Nine-year-old Cantab Lindy captured Thursday evening’s $18,500 Open Trot at Hollywood Dayton Raceway, winning for the 41st time and inching closer to $500,000 in career earnings.

What is unique about this story is that the son of Cantab Hall did not race at two, only made a handful of starts at three, and has never raced in a stakes race in his life. Additionally, he has made all 172 of his lifetime starts for owner-trainer Brent Davis of Zanesville, Ohio, who purchased him (with a bad ankle) after he failed to make it to the races as a freshman.

“He’s done it the hard way,” exclaimed Davis. “I’ve never made a stakes payment on him because he was still a maiden until early in his four-year-old season. He blossomed quickly from there, though, as he rose through the ranks from a maiden to an open trotter in a four-month span back in 2012. He’s raced in opens or very high conditions most of the time since then.”

Davis, who is currently maintaining a five-horse stable with the help of his dad, Mac, has had other good horses through the years, but none quite this good. He trained an Amish reclamation project called Dino Trevor years back, a trotter who banked over $300,000. But Cantab Lindy now has earned $484,357 for Davis and is still going strong.

In the latest victory, driver Tyler Smith left quickly from the eight-hole, relenting only to Another Breath (Randy Tharps) who tripped the first quarter mile beam in :28.1. After Another Breath reach the half of top in :57, Cantab Lindy was out and rolling to stick his head in front at the 1:25.1 three-quarter station. A :29.2 final panel was plenty good enough to hold off Mugshot Man (Kyle Ater) and Another Breath when he reached the wire in 1:54.3.

Because he hadn’t won in his previous five starts, the winner was dispatched at 12-1 odds and returned $27.60 to his faithful.

(Hollywood Dayton)