Enough fast-class pacers dropped in for the Sunday, May 31 card at Harrah’s Philadelphia that there could be two $18,056 divisions at the highest conditioned level, which were won by On Accident and Th Colby.
On Accident missed by a length in second last out, but today the second choice Well Said-Maries Z Tam gelding made the most of a pocket trip. He followed favoured pacesetter Captain Crusader A (Corey Callahan), who was pursuing his third straight win, through fractions of :26.4, :55.2 and 1:22.1. On Accident was ready to go when driver Andrew McCarthy gave him his cue at the top of the lane and he went by the leader en route to a 1-1/4-length victory in 1:49.4, which earned him a new mark at age 10 for trainer Timothy Lancaster. Watch Em Win (Tim Tetrick) was third. The winner, co-owned by Lancaster and Tony Casha, now has 35 lifetime wins in 265 starts. He returned $6.40 to win.
After finishing third in that race, Tim Tetrick took the other top-level event in a three-across finish. The reinsman grabbed command early with the Papi Rob Hanover-Fade gelding Th Colby and then let brushing favourite Hunting Zone (Andrew McCarthy) take the front-stepping duties with fractions of :27.2, :55.2 and 1:22.2. Hunting Zone played hard to catch, but the winner found an extra gear late to win by a head in 1:50.1, with closer Sargeant Sonny (Jonathan Ahle) just a neck away from taking it all in third. Ron Burke trains the winner for Burke Racing Stable LLC, Phil Collura, Lawrence Karr and J&T Silva-Purnel & Libby. The four-year-old is now six-for-36 lifetime. The win price was $6.60.
Another pacer produced a 1:49.4 mile on the card – Taranaki ($4.40), a son of Huntsville-Free Fi Girl, who won his second straight start by using two speed moves for driver Andrew McCarthy and trainer Paul Jessop, who co-owns the five-year-old with Laurie Molnar. Taranaki was sent off as the favourite in the $15,972 conditioned event for horses just below the top fast-class set.
In a $16,667 conditioned contest for developing pacers, the Perfect Sting-Little Miss K sophomore gelding Everlast Sting Deo ($2.40) enjoyed a switch from New Jersey stakes horses, throwing successive :27.1 back panels while on the lead to reduce his mark to 1:51. Tim Tetrick guided the Travis Alexander trainee for Morrison Racing Stables.
Tetrick swept the late Pick 3 on Sunday, and his three-bagger headed the drivers; Simon Allard and Andrew McCarthy succeeded twice. Fourteen different trainers sent out winning horses.
William Clark Jr. and Yogi Sheridan both scored in the return of American Harness Drivers Club (AHDC) action to Harrah’s Philadelphia on Sunday. Clark took the first $11,806 pacing division from a stalking trip with his own trainee Sunshines Finest in a 1:54.2 mile. After being foiled in the first event by a head in rein to the odds-on favourite Johnny Chip, Sheridan returned in the following race to land a 15-1 upset with trainer Howard Birney's Redding Hanover in a 1:56.4 mile.
The next pari-mutuel action at Harrah’s Philadelphia will be on “Trottin’ Thursday,” with a 12:25 p.m. first post. There will be a highlight on Tuesday morning during the qualifying races, however: trainer Brett Pelling has entered four two-year-olds, the first babies locally in 2026, and the quartet will learn and compete against each other in the fifth and final qualifier.
(With files from PHHA/Harrah's Philadelphia & AHDC)