Trainer/driver Åke Svanstedt burnished his already-fine statistics at Harrah’s Philadelphia (.392 UDR / .481 UTR) by winning both of the $16,438 featured events on the trot and also a $15,068 event for fast-class horses of that gait on Thursday, Aug. 22.
In the high-purse trots, It was the Six Pack sophomore colt Mr Bluebird who went slightly faster, 1:54.3. The winner got to the quarter in :27.4, got a Svanstedt breather to the :58.1 half, then went on to a 1:26.3 three-quarters and a last quarter of :28 to win for Åke Svanstedt Inc., Little E LLC, and Torbjorn Swahn Inc.
The Readly Express three-year-old colt Edvard Palema S earned a lifetime mark of 1:54.4 in taking his division despite missing 33 days. Edvard Palema S went to command past a :28.1 quarter, posted midrace times of :57.2 and 1:26.1, then finished out in :28.3 for Bender Sweden Inc., Åke Svanstedt Inc., and Flygind Gard Inc.
There was also a division of the $16,324 featured class carded for male pacers. In it, driver Tim Tetrick sensed a slowdown on the front end after a :27 quarter and rushed up the Captaintreacherous sophomore gelding Sudden Impact to be in charge by the half in a mild :58. From there, the rest of the field could have no impact on Sudden Impact, who hit the three-quarters in 1:25.1 and sped on to a new mark of 1:52.4. Scott Di Domenico trains the winner for his Triple D Stables and Michael Rekoon.
Fastest of all the Svanstedt trotting victories was the 1:52.2 victory hung up by Kierkegaard K in the fast-class event, as the Swede Svanstedt certainly had no problem with a horse named after a Danish philosopher and owned by a resident of Singapore (Knutsson Trotting Inc.’s Tristan Sjoberg). The only geography Kierkegaard K needed was the shortest way home, on the lead through fractions of :27.3, :56, and 1:24.3.
Svanstedt and Tetrick tied for sulky honours with three wins on the day; Svanstedt was the only trainer to harness three winning horses.
Filly and mare pacers will be the headliners for Friday’s 12:25 card, which will also have a carryover into the fifth race Pick 5 wager, and then on Sunday at 12:40, Pennsylvania-sired two-year-old pacing colts will get their last chance to qualify for their upcoming Pennsylvania Sire Stakes and Stallion Series Championships, with three divisions of the PaSS crew and five fields of the Stallion Series horses.
(PHHA / Harrah's Philadelphia)