Fred And Ginger danced through the wire Saturday in 1:48.4, the fastest mile ever at The Meadows, in a Pennsylvania Sires Stake division. The time shaved a tick from the previous all-age Meadows mark set by Well Said last year
in an Adios elimination.
The $265,920 stake for three-year-old colt and gelding pacers, known as the Bye Bye Byrd, was contested over four divisions, with Versado, Pang Shui and Four Starz Trace capturing the other splits.
Dave Palone (Fred And Ginger, Four Starz Trace) and Brett Miller (Versado, Pang Shui) each enjoyed a stake driving double
Fred And Ginger established his credentials as one of the best in his division by finishing second in the Berry’s Creek and taking the $300,000 Hempt final at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs in 1:49.4.
And when the day turned up steamy and the track lightning fast — heavy rains would render the track sloppy later in the card — the conditions were right for a record mile. Fred And Ginger obliged by making a quarter pole move and opening up for Palone. The 1-5 favourite scored by five lengths over Nova Artist, with Fashion Heart a distant third.
Quarter times for the record mile were :26.1, :54.2, 1:21.2, 1:48.4. The time also eclipsed the stake record of 1:50.4 established by Armbro Damien in 2006 and matched earlier in Saturday’s card by Versado.
“Look at him. He’s unbelievable,” Palone said. “He was good both starts at Pocono, but he was a different horse today, a different good. He got around these turns way better than he did at Pocono.”
Palone tapped Fred And Ginger several times in the stretch, suspecting that the son of Real Artist-Graceful Motion was seconds away from something special.
“I thought he had a shot at the track record,” Palone said. “He still felt good and he was pacing strong. He’s right on his game, and those opportunities don’t come around that often. A lot of times, you want to prove to the others that you’re a legitimate horse and gain respect. I think he gained the respect of a lot of horses today.”
Ron Burke trains Fred And Ginger, who extended his career bankroll to $340,412, for Howard Taylor, Robert Feldman, Edwin Gold and Jerry Silva.
Versado’s tenure in The Meadows’ record book may have lasted 30 minutes only, but his victory was visually impressive. In fourth by 2-1/2 lengths at the top of the lane, he blazed home to down Sand Savage by 1-1/2 lengths, with early leader Morgan Shark third.
“He’s a very fast horse. It’s just a matter of behaving himself. He’s full of energy,” said Steven Bryden, who trains the gelded son of Dragon Again-Beach Jenny for The OK Corral and Enzed Racing Stable. “He likes it off the pace. In fact, I don’t think he’s ever been on the front. The fast fractions today suited him.”
With the win, Versado became a $100,000 performer.
Pang Shui, a nose loser to Fred And Ginger in the Hempt final, made a confident quarter-pole move to the lead and encountered no serious challenges thereafter. He prevailed in 1:50.4, three lengths better than Relaxed Fit. Early leader Sharks Legacy saved show. Ray Schnittker trains Pang Shui, a son of No Pan Intended-Road To Pandalay, for Peter Pan Stables.
“He felt so good, and he was coming off a very good mile in the Hempt, I didn’t want to get caught in any traffic,” Miller said. “I wanted to try my chances on the front. Ray told me he’s better out of a hole, but the way the race was shaping up, I didn’t want to take any chances.
“One thing about this colt — he’s very sensible. You can go fast with him, and then you can shut him down just as easily. That makes a good racehorse.”
Palone drove five winners and Miller four on the 15-race card while Burke fashioned a training triple.
(The Meadows)