Illinois conceived and foaled trotting colts were on display Wednesday night at Balmoral Park as a field of six two-year-olds met in a $14,500 ISOBA Super Sale Stake, which was contested as a non-wagering event prior to the start of the regular program.
Continuing an impressive late season roll Robert Rietveld, Jack Dorn, Paul Gibson and Kenny Collier’s Definer rolled to his third straight triumph in 1:59.1 over a track that was turned into a sea of mud after two straight days of rain.
Using the inside starting spot to his full advantage driver Tyler Buter hustled the son of Armbro Tropicana-Sues Sweet Shery right to the front as soon as the gate sped away. Despite the soggy conditions, Definer put up very respectable opening splits of 29.2 and 59.4.
Catching a breather while moving around the final bend Definer was still 1 ¼ lengths ahead of a first over Be Bullish (Homer Hochstetler) as he hit the three-quarter-mile mark in 1:30.3.
In the lane the Kenny Collier trainee quickly turned away the challenge from Be Bullish. A pocket sitting Sago (Dan Noble) still loomed as a danger but Definer was not about to be denied on this night as he reported home with a three-quarter-length triumph. Sago was forced to settle for second while Be Bullish was third.
Despite having to battle division leader Southern Rocketop all season long Definer has put together a very impressive first season on the track. With his win on Wednesday night the bay gelding now boasts a record of 9-3-2 in 15 starts with earnings of $138,427.
(Balmoral)