'Neither rain, nor snow, nor gloom of night can stop the mail' paraphrases a slogan once used by the United States Postal Service. But those words could be used to depict the racing conditions that the participating Billings members had to endure on Saturday night (Oct. 24) in their Midwest region trot at Dayton Raceway in the final competition before the regional finals.

Nevertheless, despite the deplorable weather conditions Dave “Linemaster” Ehrenberg not only was a convincing winner with Windsong Illusion in a time of 1:57.4, but in the process he established a new lifetime mark with the six-year-old altered son of Kadabra.

YL Crasher and Gary “Soups” Campbell sped to the lead when the wings of the mobile gate folded and kept Steve “You’re Never Too” Oldford and Bold Strike on the limb as the leaders passed the quarter-pole in a swift :27.4. At that point, Ehrenberg was in third along the pylons.

“It was really tough going out there with the pouring rain and the sloppy racetrack, but I figured if I let Steve in in front of me that, when I decided to make a move, I wouldn’t have to go around him and I’d have clear sailing,” Ehrenberg related via telephone after the race.

It turned out to be a great strategy because, after a :58.2 half, Ehrenberg moved out to challenge YL Crasher and he was alongside Campbell’s trotter at the third panel as the timer flashed 1:27.2. From there, Windsong Illusion began to draw off and they coasted home an easy four-length win over Bold Strike. Third-place went to the betting favourite Heza Rube, driven by Bob “Lumberman” Troyer.

The winner, owned and trained by Rod Debeck, was sent off at odds of almost 7-1. It was the second win in 10 seasonal starts for Windsong Illusion. He returned a $15.80 mutuel payoff. And for Ehrenberg, a real estate magnate from Lewis Center, Ohio, the victory was his third this season and 48th of his amateur driving career.

(CKG Billings Series)