Friday night's Northville Downs highlights included Rose Run Xander and driver Drew Neill equalling the track record for four-year-old trotting geldings in 1:57 flat in a $6,000 conditioned trot and Cruisin Thru Time with trainer/driver Kody Massey winning the featured $9,500 Mares Open Pace in front-running style in 1:55 flat.
Rose Run Xander, who is owned by Gary Wilmoth and trained by Becky Zubkoff, took the lead at the start of the third race and never looked back, winning by an impressively widening 8-1/4 lengths. The trotter set fractions of :29, :59.3 and 1:28.4 before stopping the timer in the track record equalling time of 1:57 as Hail Caesar settled for second and Calm As Can Bee got the show dough.
Rose Run Xander equalled the record set by The Land Shark and Wally McIlmurray Jr. in 2017. It was the eighth career win and first of the season for the six-figure earning trotter by Triumphant Caviar out of Loconotion.
In the Mares Open, Massey fired Cruisin Thru Time to the front from post position one to set fractions of :28, :56.2 and 1:25.1 en route to a final clocking of 1:55, winning easily by a 1-1/2-length margin over runner-up Shes Cruising Home with Coqui Coqui third.
The win was the eighth of the season and 22nd lifetime for the Yankee Cruiser-I Kill Time mare, who is owned by Brook Daniel.
Earlier in the week, driver Bart “The Bartman” Stimer earned his 1,000 career driving win aboard his own trotter Stoneborough (Air Zoom Lindy- Ceana) at Hicksville and followed that win with number 1,001 aboard Catera Gun (Gunthatwonthewest-Calera Hanover) in the very next race. On Friday night at Northville Downs, Stoneborough and Stimer won again, taking race seven in wire-to-wire fashion in 1:59, earning Stimer his 1,002nd driving win. Northville Downs Operations Manager Mike Carlo greeted Stimer in the winner’s circle to congratulate him on reaching the career milestone.
Drivers Drew Neill and Art McIlmurray had driving doubles on the night.
Racing at The Ville resumes on Saturday, Aug. 26 at 7 p.m. and features a 10-race program.
(With files from Northville Downs)