True Blue Lindy made a splashy U.S. debut on Friday (August 27) at The Meadows when he controlled the fractions and dug in late to capture the Tyler B, a $159,745 Pennsylvania Sires Stakes for freshman colt and gelding pacers.
It isn’t clear if True Blue Lindy earned enough points to qualify for the championship — The Meadows will host all four $250,000 PASS finals for two-year-olds on Friday, Sept. 3 — but winning trainer Jeff Cullipher indicated the Always B Miki-Think Pink gelding will be at The Meadows that date for the championship or the $50,000 consolation.
True Blue Lindy was a budding star in Canada, where he performed exclusively at Woodbine Mohawk Park. In five starts there, he captured he Dream Maker Series final, earned a mark of 1:51.2 and never was worse than second.
When he was purchased privately about 10 days ago by Cullipher and Tom Pollack of Pollack Racing LLC, the big outstanding question was: could he adjust to the five-eighths-mile tracks in Pennsylvania when he was accustomed to the seventh-eighths-mile Mohawk oval?
He answered that question emphatically in the Tyler B as he and winning driver Tim Tetrick protected rail position and forged to the front. When Tetrick gave him a :29 second-quarter breather, that was all he needed to turn back the late Lightning Lane threat of Birthday and down him by a head in 1:51.3. JMS Final Treasure finished third.
Cullipher said True Blue Lindy is every bit the horse he and Pollack thought they acquired.
“We got our picture taken,” Cullipher said. “Timmy said as soon as the horse got where he [could] see the closers, he took back off again. He’ll probably be better off a helmet.”
Pollack was particularly pleased with the winner’s staying power.
“His fractions were good, but he’s a big horse and not a sprinter,” Pollack said. “It was great to see him show heart late.”
On paper, the first division of Friday’s sub-feature, the $40,000 PA Stallion Series for two-year-old colt and gelding pacers, looked like a walkover for Captain Cowboy, who had won all three previous stallion series splits and had nary a stain on is lines. But when he broke stride early and needed to expend considerable energy to recover and retake the lead, it changed the thinking of Mike Wilder aboard Good Deal.
“That horse kind of stuck out in the race, but he really had to do a lot of extra work after the break,” Wilder said. “I thought if I could ever beat him, I’d take my shot there. Good things have to happen to win races, but that being said, my colt raced really well.”
Indeed, Good Deal blew by the exhausted Captain Cowboy in mid-stretch, then held off the rallying Code Cracker to prevail by three-quarters of a length in 1:53.2. PJ Lou completed the ticket.
Ron Burke trains Good Deal, a Sweet Lou-Cut A Deal gelding, for Burke Racing Stable, Weaver Bruscemi LLC and J&T Silva-Purnel & Libby.
Hecandancencruise took the other split in 1:53.1 for David Miller, trainer Mark Harder and owners Philip Steinberg and Dana Steinberg.
Dante “The Inferno” Scattolini and Stephen “You’re Never Too” Oldford, each captured a $9,300 Great Lakes Amateur Driving Association (GLADA) split on the Friday card at The Meadows.
Scattolini was third at the three-quarters with Wilberforce when he brought the heat to Bill “The Flying Antique” Daughtery, Jr. and Wimborne Hanover on the lead. Daugherty felt The Inferno’s hot brush and relented, as Scattolini blazed past to win by a length in 1:56.2.
The result was somewhat surprising, as Wilberforce recently had shown a strong preference for the front end.
“I could see the horse in the two-hole was getting a little tired, and I thought we could get to the horse on the lead,” Scattolini said.
He noted that the victory ended an uncommonly long cold spell for someone nicknamed “The Inferno.”
“It’s my first win in about 20 years because I haven’t driven that much. It’s just now that I’m starting to do it again.”
Kelly “Sky” Walker (Absolut Uncertenty) and Jamie “Squirrel” Coffy completed the ticket.
Wilberforce, a nine-year-old Caviar Crown-Rose Run Imprint gelding, lifted his lifetime bankroll to $362,225 for trainer Kris Rickert and owner Dale Wareham.
Stonebridge Gamble hadn’t seen the front for some time, but Oldford quarter-poled to the top for a good reason.
“My arms were getting tired — that’s the truth,” Oldford said. “He had a monster grip, and getting out and getting moving was the safest thing to do. Once we got to the top, he just swelled up.”
The ol’ arm-fatigue ploy worked, as the eight-year-old Cantab Hall-Ok To Play gelding held off the late charge of the pocket-sitting Alesha “Hoosier Hotshot” Binkley (In Secret) by two lengths to prevail in 1:55.4. Pete Stratton (Roundtown Rocker) and Walker (Bigboy Rosco) were third and fourth, respectively.
Stonebridge Gamble now has banked $159,375 for trainer Ethan Sisco and owner Oldford Racing LLC.
Live racing at The Meadows continues Saturday when the 12-race program features a pair of rich carryovers: $41,886.48 in the final-race Super Hi-5, $4,870.81 in the Pick 5 (Race 7). First post is 12:45 p.m.
(With files from Meadows Standardbred Owners Association)