The Wayne County Fair came back with the second half of their unique “doubleheader” of Pennsylvania fair racing: a “two-day Sire Stake” meet on Sunday and Monday, followed by the regular “fair meet” on Wednesday and Thursday during their annual exhibition.
Two divisional track records were set on Wednesday, when most of the action was devoted to the sophomore Fair Sire Stakes horses. But there was a Free-For-All pace carded, and the Big Jim mare Bring Me Diamonds won as expected, covering the mile in 1:58.4 to take just shy of three full seconds off the old Honesdale mark for older pacing mares, recorded by Riddles Bliss in 2007.
The win was “expected” because Bring Me Diamonds had won in 1:52 at nearby Pocono on June 22, but it still was sporting and something exciting for fans that can be credited to driver Tony and trainer Linda Schadel, who are the co-owners of the winner as well.
Tony Schadel teamed with a training Schadel who was not Linda or brother Todd to add another change into the fair’s history books, as the Donato Hanover gelding Show Me The Magic covered the “A” Fair Sire Stakes mile in 2:02.4 to reduce the former divisional mark of 2:03.1 first established by Keystone Americus in 2004 and later equalled by BS Surgin Don in 2009. The trainer in question was Tony’s father, Bruce, who also owns the new record holder.
Another piece of drama took place one race before the mile of Show Me The Magic, as Venier Hanover defeated Cirrus De Vie in 2:00.1 in the “A” cut of the sophomore colt pace stakes event. Venier Hanover, a terror on the circuit last year at two, seems to be mounting a comeback as he won his second straight for trainer/driver Dave Brickell, co-owner with Mitchell York; for Cirrus De Vie, it was his first loss at the 2018 fairs after opening the season with six straight victories.
On Thursday, the “second meet” saw its third track record mile, with the Well Said–Treat Me Good pacing filly Sure R Lookin Good winning in 2:02.2 to shave a tick off of the 15-year-old mark of Car Lins Starburst. This winner, owned by Julie Krenitsky, was backed by the pairing that dominated the Thursday card, literally from the first race to the last, by teaming for four wins – driver Eric Neal and trainer Robert Krenitsky, Jr. That mile brought the week’s total of resetting Honesdale records to five.
One other Thursday winner who achieved a distinction was the Muscle Massive–By A Nose Hanover trotting miss Bumper Hanover, who became the first two-year-old to record six wins at the fairs this year when she won for trainer/driver Todd Schadel, co-owner with wife Christine.
For the “second meet”, brothers Todd and Tony Schadel tied with Eric Neal, the three having five wins each to top the sulky-sitting side; Todd harnessed six winners for the Wednesday-Thursday stand to top that category. In combining the two meets, Todd trained 16 winners and drove 13 to lead both categories; Eric Neal also deserves a word of praise for visiting the Honesdale Victory Lane 10 times.
The Keystone fair circuit now moves to the Washington County Fair and its historic Arden Downs track, former home of the Grand Circuit, which will host racing on Monday (3YOs) and Tuesday (2YOs).
(Pennsylvania Fair Harness Horsemen's Association)