Driver Chris Page captured his 5,000th win on Saturday night (Nov. 30) at Hollywood Dayton Raceway with a 1:51.4 come-from-behind score over a 'sloppy' track in the featured $17,500 Open Pace.
Three foes sped three wide around the first turn. Fourboltmane forced Missile J and 4-5 favourite Im A Big Deal to take a temporary seat as they tripped the first quarter in :25.3. The field then paced to a :54 half, where Im A Big Deal moved back out from third with Page and Threeofthebest A in tow in the outer flow. At three-quarters in 1:22.2, Im A Big Deal cleared back to the front and was looking strong while Page and his charge were left uncovered and losing ground around the final bend.
Page was joined in the stretch drive by Eddard Hanover, and the two of them gradually closed the open-lengths gap as the wire loomed ahead. It wasn't until the photo finish picture was evaluated that the tote showed Threeofthebest A had pulled an 11-1 upset, giving Page his milestone victory.
On his last night of racing in 2019, Page had suffered through an uncharacteristic bad night and was winless through 10 tries before delighting his fans with the feature race win in the eleventh.
Page, who turned 36 over a week ago and was married in late September, planned a month-long honeymoon respite that will take he and wife Brianna to the Bahamas for a week, snow skiing in Traverse City, MI for a week, then west to visit Yellowstone National Park.
"I've never taken a break," said a mud-covered Page with a smile following his memorable win, "so I'm looking forward to a little time off before returning for the Miami Valley Raceway meet in January."
Page began driving in 2000 at the age of 17, going winless in nine starts and earning $489 in purses at Ohio county fairs. Following another five years honing his skills, his career took off in 2006 when he scored 85 victories. He has won over 100 races each of the last 13 years, including winning over 400 in each of the last seven seasons.
Page's 5,000 victories have come from 29,041 starts in which he has accumulated over $41 million in purse earnings.
Although Page was able to overtake Brett Miller in the Open, not all was lost for Miller. Dayton's leading dash winner had already scored six wins on the night and added two more later, winning eight total. Miller has a commanding lead in the local dash derby with 117 tallies through 59 race dates.
(with files from Hollywood Dayton)