It was a crash and bang affair filled with breaks – and a few heartbreaks – in the second elimination of the Hambletonian. Tactical Landing, however, dodged landmines and sailed to a 1:52.1 triumph for trainer/driver Jimmy Takter.
Classichap supplied fractions of :27, :54.4 and 1:23.3 before tiring and getting hooked from behind by race favourite Six Pack who tried shooting up the rail without sufficient clearance. Tactical Landing, who followed cover most of the mile, swung wide in the lane and powered to the lead en route to posting the 1:52.1 victory over Patent Leather, Fashionwoodchopper, Alarm Detector and Classichap.
"We got pushed out on the back side. He was three wide for a while there. I mean, this is the Hambletonian, a lot of sh!t happens," said Takter. "It’s a crazy race, horses going in and out. This horse has three lifetime starts never been in a stake race, and being that professional that he was today, I was so impressed with this horse. I’m proud of this guy."
It was a lifetime best performance for the son of Muscle Hill-You Want Me who now owns a 3-1-0 record from four seasonal starts. Purchased for $800,000 as a yearling, Tactical Landing has banked $64,000 to date.
"He’s inexperienced, but he’s a strong horse to go heats," said Takter.
Six Pack, the 2-5 favourite, hooked wheels in the stretch, finished sixth and will miss the $1 million Hambletonian Final.
Here's the field for the $1 million Hambletonian, in post order:
1. Classichap (T. Smedshammer)
2. Tactical Landing (Ji. Takter)
3. Crystal Fashion (Ti. Tetrick)
4. Alarm Detector (T. Henry)
5. Fashionwoodchopper (D. Miller)
6. Hat Trick Habit (B. Sears)
7. Atlanta (S. Zeron)
8. Mets Hall (A. Miller)
9. Evaluate (O. Kihlstrom)
10. Patent Leather (Y. Gingras)
Be sure to check out the rest of the coverage from Hambletonian Day in the 2018 Hambletonian Day News Centre.