Jive Dancing A showed herself to be the real thing as she shipped into Harrah’s Philadelphia on Friday afternoon, winning the $17,000 featured pace for distaffs in 1:52.1, her fastest clocking in a win on North American shores.
George Napolitano Jr. scooted right to the lead with the daughter of Rock N Roll Heaven, then yielded after the :27 quarter to the brush of favored Odds On St. Lucie, who led the field through middle fractions of :55.2 and 1:23.1. But the chalk did not have much left for the stretch and Jive Dancing A proved strong as a pocket rocket, winning by two lengths over St Somewhere, who followed the winner throughout, including the inside path in the stretch.
Jive Dancing A has now won two straight races since coming under the care of trainer Michael Hall. She is owned by Blindswitch Racing Stable. The win for Napolitano was one of four on the day, topping the driving colony,
There were a pair of $16,000 events, one for pacing distaffs and one for trotters. In the trot, the Swan For All gelding Always A Dream rallied three-wide on the final turn -- not always the best avenue to victory at Philly -- and rolled on strongly to a two-length victory over Bella Ava in 1:57.2. Pat Berry drove the winner, in his first campaign at the races at age four, for trainer Scott Di Domenico and the partnership of Foulk Stables Inc. and Triple D Stables Inc.
In the contest for female pacers, the Captaintreacherous sophomore Catch A Secret emulated the good form of her distaff stablemates in the Jim King Jr. stable -- freshman Lyons Sentinel and older sensation Shartin N -- with a victory in a lifetime best of 1:53.3. Victor Kirby reserved her in midpack until the backstretch, and then she made one big move to go right by entering the far turn to win by 4-1/4 lengths. The victory was her fourth in her last five starts for the ownership of Ben Mudry, Brad Maxwell, Dr. Fred Kruszelnicki, and Kenneth Frieder.
A $14,500 pace for fast-class mares went to the Art Major mare Tell Me A Joke, who sent her earnings to $150,601 with a five-length victory in 1:52.3. Tony Morgan brushed with the winner of three straight off the first turn and was never in doubt once in front for trainer Chris Temming and T R Stables.
(PHHA / Harrah's Philadelphia)