Sons of Minnesota sire Relentless Yankee dominated the $8,000 Open Pace at Running Aces for the second straight week on Saturday (June 27).
First to cross the finish line was Chewy Baca (Gerry Longo), followed by Headsup Yankee (Nick Roland), Its Getting Hairy (Dean Magee) and Goody Two Socks (Tim Maier). The top three are all six-year-olds from the same 2009 crop, while the fourth-place finisher is a year older.
Chewy Baca extended his win streak to five with the impressive 1:52.3 victory -- the last four at Running Aces -- for 70-year-old owner/trainer/driver Gerry Longo. The winner got away fifth in the compact field of six, came first-over at the half then swung three-wide around the final turn before pinning the two length triumph on his fellow state-bred blood relatives.
Longo is enjoying one of the finest statistical meets of his lengthy career. The green, gold and black clad veteran is currently second in both the drivers and trainers standings at Running Aces with 16 trips to the winner’s circle including a dozen with horses from his stable in the first 10 nights of the 53-night stand. His UDRS average is well over .400 and his UTRS well over .500 in the month of June.
Leading driver/trainer Nick Roland also had an exceptional Saturday night scoring a triple with horses he also conditions. The 32-year-old Iowa native won both $5500 splits of the Minnesota-sired sophomore paces. Queen Of Denial captured the filly division in 1:55.4, besting Moonshinenmonkeys (Tim Maier) and Smokin Hot Coco (Travis Bowman). Gotalilcaptaininme beat Willystay R Willgo (Longo) and Toatsmygoats (Rick Magee) in 1:57.4 in the tandem male event. Roland also guided Im So Blue to a 1:55.1 score in a $4,000 conditioned pace. The triple gives him 20 driving wins in the first 10 nights.
A $7,000 Open II Pace was also won by a Minnesota-bred son of Relentless Yankee as eight-year-old Restless Yankee triumphed for the 47th time in an illustrious career, which as produced $283,319 in earnings. Former Running Aces driving champion Dean Magee, back in Minnesota for the summer after a couple years absence, guided the ageless wonderhorse to the 1:53.3 tally over Ideal Smile (Steve Wiseman) and Stonebridge Lyric (Bowman).
(Running Aces)