Mastering the claiming ranks at the Meadowlands helped Scott Rollins crack the Top 10 in the trainer standings for the first time this season.
Rollins finished seventh in the January-August standings with 55 wins and $555,470 in purses won. He is on pace to close out the year with more than $650,000 in earnings and will look to add to that bankroll with a trio of starters this weekend at the Meadowlands.
“I’ve had my best year ever, and it helped that I finally got some owners that gave me a chance to claim some high ranked horses,” Rollins said. “I had a horse in the $75,000 and $50,000 claimers just about every week from January to August. I couldn’t have been any happier. I had an unbelievable run. I had Soul Chaser before he got claimed off of me. I claimed Yankee Lance for $25,000 and I had him in that $75,000-$100,000 class. I took Dynamite Express for $40,000 and lost him for $55,000. I had Allstar Blue Jean for a couple of starts.
“Thankfully I had the owners behind me, and I was able to be successful for them,” he continued. “The bottom line is if you don’t have any power here you’re in trouble. If you have some money, you can buy some power.
Rollins will send out recent $60,000 claim Im Warning U in the sixth race on Friday night. The five-year-old mare, who previously raced for Casie Coleman, has hit the board in 15 of 30 starts this season, including five wins. Im Warning U is rated at 7-2 from Post 3 with Brian Sears listed to drive.
“We watched this mare race and I really liked her,” Rollins said. “She’s a quality horse and fits that class. I’ve had more luck with her owner, Ira Sofia, than anybody. He’s been very successful buying and claiming horses for me. Every horse we touch seems to turn to gold, but he’s been very unfortunate. We’re looking to be a lot more active at the claim box.
Harmony Oaks Quest makes her second start off a lengthy layoff for Rollins in the fifth race. In her first race since August 2, the seven-year-old mare finished seventh in a claiming optional, conditioned race last week. After racing with a $60,000 price tag, she is entered for $36,000 on Friday, She will start from the rail with Andy Miller at the lines.
“We’ve some problems with Harmony Oaks Quest,” he said. “She was a $15,000 or $20,000 claimer, and we got her really good. She took a mark of 1:49.3 and went up the ranks, but unfortunately, she went a bit over her head. I had to give her a few months off. Basically, she hurt herself going too fast, plus she’s got some age on her.”
Rollins also has Southern Comfort entered in the $25,000 second leg of the Oil Burner Series on Saturday night. The three-year-old colt finished third in the first round of the series last week.
“Southern Comfort was purchased privately [on October 5] from Dan Ater in Ohio,” he said. “For what he was purchased for, we’re stretching him a bit. He’s a steady, competitive horse, but he seems a little over his head in the Oil Burner Series. He’s probably going in some type of claimer for four-year-olds after January 1.”
Although Rollins tries to maintain a stable of 12-15 horses, he scaled back on his workload this fall to assist with the care of his ailing father.
“I put in a pretty strong tour here at the Meadowlands and when that meet ended, I had to address some family issues,” he said. “I didn’t exactly stop racing, but I cut way back and kept a small stable for a few months. Unfortunately, my father’s health got worse. My mother looked after him for a few years and did the best she could. He has Alzheimer’s disease and we had to put him in a nursing home. They’re both in their late seventies.”
The 45-year-old Waterville, ME native is currently restocking his stable, a task, which he says, can be quite challenging.
“We’re going to start cranking things up [in the claim box],” he said. “We’re also looking elsewhere, like Canada, New Zealand and Australia. The guys Down Under send me videos. I have a few gentlemen there that look at them and we e-mail back and forth. Like everybody, we’re trying to find new horses all the time, fill the classes up and have something in to go every night. It’s challenging. I’ve got money behind me, the owners are willing, they love the business and the action, but it’s tough finding them horses.
“I always tell them as long as we’re on the same page, and we’re comfortable buying a horse, usually things work out,” he added. “I want to put a horse on the track that’s competitive and where they belong. If they’re in the wrong class, they have no chance. It’s no fun, and it’s a waste of time and money. Then, it’s time for a class drop or there are a lot of other places to race.
“I have quite a few people, including some first time owners, looking to get in,” he continued. “The networking thing is pretty tough for me because I like to spend a lot of time in the barn. I have a couple of people who are always watching races and replays, and they scout horses for me. They’re not exactly on the payroll, but they’re part of the team. I tend to be very picky and careful.
“I’ve turned down a lot of horses,” he added. “Ira Sofia wanted to claim about five horses this fall. I watched them warm up and looked at some replays. I wasn’t crazy about one of them [Air McNair], but we took him anyway. We weren’t successful with the horse [finishing sixth], and I think it was a good thing we had him claimed off of us. I keep telling Ira to be patient. The horses are what they are, and I definitely don’t want to take a horse I’m not comfortable with.”
One member of Rollins’ barn who will not return next year is his sentimental favourite, veteran trotter Earls Charm K.
“We tried to bring back my old favourite trotter but recent injuries have plagued him,” he said. “It’s at the point where there isn’t anything we can do to make him an efficient racehorse. I made about $250,000 with him, and I actually tried to qualify him [Nov. 21], and he made a break. He’s going to go to the Standardbred Retirement Foundation as soon as they find a home for him. He’d be a great pasture and partner horse. He’s eight now and has $366,090 on his card.”
Rollins knew from the time he was a teenager growing up in Maine that he wanted to work with horses. In high school, he worked for a co-op program on a large breeding farm owned by Ival Chianchette, where he received a strong foundation in training and farm management.
Rollins first came to New Jersey at the age of 18, working for outfits that raced at the Meadowlands, Freehold and Liberty Bell. He eventually opened his own stable in New England and received support from Gary Mosher and Vincent D’Amelio, owner of the Vapco Company, which manufactures equine vitamins and health products.
“Vinnie D’Amelio had a new kidney put in this year and that surgery was successful,” he said. “I still talk to him every day. I buy all the Vapco vitamins and supplements, and I stand behind his products. He’s sort of like my dad now, to a certain extent. He lives in Boston and his company is in Massachusetts. We became really close after [longtime Meadowlands driver-trainer] Mike Gagliardi died. Vinnie worked for him. We struck up a friendship about five or six years ago.”
(The Meadowlands)