Sunday, April 15, 2012

The Ups & Downs of Betting Handle

Being a bit of a betting and gambling geek, a hobby ofmine is looking at the factors that drive pari-mutuel wager-ing. It's a fascinating exercise because there are so manyitems that go into the make-up of a gross betting pool. Surewe know the basics, like the lower the takeout the higherthe bet, and the less gambling competition we have thebetter it is for racing handles, but there are so many more.So far in the 21st century we've seen wagering fall, but ithas not been all bad. Racing has done some good too. Ithought I'd look at some ups and downs this century; what Ithink has helped, and what I think hasn't.The "Ups" A Concentration on Carding Better Races - I'm a horseowner. When I have a horse in to go and it's a five horsefield, the only thing I like better is a four horse field. Forbettors it's the exact opposite. In the early 2000's this metricwas barely on the radar for tracks and race secretaries.Small, poor fields at some of our large tracks were not anexception; they were the rule (partially due to slots messingup the landscape). Lately, the Woodbine EntertainmentGroup and the Meadowlands have really pushed for good,deep fields. We're not there yet, but we're moving in theright direction and it will help handles. Dynamic Pricing - It seems like it was a long time agowhen bettors were flocking to offshore sites and Vegas toget rebated for their play. Racing wanted no part of dynamicpricing for a long, long time, but in the mid-2000's thisstarted to change. Today, even large organizations likeChurchill Downs Inc., and Magna have embraced themodel. The jury is still out on whether this is good or bad forthe long-term health of the business, but with some esti-mates that decreased takeout through rebating drives 60%of handle, it certainly is formidable. Lower Takeout Bets & Seeded Pools - While you cangrow organically by increasing the churn of your currentcustomer base, any good business needs to look outside of

it to try and increase turnover. If you visit a sports bettingor poker site and tell the crowd you're a horseplayer, theyimmediately think you're a sucker. "How can you beat 20%juice? You can't", is a familiar refrain. Lower takeout betshave, at the very least, tried to attack that mindset. Inaddition, the Strategic Wagering Initiative has allowed forsome pool size and buzz to develop, attracting some newdollars. When Balmoral Park pushes through $150,000 ina low takeout carryover pick 5, we're on to something. "Big" Days - Time and time again the last half dozenyears we've seen a racing juxtaposition: Headlinesscreaming at us about large overall handle losses, yetsimultaneous headlines about tracks having record han-dles for their signature race days. The North America Cuphandle has been solid, as has the Hambletonian. In thor-oughbred racing it is more pronounced, and we must lookfor guidance from them in promoting our big race days. Promoting to Thoroughbred Players Via Television-Woodbine has looked to TVG for growth, as has WesternFair in London, Ontario. Getting our product in front of awilling fan base of thoroughbred players has helped. Thisis a relatively new phenomenon, but it seems to be work-ing.

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HarnessRacingUpdate.com • 4/15/12 PAGE 2 of 9

The "Downs"

Shrinking Pool Size - Harness racing has a lot of race-

tracks, and a large number of them are simply unbettable

because of the lack of pool size. This is just common

sense. If a poker game down the road has three players, or

a bingo hall across the street has two, the payoffs will be

nil, and the excitement of winning will be as well. It's a

vicious circle, because when handles hit a base level, the

losses can snowball. We all know current thoroughbred

players who bet harness in huge numbers a dozen years

ago, who left because of the lack of pool size.

Higher Takeout - There's a reason your neighborhood

bookie charges 10 cent lines in 2012, which is the exact

same price charged a century ago - because that's where

he/she makes the most money. When we increase take-

outs, the business as a whole will make less money in the

long-run. Even the explanations when takeout is hiked, like,

"we're doing it so we can have a better product for you; you

should be happy to pay" - are hair-pulling. Not only are

they illogical (if increasing takeout made tracks more

money, forget raising it to 25%, try 80% and make even

more), they turn off customers. Would racing fans and

participants be happy to pay $5 a gallon instead of $4 a

gallon for gas if the purses for the Dubai World Cup went

up?

Internet Wagering - We can bet a baseball game any-

where we want, without too much trouble. We can sign up

and load an E*Trade account, buy or sell stocks, options or

futures in the middle of the night in all 50 states with ease.

Betting horses on the web is anything but easy. If you live in

state "A" you may or may not be able to bet state "C"'s

tracks. You may be able to sign up to watch video only if

you live in state "F". In state "G", well you may not even be

able to do that. We have 1978 laws governing the 2012

Internet age. It's been a huge problem because potential

new customers do not want to hear about horsemen and

track "home areas" or a variety of excuses on why they can

or cannot do something that others can do. Today's con-

sumer wants action, and they want it yesterday.

Wagering/Pari-Mutuel Technology - I was hanging at the

racetrack in the bar area awhile back and found a simulcast

program. Leafing through it I saw the rail horse at a half

mile track who looked like a solid bet at even money, and

the board showed 5-2. As they rounded the turn, a few

seconds before the off, I got my $20 win bet down. The

horse took an easy lead and looked home free. At the three

quarter pole I noticed the horse was no longer 5-2, he was

1-5. Bettors make value bets by looking at the odds board.

In 2012, especially in harness racing, our odds board is

close to worthless and it turns off many serious players.

Supertrainers - In the 1990's and early 2000's the Meadow-

lands was the place to play because you could find price

horses, and the fields were hyper-competitive. This

changed a great deal as more and more owners looking for

a quick buck flocked to the supertrainers. 4-5 and 6-5 shots

that raced out of their skin proliferated and value was

squeezed out of the pools. It's even worse today at half

mile ovals, where some of these trainers ply their trade,

and some of the races are simply not even worth studying.

In addition, we all know owners who left racing because of

these trainers. Owners bring friends to the races and bet.

Fewer owners mean fewer customers; fewer customers

mean less handle.

There are several other factors I am sure I could've

looked at, but those are a few that I found interesting and

tangible. I believe if our industry does more of the positive,

and less of the negative, we'll drive handle on the plus

side this decade.

Vince Wilfork Visits Meadowlands (Lisa Photo)

SU STAINING PAYMENTS DUE APRIL15

Previous payments must have been made to be eligible.

•Breeders Crown •Bobby Quillen Memorial Pace •Circle City 2-year-olds •Earl Beal Jr Memorial Trot •The Elevation 2-year-old Pacing Colts •KentuckianaStallion Mgt. Filly Pace & Trot (for 2YO Fillies) •Matron Series ( 2YOs) •Matron Series ( 3YOs) •Monument Circle 3-year-olds •Oliver Trotting Classic3-year-olds

Payment forms for all events available atwww.hambletonian.org

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Girls Night OutGirls Night Outat theat the

Kentucky DerbyKentucky DerbySaturday, May 5

Party All Night! Live racing at 7 pm

Derby Hat Contest1st place - $500 2nd place - $2503rd place - $100

Don’t have a hat? Buy or make one of your own at our hat station!

Plus,Cinco De Mayo Specials & Music all night at the Kahuna Wedge Deckand Bar

Culinary Demo at 4 p.m.Hosted by Ariane Duarte, Top Chef contestant & owner of top-rated CulinAriane in Montclair, NJ

$45 per person

• Cooking demo & food sampling • Cocktail in souvenir mint julep glass• Derby t-shirt• Betting basics with a top female handicapper• $5 Derby bet• Pegasus admission, Kentucky Derby program

Go to MeadowlandsRacetrack.com to purchase tickets

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Visit meadowlandsracetrack.comfor further details

Live Racing • Post Time 7 pmCome early and watch

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USO Night at the RacesUSO Night at the Races

HarnessRacingUpdate.com • 4/15/12 PAGE 3 of 9

Tetrick Goes In Front in Drivers’ Race Tim Tetrick and Corey Callahan, the two leading drivers inthe country in wins, went toe to toe last night at the Mead-owlands and Tetrick won the latest round between the two. Tetrick had two wins on the night to give him 191 for theyear. Callahan had one winner and stands at 190. Lastyear’s champ, Dan Noble, had two wins on the card and isin seventh place in North America with 150 wins.

I got shut out on an a $52 exacta last night (Friday) atYonkers and I am not happy. They put up zero minutes topost when there are really seven or eight minutes to post.The end result is that you have no idea when the race isactually going off. This time I got burned. Never again. I’mjust going to be thoroughbreds now, where, you actuallyhave an idea when the race is starting and don’t have toguess.Alex Knight

I enjoyed Harness Racing Update’s take on double-gaitedhorses. My favorite of all time was Six Day War, a son ofNiatross, who made 211 starts as a pacer and 61 as atrotter. He even raced under saddle. Now, that is a versatilehorse. But thanks for the story, which was fun and veryenlightening.Anne Carroll

When I first read that 24-year-old harness driver JordanStratton had joined the USTA board of directors I thought,"That's great, new blood, they added a bright young guy,

good idea." But then I read your interview with Stratton, my enthusi-asm waned. Stratton said, "It really aggravates me whenpeople say the game is dying. The whole economy isgoing bad right now. I don't think this is a dying game atall. It's been around for hundreds and hundreds of years. Ijust don't see it disappearing. We obviously need to takesteps to secure our livelihood, but I don't see this as adying game." Wow, talk about a positive thinker. Jordan Strattonmakes Tim Tebow look like a malcontent. Jordan, I have to ask you, where does your unbridledenthusiasm come from? You drive mainly at two harnesstracks, Yonkers and Monticello. Both tracks were on thebrink of extinction until the state approved slot machines.The only reason why these tracks stayed in business aslong as they did was because they thought there was achance that they would get slots. If they didn't get slots,they most likely would have gone out of business by now.And you seem to forget that the Meadowlands, the topharness track in the industry just a few years ago, camewithin an inch of its life this year and now only races twoor three times a week. After you win a race at Yonkers and come back to thewinner's circle, you don't find it disheartening that thereare only a handful of people there to applaud you? Andthat's during the warm weather. In the winter, there's justthat guy with the cigar and funny hat.

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SUSTAINING PAYMENTS DUE APRIL15Previous payments must have been made to be eligible.

•Breeders Crown •Bobby Quillen Memorial Pace •Circle City 2-year-olds •Earl Beal Jr Memorial Trot •The Elevation 2-year-old Pacing Colts •KentuckianaStallion Mgt. Filly Pace & Trot (for 2YO Fillies) •Matron Series ( 2YOs) •Matron Series ( 3YOs) •Monument Circle 3-year-olds •Oliver Trotting Classic3-year-olds

Payment forms for all events available atwww.hambletonian.org

(609) 371-2211email: callie@hambletonian.org

HarnessRacingUpdate.com • 4/15/12 PAGE 4 of 9

HARNESS RACING UPDATE IS:Bill Finley, publisher

Dean Towers, columnist

Dean Hoffman, Director of Social Media

Bill Saffian, Results and Entries Editor

Ethan Smith, Foreign Editor

Robert W illiams, IT

Lia Kusch, Graphic Design

Lucas Marquardt, night editor

Brian DiDonato, night editor

Visit us on the web at www.harnessracingupdate.com.

As I write this, Yonkers Raceway has raced 4 nights thisweek. I'm writing this on Saturday afternoon, April 7. So farthis week at Yonkers, through 47 races, the horse that wasfirst or second at the quarter won 35 of the 47 races (74%).Over the 47 races, only two horses won off of cover trips onthe outside, both from second over. There were 7 first overwinners. I consider the first over horse to be "on the pace"since the horse is challenging for the lead, so 42 of the 47races were won by a horse on or near the lead. This year, favorites at Yonkers are winning at a rate of44%. Horses starting from posts 1 or 2 have won an alarm-ing 39% of the races, and this number has been rising asthe temperature increases and could go higher in the sum-mer. I'm not making this up, these are the actual stats. What's sad is that during the week I'm referring to, Yon-kers had the best horses racing of any track in the country.And of course the drivers are also top notch. But even withsolid fields of quality horses, the racing at Yonkers wasdreadful. When the sport was popular, favorites won about 34% ofthe time and there was no inside speed bias as there is atmany tracks now. Yonkers had an outstanding, excitingproduct when it raced with the wooden sulkies. Ultimately, Harness Racing must put out a better productso it can stabilize the handle. It's all about handle and al-ways has been. There are simple inexpensive changes thatcan be made which will dramatically improve the quality ofthe racing product at Yonkers and other tracks. Jordan, since you drive at two slot tracks that wouldmost likely either be shut down or getting ready to shutdown if not for slots, your statement that the sport is notdying makes no sense. If Yonkers continues to race theraces the way they do, soon when you get back to thewinner's circle, even that guy with the cigar and the funnyhat won't be there to greet you. We've never met but I think you're a talented harnessdriver and you seem like a nice guy. I wish you the verybest. But if people in the industry are in denial, as you are,the industry is doomed. Changes have to be made to makethe races more exciting with better payoffs. I've establisheda new Facebook page to help this cause. Bob Pandolfo(www.facebook.com/harnessracingcomeback)

Michigan’s Oldfield Farm Survives by

Diversifying

By Dean Hoffman When you analyze the status of racing in various states,it's basically a case of slots and nots; that is, those stateswith slots and those without them. Some states with slotsseem strong if not necessarily secure. Others are waitingfor slots to save them.

Then there is Mich-igan. It's a state with-out slots and seem-ingly without a rea-sonable hope of get-ting them. That's whyall the indicators ofracing's health inMichigan have plum-meted in recentyears. The state'sbreeding farms havebeen particularly

hard hit; many have closed their front gates or sold theirstock. Oldfield Farms is an exception. Like a game race horse,there is no quit in owner and manager Patti Gira, but she'shad to diversify in recent years to keep the family farmalive. "We began to diversify a long time ago," Gira says."We're sure not breeding as many Standardbred mares aswe did in the past. So we've been certified as a foalingfacility for the American Hanoverian Society and now wehave these big dressage mares here to foal. We've alsofoaled hunter-jumper and Quarter Horse mares. "I'm so lucky that my husband Bill (a retired state police-man) is talented in fixing anything," she says. "He remod-eled the foaling barn to make sure we could be certified." Gira has deep roots in harness racing. Her father DickOldfield owned the vaunted pacer True Duane, whosprung one of the most celebrated upsets in history whenhe ruined Bret Hanover's finale with a victory in the 1966American Pacing Classic at Hollywood Park. Gira was just a young girl then, but it's obvious that thehorse bug hit her hard. Her 78-year-old father has trained horses for manyyears and developed such top performers as RoyalStrength, champion freshman trotter in North America in1991. "Dad trained at Pinehurst this winter with four horses,"Gira says. "We've owned some horses with him and we'vebeen fortunate to get some of them sold privately." When harness racing was strong in the Wolverine State,Oldfield Farm was the home Armbro Cadet, the perennialpacing champ among Michigan stallions. The son of Aber-crombie sired the winners of more than $39.5 million. "Armbro Cadet was here because Doug Ackermanasked me if we'd stand him," she says. "Doug and AdaJean have been wonderful customers and we wouldn't be

Mare and foal at Oldfield Farm in

Michigan

HarnessRacingUpdate.com • 4/15/12 PAGE 5 of 9

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here if it were not for them. When Cadet came to Michigan,the sons of Abercrombie hadn't accomplished much, so itwas a bit of trial. But he just dominated. Cadet's foals weregood-looking and durable and they made money. Theyeven made money for their second and third owners." Another stallion that achieved success at Oldfield Farmwas Wall Street Banker, a brother to Valley Victory whoseoffspring did well in trotting stakes in Michigan. He was alsoan alum of the Ackerman Stable. Wall Street Banker wasexported to Europe in 1999 and Gira was happy to wavegoodbye to him despite his commercial success. "He hurt people on the farm," she said. "Wall StreetBanker was intelligent and that made him very dangerous.When he was sold to Sweden, the new owners wanted meand the lady who handled him to travel with ‘Banker.’ Theylaughed at us two gals handling him with two poles and amuzzle on him. They just couldn't imagine he was that bad.We heard that soon after we left Sweden, Wall StreetBanker broke one man's arm and put another man in thehospital." Oldfield Farms now stands a trotter and a pacer. Thetrotter Coventry is a son of Mr Lavec from the outstandingbroodmare Lady Leesun. He was fourth in the 2004Hambletonian and 3-3 in the World Trotting Derby, timed in1:52.3 and 1:53. By the time he retired, Coventry hadbanked $576,149. He's already sired 2:00 speed. The pacer He's All That won in sub-1:55 time each sea-son from age 2 through age 8, winding up with a 1:50.1mark and a bankroll of $402,546. The long-wearing son ofCambest won 29 in 134 starts. His top performer is themare That's For Real p, 3, 1:54.1f ($80,230). He's ownedby E.J. Underwood, a valued patron for Oldfield Farms. The farm has an outstanding half-mile track and BrianBoring, the nephew of the Michigan legend Chris Boring,now has 17 horses in training. Oldfield Farms isn't the only breeder in Michigan that hasscaled back its operations to survive. Many breeders haveseen their clients focus on Ontario, Indiana, Pennsylvaniaand Ohio, but Gira sees some for hope for the future. She'son the board of the Michigan Standardbred Breeders Assn.and her husband sits on the Michigan Harness Horsemen'sAssn. board. "I'm more optimistic than I was a year ago," Gira says."There's more interest from the legislature and governor inthe survival of Michigan's horse racing industry. They'retrying to work with us. The horsemen, tracks, and gover-nor's office are working together. We have a chance to getback to a program that enables Michigan horsemen tomake a living." If the Michigan program rebounds, you can be sure thatOldfield Farm will be leading the way into the future.

Kudos to Yonkers For Racing Ads

Random thoughts while stranded in a bus station inBoston at 1:07 in the morning. (It’s a long story). –In a perfect world no one would get excited over aracino actually airing a commercial for harness racing, butwe all know this is far from a perfect world when it comesto the state of the industry. So let’s give credit where creditis due. Television viewers in the New York metropolitanarea have been treated in recent days to Yonkers com-mercials that have nothing to do with casinos. The ads are excellent, and capture the thrills and excite-ment that fans know still exist at the harness races, partic-ularly at a place like Yonkers that has great racing andgreat drivers. To view the commercial click here Yes, Yonkers management cares about slots, but it alsocares about racing. As a part of a separate entity, I pro-duce harness racing broadcasts on Sirius XM satelliteradio, which can only air if we can attract sponsors to helpfoot the bills. Getting Yonkers to help us out as a sponsoris never a problem, and the same can’t be said for mosttracks.–As harness racing struggles to attract more bettors it’sobvious that a steady diet of winning odds-on favorites is aproblem. That may be part of the modern speed-crazygame, but there is at least one solution that would help–doaway with entries, especially in stakes. With so littlemoney bet at so many tracks and with purses as big asthey are, it’s hard to imagine anyone trying to put some-thing over to cash a bet. The incentive to do so is gone.The massive Ron Burke operation alone accounts fordozens and dozens of very chalky entries that shouldn’thave to be entries. You have to give the fans what theywant and the fans don’t want 2-5 shot entries in what areunbettable races. –So you thought handle at your local track is bad...haveyou checked out Thunder Ridge Racing in Kentucky? InThursday’s first race there, the win, place and show poolwas $14. There wasn’t a single cent bet to win on two ofthe five horses in the race. The exacta pool for that race?$11. It did get better. In the fourth and last race on thecard there was $23 in the win, place and show pools and$28 in the exacta pool. Must have been a late arrivingcrowd.–The TrackMaster harness past performances now in-clude links to the replays of each horse’s last severalraces. It’s terrific addition to what was already a goodproduct.–On what was just an ordinary Saturday and with no carry-

HarnessRacingUpdate.com • 4/15/12 PAGE 6 of 9

Harness Racing Update is distributedeach and every day on the grounds of

the Lexington,Harrisburg and the January Select Mixed

Sale.

over, they bet $11.7 million on the V-75 yesterday in Swe-den, a country with about as many people as North Carolinahas. The wager works because the unit bet is a dime andyou might just get lucky and hit it for several million. This is exactly what harness racing here needs, a bet thatis hard to hit, doesn’t cost much to play and, if you hit it,you’re next trip is to the local Maserati dealership. Because fields are smaller in the U.S. than they are inSweden, it wouldn’t work here with just seven races. Buthow about a Pick 10 or 11? How about every Saturdaynight at the Meadowlands, with a 10-cent wager where youhave to pick the winner of 11 races and you get a consola-tion payoff of you hit nine or more? It has to be worth a try.

4-14 Albion ParkRace 5. RQIS 3YO Fillies Final. Pace. $100,000. 2,138meters. 1:59:5 (mile rate)Shez No Fake (f, 3, Art Major-Sheza Fake) B-TonyBurgoyne. O&T-Bill Crosby. D-Gary Whitaker, $62,310,Lifetime Record: 7-6-0-0, $125,000

4-14 MilduraRace 7. Park Douglas Printing Mildura Pacing Cup Final(G2). Pace. $50,000. 2,600 meters. 2:00:1 (mile rate)Heza Trick (g, 5, Badlands Hanover-Sheza Trick)O-Anderson Racing. B-Neil Timms. T-Glenn Douglas.D-Daryl Douglas, $33,750, Lifetime Record: 31-15-6-3,$182,000

4-14 Tabcorp Park MenangleRace 5. Campbell Advisory Golden Mile (G3). Pace.$40,000. 1,609 meters. 1:51:4 (mile rate)Captain Joy (g, 6, Mach Three-Lady Joy) O&B-MarieRoss. T-Susan Hunter. D-Josh Willick, $25,000, LifetimeRecord: 65-26-10-6, $935,000

4-14 Solvalla, StockholmRace 10, V75-6. Mare Race. $30,000. 2,140 meters. 1:59.3(mile rate)True Advantage (m, 5, Conway Hall-Paragon Princess)O-Stall T.Z. B-Robert Rosenheim Stbs Ltd. T-StefanMelander. D-Bjorn Goop, $14,700, Lifetime Record:51-8-11-3, $128,000

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Saturday’s Results:2, M, $15,000, Pace, SPRING SURVIVOR SERIES -SEMI FINAL 3 Year Olds N/W 2 Extended PM Races or$30,000 Lifetime as of 3/1/2012 Winners Over $75,000Lifetime Ineligible, 27.3, 57.1, 1:25.4, 1:52.2, FTBreakin The Law (g, 3, Artiscape--Arl's Troublemaker,by Troublemaker), $17,000 2010 SHS-HBG O-BurkeRacing Stable LLC & Weaver Bruscemi LLC & Jjk StablesLLC & The Panhellenic Stb Corp. B-Winbak Farm. T-RonBurke. D-David Miller, $7,500, Lifetime Record: 14-10-2-0,$60,539To view replay click here

4, M, $20,000, Pace, N/W $16,500 in Last 5 Starts AE:N/W $90,000 Lifetime Optional Claiming Price $50,000,27.2, 56.1, 1:22.4, 1:50.2, FTHeart Of Rocknroll (g, 5, Rocknroll Hanover--RagingHeart, by Artsplace), $85,000 2008 LEX-SEL O-F IanSmith, CA. B-Moni Market Breeders & Rex A King & Eu-gene W Thayer. T-David Pinkney Jr. D-John Campbell,$10,000, Lifetime Record: 61-12-5-12, $96,452To view replay click here

10, M, $25,000, Pace, N/W $22,500 in Last 5 Starts AE:N/W $200,000 in 2011-2012, 26.3, 54.0, 1:20.3, 1:48.3, FTWarning Zone (g, 7, Jate Lobell--Cambridge United, byTopnotcher), $25,000 2006 LEX-SEL O-Vip InternetStable LLC. B-Winbak Farm. T-Boyd Hudson Jr. D-DavidMiller, $12,500, Lifetime Record: 123-32-23-21, $713,421To view replay click here

Saturday’s Results:5, PcD, $25,000, Trot, Winners Over $25,000 Lifetime,28.1, 57.1, 1:25.3, 1:54.0, FTSand Top Gun (g, 7, Conway Hall--Top Chip, by PineChip), $20,000 2006 LEX-SEL O-Helane R & HaroldSolomon & Stephen M Moss. B-Winn R Schwyhart.T-Tyler Raymer. D-Jim Morrill Jr, $12,500, Lifetime Re-cord: 102-20-21-11, $303,167To view replay click here

HarnessRacingUpdate.com • 4/15/12 PAGE 7 of 9

© Copyright Harness Racing Update.

This newspaper may not be reproduced in any form or

by any means, electronic or mechanical, without prior

written permission of the copyright owner, MB

Publishing Inc. Information as to the races, race results

and earnings was obtained from results charts published

by the United States Trotting Association and utilized

here with the permission of the copyright owner.

10, PcD, $25,000, Pace, Winners Over $25,000 Lifetime,26.2, 55.1, 1:22.2, 1:50.0, FTDrop Red (h, 6, Red RiverHanover--Igottwowordsforyou, by Cam's Card Shark),$14,000 2007 SHS-HBG O-Robert I Horowitz & RandolphPerry. B-Perretti Farms. T-Robert Horowitz. D-Jim Morrill Jr,$12,500, Lifetime Record: 90-27-12-11, $646,240To view replay click here

12, PcD, $21,000, Pace, NW $25,000 in Last 5 Starts AE:NW 10 EXT PM Races Lifetime, 27.1, 56.0, 1:22.3, 1:51.0,FTForeclosure N (h, 4, Rocknroll Hanover--Pleasing Pack-age A, by Fake Left) O-Richard P & Joanne Young.B-Platinum Breeding Limited, NZ. T-Chris Ryder. D-JimMorrill Jr, $10,500, Lifetime Record: 24-8-2-4, $515,063To view replay click here

Saturday’s Results:1, Wdb, PACE, $27,000. NW 5 RACES OR $125,000LIFETIME. AE: 4 YEAR OLDS, CLAIMING $60,000.AE: ONTARIO SIRED 4 YEAR OLDS, NW $50,000 IN2012. 26.3, 55.1, 1:23, 1:51.1, FTClic K (ch,g,4 - Shanghai Phil-Eclatante-BullvonsDream) O-Bradley J Grant, Holland Racing Stable Inc B-Guy Corbeil,Mirabel,QC T-Ben Wallace D-Jody JamiesonLifetime Record: 33-13-5-6, $114,109To view replay click here

3, Wdb, PACE, $38,000. PREFERRED. 27.2, 56, 1:24,1:50.4, FTBrave Alex Semalu (b,g,5 - Yankee Cam-SignatureSemalu-Beach Towel) O-J And T Silva Stables LLC, Mar-tin Scharf, Bramdeo Singh, John C Polvinale B-SemaluInc,Laval,QC T-Ryan Maxwell D-Randy WaplesLifetime Record: 54-16-10-7, $303,678To view replay click here

8, Wdb, PACE, $50,000. BLOSSOM - FINAL - 3 YEAROLD FILLIES. NW 3 RACES OR $15,000 IN 2011. 27,56.1, 1:24, 1:52.3, FT1-Yagonnakissmeornot (b,f,3 - ThePanderosa-Artstopper-Artsplace) O-George Teague JRInc, Theodore Gewertz, Fannin Racing LLC B-Roll The DiceStable,DE T-George Teague Jr. D-Jody JamiesonLifetime Record: 14-7-2-1, $114,4962-Stage It Right (b,f,3 -Artiscape-Whenuwishuponastar-Camluck) O-Richard MLombardo, Howard A Taylor B-Robert Mcintosh StablesInc,ON T-Richard Zeron D-Mario Baillargeon2-Mach A Wish (b,f,3 - Mach Three-Belinda Hanover-CamsCard Shark) O-Tony J O'Sullivan, David Goodrow Stable B-30 Plus Stable,Trenton,ON T-Tony O’Sullivan D-ScottZeronWinning Margin: 5T

To view replay click here

Heavy favoriteYagonnakissmeornot (JodyJamieson,$2.60) kissedher competitiongoodnight aftera crushing 5-3/4 length vic-tory in a career-best 1:52.3. Itwas her secondstraight win andfifth this year in

6 starts. After getting away fourth, Jody pulled uncoveredwith Yagonnakissmeornot and they rushed up quickly totackle the leader, after blowing past and opening up theyclosed the door shut. Mach A Wish (Scott Zeron) who wasninth the whole way came from out of the clouds to rallyup for a share of the place position with 65-1 longshotStage It Right (Mario Baillargeon). That rival was followingsecond over behind Air Guitar Hanover (Randy Waples)when that one made a break heading to three quarters.Stage It Right was bothered but was still able to rallywillingly behind the winner.

10, Wdb, PACE, $27,000. NW $25,000 LAST 5 STARTS.AE: 4 YEAR OLDS, NW $155,000 LIFE. 27.1, 55.1,1:22.1, 1:36, 1:50.4, FTPiece Of The Rock (b,g,5 - Rocknroll Hanover-PaulasPromise-Artsplace) O-Robert B Young, Jamie A Trott,Brian K Barton, Frank Aloise B-Perretti Farms,NJ T-RobertYoung D-Scott YoungLifetime Record: 53-9-10-10, $507,697To view replay click here

“Kiss” is a winner at Woodbine (New

Image Media photo)

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HarnessRacingUpdate.com • 4/15/12 PAGE 8 of 9

Saturday’s Results:4, YR, $50,000, Pace, GEORGE MORTON LEVY SERIESFREE FOR ALL HORSES & GELDINGS 4TH PRELIMI-NARY 1ST DIVISION, 27.3, 56.0, 1:24.0, 1:52.0, FT

1-Strand Hanover (h, 6,Modern Art--Suntan Cathy,

by Beach Towel), $52,0002007 SHS-HBG

O-Uncirculated Stable, CA &Brenda K Selwyn Waxman,

CA. B-Hanover Shoe FarmsInc. T-Tony Alagna. D-Luc

Ouellette, $25,000, LifetimeRecord: 77-17-9-7, $367,849

2-Power Of Tara N (g, 9, Live Or Die--Atomic Gold, bySokys Atom) O-Harry von Knoblauch. B-R P Anicich, NZ.

T-Peter Tritton. D-George Brennan, $12,5003-Dreamlands Art (g, 5, Artsplace--Dreamlands Delilah, by

Western Hanover) O-Burke Racing Stable LLC & WeaverBruscemi LLC & James A Koran & Bfj Stable. B-Glenview

Livestock LTD, CA. T-Ron Burke. D-Yannick Gingras,$6,000

Calls: 1Q, 1H, 1H, 1T, 1HFinish Order: Razzle Dazzle, One More Laugh, Silent

Swing, BoiTo view replay click here

Luc Ouellette was in town, and for a reason. Making his first

start at Yonkers in nine years where he won three drivingtitles, Luc had one drive on the night and he made it worth

while. Driving Strand Hanover ($3.90), Luc settled away inthird after leaving from post 4 but was quickly on the move

and brushed to command at the quarter, from there it wasjust like “old days” as Luc controlled the action and never

looked back winning by 1-1/2 lengths in 1:52 and almostguaranteeing a return next week. For “Strand”, it was his

fourth win this year in 11 starts. Power of Tara N (GeorgeBrennan) sat fourth the whole way and scooted along the

pylons to get up for second. Dreamlands Art (YannickGingras) who had the early lead before yielding to the

winner, sat a pocket trip and weakened to third.

5, YR, $20,000, Pace, NON-WINNERS OF $18,000 INLAST 6 STARTS, 26.4, 56.0, 1:23.4, 1:51.4, FTJerry's Brown Gold (h, 5, Art Major--Ideal Dex, by West-ern Ideal), $37,000 2008 SHS-HBG O-Fred MonteleoneStbl LLC. B-Blue Chip Bloodstock Inc. T-Keith Armer.D-George Brennan, $10,000, Lifetime Record: 57-18-6-6,$296,051To view replay click here

6, YR, $50,000, Pace, GEORGE MORTON LEVY SE-RIES FREE FOR ALL HORSES & GELDINGS 4TH PRE-LIMINARY 2ND DIVISION, 27.1, 56.4, 1:24.4, 1:52.1, FT1-Fitz's Z Tam (g, 5, Cole Muffler--BroadwayRosemarie, by Broadway Express), $20,000 2008 COT-TON O-J&T Silva Stables, LLC & Martin Scharf. B-BrentW Johnson & Herbert R Anderson. T-Tyler Raymer.D-Brian Sears, $25,000, Lifetime Record: 77-16-9-15,$330,5052-Nob Hill High (h, 6, McArdle--Anniecrombie, by Aber-crombie) O/B-Robert A Mondillo & Donald E Robinson.T-Bruce Saunders. D-Jordan Stratton, $12,5003-River Shark (g, 6, Four Starzzz Shark--Riverview Dia-mond, by Life Sign), $9,000 2007 LEX-SEL O-Mark SFord & Vip Internet Stable LLC & Robert O Di Nozzi & ElLobo LLC. B-Steve H Stewart & Myron Bell. T-Mark Ford.D-Mark Macdonald, $6,000Calls: 7H, 4Q, 1T, 2T, 2Finish Order: Southern Allie, Art Two D Two, MainlandKey N, Urgent ActionTo view replay click here

Fitz's Z Tam (Brian Sears, $14) exploded off a secondover trip and drew clear by two lengths in 1:52.1. It was histhird win (2nd consecutive) in 9 starts this year. Nob HillHigh (Jordan Stratton) elected to sit in coming to the half,ended up following third over around turn three and angledwide down the stretch to close with late pace for second.River Shark (Mark MacDonald) who tried to take themcoast to coast battled it out with Art Two D Two (GeorgeBrennan) at three quarters, after putting him away aroundthe final turn MacDonald asked River Shark for more buthe was out of gas and faded to third.

7, YR, $50,000, Pace, GEORGE MORTON LEVY SE-RIES FREE FOR ALL HORSES & GELDINGS 4TH PRE-LIMINARY 3RD DIVISION, 27.4, 56.3, 1:24.3, 1:52.0, FT1-Blatantly Good (h, 8, Albert Albert--Lifeline, by Matt'sScooter), $16,000 2005 FOREST O-Bamond Racing LLC.B-Glengate Farms, CA. T-Pj Fraley. D-George Brennan,$25,000, Lifetime Record: 151-46-19-17, $956,8992-Dancin Yankee (h, 4, YankeeCruiser--Dancewiththebest, by Cambest), $17,000 2009OH-SEL O-Robert L Briley & Baron Racing Stable.B-Elizabeth C Wagner. T-Josh Green. D-Jason Bartlett,$12,5003-Roadside Delight (g, 4, Bettor's Delight--Road Sign, byLife Sign), $70,000 2009 LEX-SEL O-David H Mc Duffee.B-White Birch Farm. T-R. Nifty Norman. D-Pat Lachance,$6,000Calls: H, 2, 1H, 1H, HFinish Order: P H Jackpot, Flipper J, Code Word, ShowMe UpTo view replay click here

Blatantly Good (George Brennan, $2.20) used the rail tofull advantage, leaving for early command, yielding thenretaking from Dancin Yankee (Jason Bartlett) at the quar-

(Lizzi photo)

HarnessRacingUpdate.com • 4/15/12 PAGE 9 of 9

ter, cutting the fractions under no real threat and then dig-ging in to keep that pocketsitter at bay by a half-length in1:52. It was his third win in 11 starts this year. RoadsideDelight (Pat Lachance) sat a three hole trip and was nomatch to the top two.

8, YR, $50,000, Pace,GEORGE MORTON LEVYSERIES FREE FOR ALLHORSES & GELDINGS4TH PRELIMINARY 4THDIVISION, 27.2, 56.4,1:24.3, 1:51.4, FT1-Real Nice (g, 7, RealArtist--Dreamland's Jo Jo,by Western Hanover),

$25,000 2006 SHS-HBG O-Beverly & Gary R Paganelli &Anthony C Scussel. B-Dreamland Farms. T-Richard Banca.D-Jason Bartlett, $25,000, Lifetime Record: 110-36-13-20,$1,074,1892-Valentino (h, 5, Rocknroll Hanover--Schoolofcardknocks,by Cam's Card Shark), $80,000 2008 SHS-HBG O-KdmStables Corp.. B-David A Meirs III & Hill View Enterprises.T-Nicholas Surick. D-Cat Manzi, $12,5003-Clear Vision (g, 6, Western Hanover--Artistic Vision, byArtsplace), $180,000 2007 LEX-SEL O-Burke Racing Sta-ble LLC & Weaver Bruscemi LLC & The Panhellenic StbCorp & James A Koran. B-Steve H Stewart & Charles &Julie R & Francene Nash. T-Ron Burke. D-Yannick Gingras,$6,000Calls: 1H, 2, 1H, 2H, 1TFinish Order: Rock To Glory, Shoobee's Place, Bj's Bequia,Jk Camelot, Macraider NTo view replay click here

Last year’s Levy champ Real Nice (Jason Bartlett, $2.60)continued his pursuit of perfection by making it 4 for 4 in theseries after another wire to wire job in 1:51.4. Valentino (CatManzi) roughed it first over and rallied up for second 1-3/4lengths behind the winner. Clear Vision (Yannick Gingras)followed Valentino’s cover and finished third.

9, YR, $50,000, Pace, GEORGE MORTON LEVY SERIESFREE FOR ALL HORSES & GELDINGS 4TH PRELIMI-NARY 5TH DIVISION, 28.0, 56.2, 1:24.2, 1:52.0, FT1-Foiled Again (g, 8, Dragon Again--In A Safe Place, byArtsplace), $20,000 2005 SHS-HBG O-Burke RacingStable LLC & Weaver Bruscemi LLC & Jjk Stables LLC.B-Barbara L Matthews. T-Ron Burke. D-Yannick Gingras,$25,000, Lifetime Record: 149-61-36-15, $3,506,0552-Foreign Officer (g, 5, Western Ideal--Allamerican Coco,by Artsplace), $200,000 2008 LEX-SEL O-David RovineStable LLC & J L Benson Stables Inc & Melvin Hartman,CA & Foreign Officer Partners. B-Brittany Farms. T-TonyAlagna. D-Jordan Stratton, $12,5003-Art Z (g, 4, Artiscape--Celebrity Ball, by Presidential Ball)O-Richard M Lombardo. B-Robert McIntosh Stables Inc, CA& C S X Stables. T-Jordan Rubin. D-Brett Miller, $6,000

Calls: 1T, 1H, 1H, 2, 1TFinish Order: Summer Camp, Power Of A Moment,Stonebridge Tonic, Sea Venture, ReibercrombieTo view replay click here

Foiled Again (Yannick Gingras, $2.10) made it look easyonce again, taking them coast to coast from post 4 in 1:52.It was his third straight win in 4 starts this year. ForeignOfficer (Jordan Stratton) sat a pocket trip the whole waybut could not catch the top one while a 1-3/4 behind. Art Z(Brett Miller) made a mild uncovered bid from third at threequarters, had aim on the place position but was outkickedlate.

10, YR, $27,000, Pace, WINNERS OVER $25,000 INLAST 6 STARTS HANDICAP POST POSITION 1 AS-SIGNED POST POSITIONS 2-5 DRAWN POST POSI-TIONS 6-8 DRAWN, 27.1, 56.2, 1:24.1, 1:52.3, FTSamandar (h, 4, American Ideal--Lady Sammie, byJenna's Beach Boy), $15,000 2009 SHS-HBG O-M AndL Of Delaware LLC. B-Century Spring Farms, CA. T-BruceSaunders. D-Brian Sears, $13,500, Lifetime Record:46-8-9-8, $302,229To view replay click here

11, YR, $20,000, Pace, CLAIMING ALLOWANCE $50,000WINNERS OVER $65,000 IN LAST 6 STARTS NOTELIGIBLE. 3 YO 50%, 4 YO 25%, F&M 20%, 26.1, 55.1,1:24.1, 1:52.3, FTWestern Dakota (g, 6, Western Hanover--Ladysox, byAbercrombie), $65,000 2007 SHS-HBG O-Shaun FVallee & Emanuel & Patricia Balsamides. B-Carl J Vizzi &Neal L Oksenberg, CA. T-Anita Vallee. D-Shaun Vallee,$10,000, Lifetime Record: 89-19-12-6, $311,928To view replay click here

12, YR, $23,000, Pace, NON-WINNERS OF $25,000 INLAST 6 STARTS, 26.4, 55.0, 1:23.2, 1:53.0, FTArt For Arts Sake (g, 5, Artiscape--Panic Attack, byMasquerade), $40,000 2008 LEX-SEL O-Joseph Davino& Nikolas R Drennan, CA. B-Donald R Stevens & NormanS Levine. T-Nikolas Drennan. D-George Brennan,$11,500, Lifetime Record: 75-14-12-15, $275,218To view replay click here

(Lizzi photo)

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