Running Aces' Saturday night opener was the $11,000 Open Handicap Trot and Flameon was looking for his sixth straight win.
Sent off as the overwhelming 1-5 choice, the ultra-sharp six-year-old Angus Hall gelding left well from the outside post five and never looked back, strolling through fractions of :28.3, :58.4, and 1:28.3 before widening his lead in the stretch with a :29.2 final panel to post a 1:58 mile time over the sloppy track. Flameon paid $2.40 on the win ticket. He is owned and trained by Mark Anderson of California and was driven by Dean Magee.
Cruzin Coco (by Voracious Hanover) scored her second straight Aces win, taking the $7,000 three-year-old Minnesota-sired filly pace. She posted a two-length victory in 1:58.2 with Rick Magee aboard, paying $4.20 to win.
Swagasaurus Rex (by Voracious Hanover) was very sharp in capturing the $7,000 three-year-old Minnesota-sired colt pace. Sitting the pocket early, driver Rick Magee waited until just past the three-quarter pole to make his move and Swagasaurus Rex responded gamely, pacing away from his rivals to score by three lengths in 1:57.4. He paid $5.80 to win and completed a driving double on the card for Magee.
Defending champion driver Nick Roland swept the final four races on the Saturday card, starting in race seven with Gotta Dream Big ($17.80) posting a lifetime mark of 1:54.3 despite a sloppy track for trainer Sean Lancaster and owner Al Bird of British Columbia. Then, in race eight, he steered Holla At Ur Boy ($14.80) to victory for Lloyd and Judith Schneiderman of South Dakota in 1:58. He completed the hat-trick with his own charge, trotter Lo Rail Crossing ($8.40), winning race nine in 1:59.4 for owner Lorenza Gooch of Texas, and topped off the four-bagger with another from his own barn in race 10, Headsup Yankee ($3.20), scoring in 1:55.3 for the Set the Pace LLC group of Minnesota.
(With files from Running Aces)