Harrah’s celebrated its 20th anniversary of harness racing on the banks of the Delaware River in southeast Pennsylvania with a special Saturday-night card on Sept. 12, 20 years to the week of its first-ever program and 58 years to the week of the inaugural staging of the Colonial Trot at Liberty Bell Park on the northeast side of Philadelphia.

The Colonial, which has had several homes since its last racing at Liberty Bell in 1985 (Piggvar winning and setting the track record), including Philly, was thought to be an appropriate way to mark the historic occasion at Harrah’s. The revival race, with a purse of $64,306, was won in emphatic fashion by the Captain Corey-Melania colt Jim Beam, a heavy favourite who trotted to an easy 1:53.2 victory.

Jim Marohn Jr. got the call behind the winner of $296,058 from trainer Scott Di Domenico, and after wide racing to get the lead in a :27.4 opener, Jim Beam had things smooth on the front end with middle splits of :56.2 and 1:25.2. Marohn got a :28 last quarter out of the classy colt, who came back in six days after winning his Pennsylvania Sire Stakes consolation this past Sunday for owner Allen Wenc. His margin over second-placed Captain Vodka (George Napolitano Jr.) was 1-1/2 lengths. Oversear (Charlie Norris) finished third.

Jim Beam took his sixth career win in 28 appearances. He paid $2.40 to win.

The first edition of the stake for three-year-olds was won by Nevele Pride on the evening after the day card at Freehold yielded the sport’s first millionaire, Cardigan Bay, both handled by the immortal Stanley Dancer.

There was also a revival of the filly companion event, which has had several names in its history and is now billed the Colonial Oaks, raced in two $41,667 divisions, both of which went faster than the previous stakes mark of 1:53.

In the quicker, Pennsylvania Sire Stakes champion Little Road came right back six days after winning her crown and triumphed as she pleased, going fractions of :27.3, :56.2, and 1:24.1 before finishing 5-1/2 lengths clear in 1:52.1 under the direction of Brady Brown. Berry Good News (Art Stafford Jr.) was second-best, followed by Myths And Legends (Corey Callahan). The heavily favoured daughter of Fordham Road-A Little Laid Back was bred and is owned and trained by 80-year-old Roger Hammer, who trained and drove 1995 Colonial divisional winner Keystone Galactic (at Foxboro), and she now has a lifetime bankroll of $483,589 with 14 wins from 23 appearances. The win price was $2.10.

Trainer-driver Trond Smedshammer, who likewise has a Colonial connection as the conditioner of 2007 divisional winner Primary As here at Philly, also won handily with the favourite in the second Oaks section as My Philomene is now three-for-four since moving to his barn after a 1:52.4 victory. Smedshammer had the Chapter Seven-Irish Melody Fr filly on the point early and put down opening numbers of :27.3 and :57.1, then tacked on matching :27.4 quarters coming home to win by 3-3/4 lengths for Melady Enterprises LLC. Shemightbetheone (Pat Lachance) took second, with Chestnut Kelly (Jim Marohn Jr.) third. My Philomene now has $134,098 earned and four wins from 10 career starts. She returned $3.40 at the windows.

While the big trots fell in the groove of usual mutuel payoffs, the $69,444 #SendItIn Invitational Pace continued a recent bizarre pattern – exemplified by the seven $50+ horses in the last four cards at a track with about a 50-50 favourite average – when Christopher Dance N upset the field at 13-1 in a wild and woolly 1:48.1 race.

From the inside out, favoured World Of Wishes (Corey Callahan), who suffered broken equipment, Christopher Dance N and world champion Ruthless Hanover (George Napolitano Jr.) got locked in a three-across :25.4 first-quarter donnybrook. The middle horse finally cleared under the line the first time and kept Ruthless Hanover hung out almost all the way to a withering :52.4 half. The new leader had to keep rolling as first-over Voukefalas (Braxten Boyd), the second choice, moved up to the 1:20.1 three-quarters. That kind of speed took its toll, but least on the winner, a son of Sweet Lou-Just Dance who came up the inside and prevailed for driver Mark Herschberger, trainer Enrico Robinson and owner Pollack Racing LLC. He held off a parked-the-mile, closing 28-1 Bourbon County (Simon Allard) by a half-length with Gorgeous Big Guy (Jack Pelling) third. The winning six-year-old gelding is now 17-for-36 with a career bankroll of $397,920. He returned $29.20 to win.

Notable horsemen on the night were Simon Allard, who led drivers with three wins and driving doublers Corey Callahan, Mark Herschberger and Jack Pelling. Allard and Herschberger drove the winners of the only trainer who doubled on the night, Enrico Robinson. 

Trainer Ron Coyne Jr., who won a race Saturday with Benhope Rulz N, also won the first race ever held at Harrah’s, with Silver Flash, one of many replays of notable stars (Wiggle It Jiggleit, Market Share – the list is very long) and events over the last 20 years shown throughout the evening.

Philly will be dark on Sunday and will be back in action on “Trottin’ Thursday” at 12:25 p.m.

(With files from PHHA/Harrah's Philadelphia)