Yonkers Raceway's pair of Friday night $46,000 Open Handicaps -- for either-gender trotters and distaff pacers -- were won by Blacktuxwhitesocks (George Brennan, $3.30) and a repeating Royal Cee Cee N (Eric Goodell, $8.80).
The featured trot took on a different look when early choice Imperial Count was a judges' defection. That moved the people's affections to veteran statebred Blacktuxwhitesocks, and the 3-5 favourite had to earn it.
A three-deep Traverse Seelster (Goodell) worked around Lorenzo Dream (Jim Pantaleano), making the lead before a :28.1 opening quarter-mile. At the :58-second intermission, 'Blacktux' -- leaving from post position No. 5 (in one notch after that scratch) -- began his mission.
He engaged Traverse Seelster through a testing :27.4 third quarter (1:25.4) with the latter hanging on to a short lead entering the lane. However, with Blacktuxwhitesocks as relentless as 'Traverse' was game, the fave did gut it out, winning by three-quarters of a length in 1:54.2, the fastest local trot mile of the season and a tick off his (and Archangel's) all-age standard.
Monsignor Flan (Brent Holland), Lorenzo Dream and Perfect Rendition (Larry Stalbaum) rounded out the payees.
Blacktuxwhitesocks, a six-year-old Credit Winner gelding trained by Trond Smedshammer for owner Purple Haze Stables, is now one-for-five this season (career earnings just under $875,000). The exacta paid $13.80 with the triple returning $43.40
The feature saw the lasses sort themselves out in numerical order, with pole-assigned Unred Hanover (Mark MacDonald) throwing down the gauntlet to the tune of a :26.4 quarter and :56.1 half.
Handsoffmycookie (Dan Dube), as the just over even-money favourite, then took up the chase from fourth with Royal Cee Cee N -- from post No. 5 -- in behind. 'Unred' maintained an open lead in and out off the 1:24 three-quarters, taking a two and a half-length lead out of the final turn.
However, 'Cookie' and Royal Cee Cee N continued to close with Royal Cee Cee N wearing down the leader late. She won by three-quarters of a length in 1:52.3. Unred Hanover held second over Handsoffmycookie, while Maries Z Tam (Brennan) and Ginger And Fred (Matt Kakaley) settled for the remainder
For second choice Royal Cee Cee N, a seven-year-old Down Under daughter of Christian Cullen owned and trained by Mark Harder, it was her third win in nine '13 tries (career earnings over $815,000). The exacta paid $43.20, the triple returned $100 and the superfecta paid $716.
(Yonkers Raceway)