The Empire Breeders Classic favourites, Unreasonable and Dandy Ideal, were victorious in their respective sophomore pacing divisions at Tioga Downs on Sunday afternoon, Aug. 24.
Unreasonable won the $278,681 Empire Breeders Classic for three-year-old pacing fillies, prevailing in a stretch sprint with The Last Martini in 1:50.2 for the father and son, training and driving duo of Erv and Marcus Miller.
Sent postward as the favourite from post seven in the field of 10, Unreasonable landed in third behind The Last Martini (Jason Bartlett) with Shes A Streaker (Tyler Buter) firing out to the lead in a :26.2 opening panel then getting a second-quarter breather to the half in :55.4. Heading for the final turn, The Last Martini popped the pocket and raced alongside Shes A Streaker as they passed three-quarters in 1:22.4 with Unreasonable tracking that move. The Last Martini cleared to command turning for home but had Unreasonable to contend with as those two took off in the sprint to the wire, with the latter filly prevailing by a quarter of a length. Shes A Streaker stayed for third but was left nine lengths behind.
Coming off back-to-back miles paced in 1:48.4 at The Red Mile, Unreasonable was the 1-2 favourite and paid $3 to win. The Huntsville-Roaring To Go filly has been a model of consistency in her sophomore campaign with six wins and two seconds from eight starts, good for seasonal earnings of $353,772 to send her lifetime bankroll well over the half-million dollar mark. She is owned by Ervin Miller Stable of Wind Gap, Pennsylvania and David J. Miller of Lake Mary, Florida.
Dandy Ideal streaked to his sixth straight victory for trainer Hunter Oakes, topping stablemate Thirsty Thursday in the $264,791 Empire Breeders Classic for three-year-old pacing colts and geldings.
With Meadowlands Pace winner Madden Oaks scratched sick, Hempt champion Dandy Ideal was the 1-9 favourite and took control of the short field of five from the inside post for driver Jason Bartlett with Thirsty Thursday (Tyler Buter) getting the pocket trip. The American Ideal-Ok Heavenly gelding cruised through fractions of :27.1, :56 and 1:23.3 then used a :26.2 final kicker to keep one length clear of his stablemate at the end of the 1:50 mile. Courts On Fire (Mark MacDonald) finished six lengths back in third after a failed first-over bid to the final turn.
Dandy Ideal, who's current streak includes three New York Sire Stakes divisions and a 1:48.2 career-best Hempt victory at Pocono Down last weekend, paid $2.10 to win. The lion's share of the purse lifted his seasonal earnings to $646,349 while his lifetime bankroll soared over $800,000. He is owned by Susan Oakes of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, Thaddeus Wier of East Aurora, New York and Alan Johnston of Syracuse, New York.
Bartlett also drove the Per Engblom-trained Fragment to a career-best 1:52 victory in a $155,694 division of the New York Sire Stakes for two-year-old pacing colts and geldings. Advancing from fifth down the backstretch and rallying three-wide from behind the pocket-popping Hunt Off The Press (Tyler Buter) turning for home, even-money favourite Fragment swept by in :28.1 to win by more than three lengths over inside closer Hard To Forget (Matt Kakaley) and pacesetter Knoxville (Mark MacDonald), who had led to three-quarters with fractions clocked in :27, :56 and 1:23.2.
Fragment paid $4.30 to win. Now a five-time New York Sire Stakes winner, the Huntsville-The Show Returns colt has earned $292,776 in just seven career starts for owners Engblom Stable of Wrightstown, New Jersey and Douglas Sipple of Georgetown, Delaware.
A pair of $27,777 divisions of the Excelsior Series for the rookie male pacers went postward on the undercard and those events were won by the Bartlett-driven Southwind Iron (American Ideal-Southwind Inertia), who collected his fourth series score with a 1:53 career-best effort for trainer Kevin Lare, and River Ranch Dawson (American Ideal-Dreamfair Eternal), a back-to-back Excelsior winner, in 1:56.1 with Tyler Buter driving for trainer Jenny Melander.
(Standardbred Canada with files from Tioga Downs; photo of Unreasonable winning on Aug. 24)