Owner Don Tiger announced that his homebred star Charlie May had ‘unfinished business’ in this year’s Gene Riegle Memorial. When Thursday night (Aug. 24) ended, Charlie May avenged his loss in the 2022 edition of the race and scorched the Darke County Fairgrounds in a record 1:50.
When the field of five was sent on their way in the $35,000 Open Pace, Hes A Dickens (Jeff Nisonger) and the two-time Riegle champ, Sectionline Bigry (Brandon Bates) duelled it out through blistering fractions of :26.1 and :53.
Driver Brett Miller sat patiently in third with the eventual winner and grabbed control of the race down the backstretch well before the three-quarters in 1:21.2.
Charlie May used a :28.3 final quarter to score the 9-1/4-length romp over a rallying Odds On Shaggy (Kayne Kauffman) and Dancin Sancho (Sam Widger).
The final time of 1:50 demolished the previous track mark of 1:51.4 set by Swing City in the 2017 Riegle Memorial.
Steve Carter trains the gelding whose career earnings are less than $10,000 away from the $2 million mark.
Brett Miller also found himself in the Greenville winner circle after the $20,000 Arnie Almahurst Trot with Yo Mister.
The four-year-old gelded son of Dover Dan wore down the pacesetting Swan Fine Lady (Sam Widger) in mid-stretch to score a 1-1/2 length score in 1:55.
The winning time lowered the previous Greenville mark by a fifth of a second.
Yo Mister is trained by Stacie Van Huizen for TheStable.ca.
Miller entered the night with a mathematical chance to join the 10,000-win club and with his five trips to the winner’s circle on the closing night of the Darke County Fair meet now sits at 9,998 career victories.
The partnership of trainer Todd Luther and owner Greg Luther won four times on Thursday, including three divisions of The Parshall Futurity.
(Darke County Fair)