Southwind Austin will make his seasonal debut in Saturday’s Dexter Cup at Freehold Raceway and the three-year-old trotter is no stranger to winning off the bench

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Owned and trained by the husband-and-wife team of Andy and Julie Miller, the colt received a bye into Saturday’s $138,300 Dexter Cup final, which is the first stakes test on the road to August’s $1.5 million Hambletonian.

Southwind Austin prepped only once for the Dexter, finishing third in a qualifier on April 20 at the Meadowlands. Last year, the colt used a third-place finish in a qualifier as his lone work prior to a winning debut three weeks later in a division of the New York Sire Stakes.

For the year, Southwind Austin won four of 13 starts, hit the board 12 times, and earned $166,708. He was third in the New York Sire Stakes championship and second to Pekoe Fashion in the Matron Stakes to end the season.

Andy Miller expected the Dexter to need two elimination divisions last weekend, but when 10 horses entered it meant only one division, with the biggest lifetime money-winners receiving byes. Frost Bites K also got a free pass to Saturday’s final while Market Share, who is 6-for-6 in his career, won the single elimination.

The Dexter Cup draw is Wednesday.

“I’d like to have another start in him, but I trained him up pretty good and he seems good,” Miller said. “He doesn’t need a lot of work. He races himself into shape and he keeps himself in pretty good shape.

“He’s just a handy little horse.”

A son of Conway Hall out of the mare Articulate Hanover, Southwind Austin was purchased for $22,000 at the Lexington Selected Sale. He is a half-brother to 2003 Hambletonian Oaks winner Southwind Allaire and 2001 Hambletonian Oaks runner-up Ariane Du Haras. His mother, too, was a stakes-winner and a full sister to stakes-winner Echo Hanover.

“He just kind of caught my eye,” Miller said. “I watched the video on him and I was impressed with the way he moved. He doesn’t have a whole lot of size, but he’s got great balance. He had a really nice way of moving out in the field. He trotted really nice and had a big stride on him.”

Southwind Austin won three times on the New York Sire Stakes circuit and once in a division of the Kindergarten Classic.

“He was an honest, hard-trying horse,” Miller said. “What he lacked in size and ability, he made up for in effort. He put out a lot of effort in every race. He raced super in the Matron. He got away fifth and at the end of it he was really flying. He really trotted home strong to get up for second.”

Miller said Southwind Austin would be pointed again toward the New York Sire Stakes circuit, but noted he is staked to all the major races.

“It will probably be mostly the sire stakes and some smaller stakes, but if he steps up and shows us something, he’s eligible to the big races too,” he said. “He was good on a half (-mile track); he was quick. He was just always there. It’s hard to say, but I think his deal is the smaller tracks because he’s quick and gets around there good.”

The Millers also will send out Trouble in the Dexter. Trouble finished second to Market Share in the Dexter elim.

Winless in three races last year, Trouble has three victories in 10 starts this season. He has finished off the board only once and earned $45,268 this season.

“He’s quietly done very well for us,” Miller said. “He hasn’t raced a whole lot. He picked up cheques in a couple series at the Meadowlands and he’s just been a nice little horse. He raced good last week and we’re hoping for a good draw.”

The remainder of the Dexter field will include Not Afraid, On The Podium, Astarsborn Hanover, and Broadway Zinger.

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