It was 10 years ago this year that pacing colt Somebeachsomewhere dominated harness racing's headlines throughout his nearly flawless sophomore season.
In honour of the Canadian-sired superstar many consider one of the greatest Standardbreds to ever look through a bridle, Trot Insider will post the news stories from his on-track appearances throughout the year as they happened a decade ago along with the replays from those captivating races.
It was 10 years ago today that Somebeachsomewhere showed his 1:46.4 world record performance at The Red Mile was no fluke with a comfortable-looking 1:47.4 score in his Tattersalls division. The win established Somebeachsomewhere as harness racing's first three-year-old colt pacer with both back-to-back and multiple sub-1:48 wins.
Somebeachsomewhere Scores In Tattersalls
The first division of The Tattersalls proved to be a walk in the park for Somebeachsomewhere, a pacer that will join the stallion ranks at Hanover Shoe Farms once his racing career is over.
That news was made official in the winner's circle following the pacer's 1:47.4 victory.
"We have a lot of faith in the industry and a lot of faith in this horse," said Jim Simpson, President and CEO of Hanover Shoe Farms. "We only hope his breeding career is as successful as his racing career."
Simpson confirmed that Somebeachsomewhere will stand in Pennsylvania. A service fee has not been decided as of yet.
As far as today's race was concerned, Lonestar Legend and David Miller rolled the pacers to the quarter pole in :26.3 before taking a back seat to a backstretch-brushing Somebeachsomewhere. When driver Paul MacDonell called on the three-year-old son of Mach Three for top speed, the colt had no problem complying.
The pride and joy of the Schooner Stables of Bible Hill, Nova Scotia laid down remaining panels of :53.4 and 1:21.1 before kicking away from the competition to win in a time of 1:47.4. Lonestar Legend was second best and Dali came on late to finish third.
"The goal was to win, we were happy with the way he raced last week, but we really had no intentions of a record today," said co-owner/trainer Brent MacGrath. "He shows his manners and his class every week. Typically, records don't happen when you want to set them. We put him in the race and wanted to win the race, and he did."
Somebeachsomewhere picked up his 11th win of the season and the 17th of his career. The lion's share of the $293,000 purse helped his lifetime bankroll swell to $2,603,755.