As the end of the harness meet nears at Hoosier Park Racing & Casino, so does the final event for the Indiana Sire Stakes on Hoosier Champions Night Saturday, July 10
. Many horses and drivers alike hope to be racing in the Sire Stakes finals for a purse of $200,000.
One horse and driver combo you can count on being in the finale is Iron Claw and driver/trainer Charlie Conrad. Iron Claw and Conrad have more than likely secured a spot in the final race Hoosier Champions Night, winning two of three legs thus far in the four-round Sires Stakes series for three-year-old colt and gelding pacers.
Iron Claw has won three of seven starts this year and has been victorious 15 times in 24 lifetime starts. The three-year-old colt has earned just under $250,000 for owners Donald and Roselea Conrad of Corydon, Indiana and Sarah Conrad, Charlie’s wife, in his short racing career. Iron Claw looks to add another Indiana Sires Stakes Champion to his list of accomplishments along with the 2009 Indiana Two-Year-Old Pacing Colt of the Year award that he picked up last year.
Conrad, a Corydon, Indiana native, attributes his start in the sport to family roots. Conrad has been a harness driver and a trainer since 1992. With Conrad’s parents and his wife owning Iron Claw, driving the colt to become another Sires Stakes Champion would be something a little extra special.
“My family has been in it [harness racing] my whole life,” Conrad said. “It’s always special when you raise them and then you get to watch them succeed.”
Iron Claw is by the sire, Speak, which was also a contender in the Conrad barn in the early 2000s. Speak took his career best time as an 11-year-old, winning in 1:51.3 at The Red Mile. He now has more than $230,000 in earnings for the Conrad family. Iron Claw is Speak’s most successful foal out of 27 of racing age.
Guarded Wings, Iron Claw’s mother, was also a member of the Conrad barn during her racing season. She has been a longtime brood mare for the family and has been a 100% producer with five foals, Iron Claw being her best performer.
Iron Claw is back in action Saturday, June 26 during the fourth and final leg of the $40,000 Indiana Sires Stakes race. It will be the final time to accumulate points for the final round.
“If there is a race for him [Iron Claw] the following week, then we’ll race him to keep him tight,” said Conrad. “If not, then it looks like he’ll get the week off before the big race.”
Iron Claw has drawn Post 7 in the eighth race on the Saturday night card, which is tagged as Thrillyard 200. Estimated post time for his race is 7:50 p.m. EST.
Thrillyard 200 will include 14 races with purse money in excess of $445,000. The featured event on the card is the $200,000 Dan Patch Invitational Pace slated as race 13. Nine of older pacers will vie for the title in the 17th edition of the race. Estimated post time for the Dan Patch Invitational Pace is 9:30 p.m.
(Hoosier Park)