Wednesday afternoon at Harrah’s Philadelphia, with driver David Miller continuing his hot hand from Breeders Crown elimination weekend by piloting two of the successful pacers, while trainer/driver Åke Svanstedt accounted for a pair of the trotting winners.
 
Miller’s first winner was the only favorite among the six stakes and started a Sweet Lou gelding double, as Tru Lou followed up on his recent Liberty Bell stakes success by coming home first Wednesday in 1:50.2. Tru Lou made the front past the quarter and withstood stablemate Warrawee Veloce by 1¾ lengths to take his earnings to $114,092 for trainer Ron Burke and the partnership of Burke Racing Stable LLC and Weaver Bruscemi LLC, Knox Services Inc., and Slaughter Racing Stable LLC.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA – They tried battling the pacesetter Crossfit at several stages of the $11,200 claiming handicap trot feature at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono on Tuesday afternoon, but the Donato Hanover four-year-old gelding is currently quite fit and turned back all challengers in a career-best-equaling 1:54.2. 
 
The victorious favorite went to the lead around Cash For Gold just past the :28 quarter, then got no respite as Pilgrims Tide moved early and pressured Crossfit, forcing midfractions of :56.2 and 1:25. When the parked horse faded, Cash For Gold came back out of the pocket, but could get no closer than 1 1/2 lengths at the wire.

By: Jerry Connors, Jr. 
WILKES-BARRE PA – There were a trio of $12,000 featured events on the Sunday twilight card at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono. The male pacers and the trotters generated mid-range upsets in their respective cuts, while the winning female pacer came through for her chalkplaying backers.
 
The Heston Blue Chip filly Talk Show Chica, trained and driven by Tom Jackson for Braden Racing LLC, made a regaining move to the lead in front of the stands, opened a sizable lead on the far turn, then held off a stubborn first-over Peggy J by three-quarters of a length to win in 1:53.2. Having now won two in a row and three out of her last five starts against this level of competition, Talk Show Chica will now have to step up her game, as her victories and money boost her out of this class.