E Street Plan, despite being away from the races for 21 days, thundered down the middle road of the stretch to be along in 1:49.1 while taking the $20,000 pacing feature at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono on Saturday.
E Street Plan was the first on top, but he yielded to favoured Somewhere In L A before the rapid 26 quarter. It soon started to look that the gelded son of Rocknroll Hanover’s fate was to be the “E Street shuffle,” because as soon as Somewhere In L A cleared, Handsome Henry K made a wicked brush towards command, and the winner wound up third through Henry’s wild middle numbers of :53.2 and 1:20.3.
Driver Eric Carlson got E Street Plan closer to the lead on the turn and out to the three-path in the stretch, and his pacer (who, yes, has raced at Freehold) found his best gear and strode clear late, 1-1/2 lengths to the good at the wire.
Somewhere In L A was up for second in a photo over another late charger, American Rage, with the speedy pacesetter Handsome Henry K another neck back in fourth.
Trainer Gilbert Garcia-Herrera had his charge sharp despite the brief respite to reduce his lifetime mark by three-fifths of a second for owner Michi Yvette Abday. He paid $26.20 to win.
Rockin Rambaran made it five wins in a row when he took the $18,000 high-level claiming handicap in 1:51.2 for driver George Napolitano Jr., trainer Chris Oakes, and owner Hunter Oakes. But the winner was claimed for the third straight week for the $25,000 tag – which is regarded as business as usual by the Oakes stable, which was one win behind the Rene Allard barn, 97-96, for the meet lead in training victories going into the card. Oakes and Allard have been going to the claiming box hammer and tongs the last couple Saturday nights -- last week Allard claimed four, including three from Oakes, while losing two; this week Oakes claimed two, one from Allard, and lost one, while Allard claimed one.
Double season’s leader Scott Rocks moved to the lead early and posted his 10th victory of the campaign in winning a $15,500 co-featured pace for Napolitano, Oakes, and owners Susan Oakes and Chuck Pompey. And if “double season’s leader” elicited a mental shrug, here’s the list of this year’s other horses carrying that distinction heading into the weekend: Huntsville, Downbytheseaside, Dragnet Alert, Dayson, Hannelore Hanover, Obrigado, Betting Line, Wiggle It Jiggleit (the last-named pair season’s leader on all three sizes of tracks), and Always B Miki. Of them, all but Dayson set a world record in a mile earning them inclusion -– as did Scott Rocks, when he went 1:49 at Northfield for the older pacing gelding world record.
(with files from PHHA/Pocono)