“There’s nothing like winning one for my Dad,” exclaimed driver Tyler Smith after guiding Penpaperpaige, his father Jeff’s prize pupil to a 1:51 score in Hollywood Dayton’s $23,000 Open Mares Pace on Friday (Oct. 1).

The win was the sixth seasonal victory for the four-year-old daughter of Pet Rock, who counts an Ohio Sires Stakes older mares championship among the tallies. The winner has now banked $127,645 in 2021 and $439,701 in her brief career totalling just 38 starts.

Stay Gold (Jeremy Smith) garnered the show spot while Paperback Thriller (Mitchell Cushing) edged the balance of the field in a blanket show photo.

Penpaperpaige is owned by Shirley LeVin, a longtime patron of the Jeff Smith Stable.

Cushing provided fireworks earlier on the program with a pair of impressive triumphs. He guided Vel Mr Nice Guy to a 1:50.1 track record for gelded sophomore pacers, winning a $10,000 test for non-winners of two races. The son of Straight Shooting is trained by Larry King for the King Racing Stable.

Two races later, the 23-year-old reinsman urged American Mercury to a 1:49.4 victory in a high conditioned pace for trainer Virgil Morgan Jr. and the partnership of Let It Ride and Bottom Line Racing Stables.

Another track record was produced when Irish import Oakwoodanabella crushed the highest conditioned mares event in 1:49.3 for driver Cam McCown and his father-in-law trainer Brian Brown. The mile by the three-year-old daughter of Foreclosure N equalled the quickest mile by a female in Hollywood Dayton’s eight-year history. The mark was first established by Jerseylicious in 2017.

Oakwoodanabella was undefeated in six two-year-old starts in Ireland before owner Denis Copse of Colimerck, Ireland shipped her across the pond to Brown. She finished a creditable third in the recent Jugette final heat in Delaware, Ohio.

Excitement is building for the Saturday Dayton Derbies marquee card, starting at 6 p.m. In addition to three separate $175,000 Dayton Derbies, there will be eight $75,000 Ohio Sires Stakes Consolation Championship races as well as a pair of Opens. Hall Of Fame drivers David Miller, Tim Tetrick and Yannick Gingras as well as reigning Driver of the Year Dexter Dunn will commute from afternoon races in Lexington, Kentuckt to Dayton for the second half of the outstanding 14-race slate.

(Dayton)