After taking a battering on Wednesday with the resetting of the Lycoming County Fair records on both the pace (Royaltyhasarrived, 1:58.1) and trot (Aloysius, 2:01), the local record book had to absorb another alteration during Thursday’s Pennsylvania Fair Sire Stakes action for two-year-olds.
Trotting filly A Little Laid Back was nothing like her name by winning in 2:03.4. (We originally typed “trotting fully” instead of “trotting filly,” but both are applicable.)
A Little Laid Back, a daughter of Great George Two-Annabelle Lane owned, trained, and driven by (the always “laid back”) Roger Hammer, shaved two-fifths of a second off the former track mark for this section, set by Desired Outcome four years and two days ago – but all they had to white-out is the time, date, and the horse’s name, as Hammer had sulky duty on Desired Outcome’s record-setting day as well.
Fastest baby trotting male, and the Pennsy fair season’s leader for freshman diamond-gaiters, is Major Matter, an altered son of Explosive Matter–Tahiti Springs, who won nicely in 2:02.1 for trainer/driver Rick Beinhauer, who shares ownership and breeding bragging rights with Regina Beinhauer.
The day’s other big story were the PA fair circuit newcomers who combined for a triple: driver Brandon Givens, trainer Kevin Lare, and owner Frank Chick. (Givens had a fourth winner through a catch drive, and his total of 10 fair wins puts him fourth in the standings.) The triumvirate took down half of the four two-year-old pacing colt divisions, including the fastest with the Well Said-Lionness Hanover freshman Well Lets See, who took his third win in four starts with a 2:02 clocking.
The local fair circuit moves on to Bedford for racing on Monday and Tuesday. The oval at Bedford, in its second year back after a 23-year hiatus of harness racing, was in lightning shape last year, and perhaps the weather will be cooperative in giving the young stars chances at fast clockings.
(PAFHHA)