The title of the winningest horse in North America will go right to the wire and appears destined to end in a tie

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A pair of pacing females, four-year-old Shortest Distance and three-year-old Bell On Wheels will end the year with nearly identical records of 21 wins in 31 starts for Shortest Distance and 32 starts for Bell On Wheels. Shortest Distance has $72,709 in earnings and Bell On Wheels has $70,429.

Shortest Distance won by a head on December 17 at Yonkers Raceway in a $12,500 claimer and Bell On Wheels got her first pari-mutuel win in a career best 1:57.4 on December 23 at The Meadows, after a year spent racing primarily at the Pennsylvania fairs. Neither horse was entered to race at press time, so it looks like there will be co-champions.

"I propose a race-off somewhere," joked Mark Kesmodel, who trains Shortest Distance for owner Larry Baron. "There's nowhere to race - Yonkers,
Monticello, Freehold - they're all closed (until after the New Year), so co-honours will have to be OK."

Rod Bolon, who trains Bell On Wheels for owner James Snyder, could not be reached for comment by press time.

This story courtesy of Harness Racing Communications, a division of the U.S.
Trotting Association. For more information, visit www.ustrotting.com.