Erv Miller hopes Foreign Officer is ready to take command. The three-year-old pacer, driven by George Brennan, won his elimination for Saturday’s $225,000 Berry’s Creek by a head over Four Starz Trace in 1:49.4
on Saturday evening at the Meadowlands Racetrack.
Miller’s Europan Union was second in the other elim, beaten by a half length by Kyle Major in 1:50.
Last year, Foreign Officer won two of seven races and earned $67,120. This season, he debuted with a fifth-place finish in an overnight at the Meadowlands before winning his Berry’s Creek elimination. The son of Western Ideal out of the mare Allamerican Coco was purchased as a yearling for $200,000 at the Lexington Selected Sale.
Allamerican Coco is a half sister to Breeders Crown champ All Speed Hanover and stakes-winner Allamerican Coed. Foreign Officer’s great-grandmother, Cool World, was the mother of superstar pacing mare Eternal Camnation.
“He’s a really nice horse,” Miller said. “He’s got a really big gait. The owners were happy to let us put him away (after seven starts last year), which ended up working out great for us. I think you’ll see him. He’s going to get better; he seems like that kind of (stakes) horse; he’s got a lot of talent and has a good head him. He’s smart about what he does.”
Foreign Officer’s first qualifier this year resulted in a second-place finish, but might have taken some wind from his sails. He finished in 1:51.4, pacing the final quarter-mile in :26.2.
“Right out of the box he went a big heat and I think it might have been a touch much for him,” Miller said. “The next week he was just OK, but I didn’t think he was quite himself. He showed a lot of talent training. The first start he was kind of the same way. He got a good cover trip and should have exploded off cover, and he wasn’t quite the same. We checked his blood and it was just a little off, so we treated that, and he bounced back.”
Europan Union, driven by Andy Miller, won two of seven races last year and earned $15,630. This year, he has won three of nine starts and hit the board in every race. The son of No Pan Intended-Pansatlantic has earned $57,680.
“He’s been getting better every start,” Miller said. “Last year, he trained like a great horse; he really did his work well and everything. But then as soon as went to race him, he just didn’t race the way he trained. It was the same every week.
“We gelded him at the end of last year. Ever since we did that his attitude has been perfect. He gets the job done. He’s consistently been very good. He’s a big, strong colt; heavy boned colt. I think we’ll see him jump up a little more here and there. I thought he went a big heat (in his Berry’s Creek elimination) because he was parked the whole mile. He had good pace late.”
Foreign Officer is eligible to the $1.5 million North America Cup in June and the $1 million Meadowlands Pace in July. For now, Miller is focused on the Berry’s Creek.
“I think they’ll both be even better this week, especially Foreign Officer,” he said.
This story courtesy of Harness Racing Communications, a division of the U.S. Trotting Association. For more information, visit www.ustrotting.com.