Cumberland Raceway fans were reminded that age is only a number on on Saturday, May 31 as 87-year-old Bob Nadeau made his way to the winner's circle once again at the iconic Southern Maine oval.
Nadeau, driving his own mare Azariya, left little to chance as he left swiftly in the Moosehead Pacing Series opener. Grabbing the lead, the five-year-old daughter of Lazarus N-Lainey Deo set opening fractions of :29.3 and 1:01.3 over the 'good' track.
Down the backstretch and heading to the three-quarter pole in 1:31.3, CBF Bantam (Bruce Ranger) had pulled the pocket and was challenging for the lead, poking a head in front for a brief spell. But Nadeau summoned his mare’s second gear and she responded with a closing kick to add a few lengths of separation between the pair and the rest of the field.
Down the lane, the octogenarian urged his mare to keep rolling as she hit the timer in 2:02.3, scoring by two lengths. Azariya paid $5.80 to win as the bettors' choice. Never Have Regrets (David Ingraham) came on for second and Littlestitious (Mcgwire Sowers) took third.
Nadeau has been driving horses since the mid-1970s and has earned 171 victories in nearly six decades of participation. Last year Nadeau had six wins in 28 starts and posted a 0.238 UDRS, primarily while campaigning fan favourite Putnams Storm and Azariya.
A concrete salesman by trade, he said that he still does 20 pull ups every day, reminding us all that you are only as old as you feel.
The other $5,479 divisions in the opening leg of the Moosehead Pacing Series were won a pair of Ryan Berry trainees, Skyway Ballet (Drew Campbell) in 2:01.4 and Easteriffic (Kevin Switzer Jr.) in 2:03, and trainer Gary Wright's Windsong Napolean (Mcgwire Sowers) in 2:02.4.
The opening leg of the Baxter Pacing Series was comprised of a trio of $8,904 divisions, which were won by Control The Piper (Kevin Switzer Jr.) in 2:01 for trainer Gerald MacKenzie Jr., Arts Flight (Aaron Hall) in 2:00.3 for Andrew Harrington and The Big Aristotle (Drew Campbell) in 1:58 for Benson Merrill, who has a training triple on the program.
Mcgwire Sowers drove two of the three Rockland Pacing Series division winners, teaming up with the Tammy Sowers-trained Mr Beast in 1:58.2 and Valentino Of Leda 1:59.3 for the Benson Merrill stable. The other $8,219 division was won by Dinner Party and Drew Campbell in 1:58.2 for conditioner Chris Dubois.
Hunter Lofthus won another $5,480 Maine Amateur Driving Club (MADC) event, scoring with Benson Merrill trainee Art Of Endurance in 2:02.4. The MADC is sponsored by the Blue Seal Feed stores of North Falmouth and Windham, Maine.
(With files from First Tracks Cumberland)