It's usually the driver who receives all the accolades after a victory, and rightly so, but when a trainer sends out two horses as individual participants in the same contest and they finish first and second in the race, it's an certainly an unusual accomplishment.
Case in point: the American Harness Drivers Club trot at Freehold Raceway on Saturday (Nov. 28) in which trainer Taylor Gower's two participants, Mugshot Jess and If I Must, finished first and second respectively in that $9,000 amateur trot.
Pearly Allen was up behind the winner, Mugshot Jess, while Paul Minore handled the driving chores for the runner-up If I Must. Neither of those two was the betting favourite in the race; that honour belonged to Can Do, who was driven to third place finish by “Yankee Joe” Lee.
When the starter released the field Minore sent If I Must to the lead and then relinquished control to Mugshot Jess, who didn't take command until well after the quarter was trotted in :29.3.
Sent off as fourth choice in the wagering, Allen kept the pedal to the metal and Mugshot Jess got first call at the halfway point in :59.3 while keeping Always A Good Time and driver Joe Faraldo parked out in the fresh air.
With Mugshot Jess still showing the way Allen seemed undeterred as his trotter began to trot away from his challengers. The three quarter-mile timer flashed up in 1:29.2, and Mugshot Jess was was in front by two lengths as the field rounded the final turn and headed for home. That lead widened to more than three lengths at the finish.
Watching all the action in front of him, Minore -- who had a two-hole trip -- kept after If I Must and although the veteran trotter didn't gain on the leader he did shrug off Can Do to garner the place money in the 1:59.1 mile.
Trainer Taylor Gower owns the winner, a 13-year-old altered son of Jailhouse Jesse. He paid $12.60 for win.
After his five-win afternoon on Friday, Austin Siegelman didn't rest on his laurels on Saturday. He continued his driving dominance, winning four races on the 12-race card.
Siegelman's aggressive driving paid off in the second race, as he hustled Windsong Jack to the lead and held on for trainer Chris Height. Siegelman won two more races on the front end, guiding Keystone Honor to victory in Race 5, and veteran Mach It So to a seventh race score. Height also trains Mach It So, while Keystone Honor is trained by Richard Johnson.
After those big wins, Siegelman was hungry to get a fourth, and he got it in the 11th race. He kept Shaving Mug in the three-hole early on, then moved him to the lead and drew off for his fourth win of the afternoon, for trainer Ann DePietro.
Siegelman's nine-win weekend extended his total to 64 Freehold wins on the calendar year. He ends the month of November with 16 wins at Freehold, from 69 drives.
Live harness racing resumes at Freehold on Friday (December 4), with a scheduled first post time of 12:30 p.m.
(AHDC / Freehold)