Friday nights at The Meadowlands customarily feature the top class mare pacers and the cream of the trotting crop. This was the course of events for the April 25 card with the mares up first in the second half of the Daily Double.
The Sweetheart stakes winner from 2012, Jerseylicious opened her four-year-old season in style with a 1:51.2 win in a $22,500 B-1/A-2. A nine-time winner while amassing nearly $300,000 as a sophomore, the Western Ideal mare cashed in on a perfect steer from Corey Callahan to score over Scandalous Hanover and Marty Party. Jerseylicious began her three-year-old season a perfect eight-for-eight and so far she is one-for-one in 2014.
Wayne Givens trains Jerseylicious for Legacy Racing of Delaware and Pamela Curran.
A strong field of trotters took the track for the $30,000 11th race feature. Modern Family came in with credentials that drew play enough from the punters to go off as the short 3-5 favourite and he did not disappoint.
Tim Tetrick was designated to drive the Cantab Hall horse by trainer and part-owner Daryl Bier and he landed a pocket trip behind Daylon Magician that proved to be the path to victory. Drafting along behind honest fractions led to a near track record 1:51.1 mile. Uncle Peter was a brave second in his first start as a five-year-old and Daylon Magician held third.
Bier’s partners are Charles Dombeck and Richard Poillucci. The whole gang is likely looking forward to the Arthur Cutler Memorial two weeks hence and beyond.
The $25,000 Dash For The C Notes, a weekly staple during the spring racing season devised by Director of Racing Peter Koch, facilitated the C-2 trotters and March Awareness took home the top prize for Carolyn Brechler and John Rhodes. Jr. of Ohio.
Driver Scott Zeron put the Ken Warkentin gelding on the lead going to the half and held sway for a comfortable 1:54 win. Brookroad Knight took the place and For You Almost Free held on for the show after a first over trip. The Remmen stable conditions the winner.
Racing returns on Saturday with first post time at 7:15 p.m., featuring the first stake of the year as the Grand Circuit makes a stop at The Meadowlands for the three-year-old pacers in the Reynolds Stakes. Additionally, Saturdays Revived continues at Victory Nightclub with music from 92.3 Now’s D.J. Toro. Doors at Victory open at 10 p.m.
(Meadowlands Racetrack)