Photo: Curtis Salonick
By: Jerry Connors, Jr.
WILKES-BARRE PA – Maybe Quiksilvr Bluechip wants to be the next Chapolier. “Quiksilvr” is building a resume getting closer to the stellar summary page of the other, on Tuesday afternoon winning the $16,000 featured claiming handicap trot at Pocono Downs at Mohegan Pennsylvania in 1:53.2. Quiksilvr Blue Chip, a Credit Winner gelding, had to overcome the “tuck then first-over” route, but he was able to draw away late to record his third straight victory for driver Tyler Buter, trainer Brandon Presto and owner Rocco Stebbins.
Chapolier is of course the trotter who ran roughshod over this local class throughout the late winter and early spring, winning eleven races in a row here and switching barns after claims almost every start. The final claim on him resulted in him being transported to The Meadows, where last Friday he recorded his twelfth straight success, making him by far the winningest trotter in North America, and this Friday he has a chance to go into a joint first among all North American Standardbreds, as he is in the Open at the western Pennsylvania track.
While Quiksilvr Bluechip has some more to go before compiling this sort of record, some parallels have already formed. Both notched their first victory (of both the streak and the year) in a conditioned race, then took over the claimers. Tough trips haven’t ended the long winning streaks of these two in-form trotters.
Further, Quiksilvr Bluechip was claimed out of his Pocono win Tuesday for $29,000, going back to trainer Hunter Oakes – from whose barn Presto and Stebbins took the trotter for $25,000 last week. Oakes had four stints with Chapolier, and now he (and owner Carmen Iannacone) get their second with Quiksilver Bluechip; Presto and Stebbins had Chapolier twice, and they did all right for their week’s stewardship of “Quiksilvr,” earning $8000 of the Tuesday purse and gaining $4000 more on the jump in claiming price.
In a $15,000 claiming handicap trot for horses just below the level of the feature field, Chamba, who hadn’t done much since getting placed first in the Game To Claims Championship at the end of April, put in the mile of his life, bottoming out his field while taking a new mark of 1:52.4 (one of two trots that produced a time only a fifth off the Pocono season’s record – Divine Spirit matched that clocking and also took a mark). No one was close during the last half to Chamba, who was driven by Simon Allard for trainer Dean Eckley and owner Mark Akins. In all, five trotters equaled or broke 1:54 on the overnight card at the speedy mountain oval.
Tyler Buter and George Napolitano Jr., 1-2 in driving victories for the season at Pocono, were also 1-2 on this Tuesday card, with Buter winning four and “GNap” scoring three times.
Two-year-olds make their first appearance of the year at Pocono on Wednesday morning, with ten fields of babies seeing their initial action on a qualifying card set for a 9 a.m. post.
Horsemen are reminded that the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes / Stallion Series races originally scheduled for Pocono this coming Saturday (June 7) have been moved back one day to Sunday, June 8. Pocono’s current schedule is Saturday at 1 p.m., Sunday at 6 p.m., then Monday and Tuesday at 1 p.m. Free Pocono program pages are or will be available at www.phha.org.
WILKES-BARRE PA – Maybe Quiksilvr Bluechip wants to be the next Chapolier. “Quiksilvr” is building a resume getting closer to the stellar summary page of the other, on Tuesday afternoon winning the $16,000 featured claiming handicap trot at Pocono Downs at Mohegan Pennsylvania in 1:53.2. Quiksilvr Blue Chip, a Credit Winner gelding, had to overcome the “tuck then first-over” route, but he was able to draw away late to record his third straight victory for driver Tyler Buter, trainer Brandon Presto and owner Rocco Stebbins.
Chapolier is of course the trotter who ran roughshod over this local class throughout the late winter and early spring, winning eleven races in a row here and switching barns after claims almost every start. The final claim on him resulted in him being transported to The Meadows, where last Friday he recorded his twelfth straight success, making him by far the winningest trotter in North America, and this Friday he has a chance to go into a joint first among all North American Standardbreds, as he is in the Open at the western Pennsylvania track.
While Quiksilvr Bluechip has some more to go before compiling this sort of record, some parallels have already formed. Both notched their first victory (of both the streak and the year) in a conditioned race, then took over the claimers. Tough trips haven’t ended the long winning streaks of these two in-form trotters.
Further, Quiksilvr Bluechip was claimed out of his Pocono win Tuesday for $29,000, going back to trainer Hunter Oakes – from whose barn Presto and Stebbins took the trotter for $25,000 last week. Oakes had four stints with Chapolier, and now he (and owner Carmen Iannacone) get their second with Quiksilver Bluechip; Presto and Stebbins had Chapolier twice, and they did all right for their week’s stewardship of “Quiksilvr,” earning $8000 of the Tuesday purse and gaining $4000 more on the jump in claiming price.
In a $15,000 claiming handicap trot for horses just below the level of the feature field, Chamba, who hadn’t done much since getting placed first in the Game To Claims Championship at the end of April, put in the mile of his life, bottoming out his field while taking a new mark of 1:52.4 (one of two trots that produced a time only a fifth off the Pocono season’s record – Divine Spirit matched that clocking and also took a mark). No one was close during the last half to Chamba, who was driven by Simon Allard for trainer Dean Eckley and owner Mark Akins. In all, five trotters equaled or broke 1:54 on the overnight card at the speedy mountain oval.
Tyler Buter and George Napolitano Jr., 1-2 in driving victories for the season at Pocono, were also 1-2 on this Tuesday card, with Buter winning four and “GNap” scoring three times.
Two-year-olds make their first appearance of the year at Pocono on Wednesday morning, with ten fields of babies seeing their initial action on a qualifying card set for a 9 a.m. post.
Horsemen are reminded that the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes / Stallion Series races originally scheduled for Pocono this coming Saturday (June 7) have been moved back one day to Sunday, June 8. Pocono’s current schedule is Saturday at 1 p.m., Sunday at 6 p.m., then Monday and Tuesday at 1 p.m. Free Pocono program pages are or will be available at www.phha.org.
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