Trainer/driver “Smilin’” Dave Brickell, in partnership with co-owner Mitchell York, was the star of the show at the two-day meet held in this northwest Pennsylvania city, setting a track record for freshman pacing fillies with Crew Sock Hanover at 1:59 and equalling the fastest mile of the fair season at 1:57.2 with the sophomore pacing gelding Venier Hanover – the seventh straight fair victory for “Crew Sock” and the sixth in a row with “Venier.”
Crew Sock Hanover was first in the spotlight during Thursday’s activity for two-year-olds. The daughter of Well Said-Chantal Hanover was extended late to get the nod over her stablemate Magic Speech in a 28.1 last quarter, with the 1:59 final clocking reducing TSM Maija Star’s old mark by just shy of three full seconds. Crew Sock Hanover has yet to taste defeat in her seven appearances on the Keystone twice around circuit.
The filly pacers produced a close finish, but their colt counterparts produced an even-closer one: in a two-horse contest, the camera could not separate the Slickest Hanover–Not So Precious gelding Slickslidenaway and the Well Said gelding Delightful Fashion in 2:01.4. Trainer Stephen White guided Slickslidenaway to his maiden victory for owners Susan Sickle, Thomas Sickle, and Jeanne Carr, while Mike Wilder was in the sulky behind Delightful Fashion as he took his first “A” level win for trainer Rich Gillock and owner Harry Locke.
The title for fastest freshman trotter again went to a female over a male, as has been the norm on the circuit so far this season. RT Gloria De Dios, a daughter of Muscle Massive out of the Quaker State Series star RT Sun Pocono, recorded her fourth win in five fair outings while lowering her mark to 2:05 for driver Kyle Bolon, trainer Bob Rougeaux III, and the Brocious Racing Stable Inc.
The very first horse to post parade on Friday’s card for sophomores was the Well Said gelding Venier Hanover, who has regained the form that made him the terror of the circuit at two, winning in 1:57.2 in a mile with back fractions of :57.2- :27.4 for team Brickell / York. Second in the mile was Cirrus De Vie, who has a fair scorecard of 11-7-4-0 (no points for guessing the horse that beat him four times, although in fairness “Cirrus” won with “Venier” in the beaten field five times early in the year). Third was Love Cut, the horse who had first set the 1:57.2 seasonal standard winning a “B” Sire Stakes event.
The trotting fillies again went faster than the colts, and even came within a fifth of equalling the pacing fillies. The Explosive Matter miss Blow Back trotted her mile in 2:02.2 for trainer/driver Roger Hammer, co-owner with Vicki Fair, and amazingly, like her stablemate Cirrus De Vie has a fair record of 11-7-4-0.
The race before, the Well Said filly Alexis May Hanover “upheld the pride” of the pacing set, recording her first “A” win while overcoming the trailing post five in 2:02.1 for trainer/driver Sam Beegle (like Hammer a member of the Bedford [PA] Sports Hall of Fame) and the ownership of the Arthur Bay Stable, Darryl Breniser, and Don Marean.
The family Schadel were again in the spotlight for the leading horsemen’s awards, but at Stoneboro it was trainer Linda Schadel and driver/husband Tony who each recorded three wins to take local honours.
The fair circuit now makes an eastern cameo for a two-day Sire Stakes meet at the Bloomsburg Fair, with racing on Monday and Tuesday at 1 p.m.
(Pennsylvania Fair Harness Horsemen’s Association)