Sometimes it takes time for horses to mature into champions. Quick Trick may have taken time to grow up but he has given his connections a lot to cheer for heading into the $100,000 USD Myron Charna President’s Pace at MGM Northfield Park on Saturday, Aug. 9.
Trainer Jeff Conger, who co-owns and bred Quick Trick with Knox Services Inc., started the Racing Hill-Touch Of Trick gelding on the fair circuit as a two-year-old in 2022 before aiming to transition to some of the bigger stakes.
“He was really immature at two and didn’t really have his mind on racing,” said Conger. “I was hoping that if I raced him easier, he would get racier as time went on and we were right.”
Following a game fourth-place finish in the Ohio Fair Championship at Northfield Park that year, Quick Trick was shut down in preparation for his three-year-old campaign.
As he continued to mature, the pacer continued to get better with every start. He began his sophomore season with two straight wins at Northfield before stepping up in class to the Buckeye Stallion Series at Miami Valley Raceway, where he finished a close second in the first leg.
He later returned “home” to Northfield for the second leg of the Buckeye Stallion Series and drew off in the stretch to win by 7-1/2 lengths in 1:51.4.
“Quick [Trick] came along well as a three-year-old," said Conger. "He loves to race from behind; the quick pace up front in these events played to his favour.”
Quick Trick faced a tall task later that summer in his first start against Ohio Sires Stakes company at Northfield, where he finished second by a head in 1:49.2. He fired right back in the next leg at Scioto Downs and made short work of his foes winning by 1-1/2 lengths in 1:50.
In the Ohio Sires Stakes Championship at Scioto, Quick Trick rallied gamely from off the pace to finish third.
“The Sires Stakes final was very exciting, but somewhat frustrating. I thought for sure he finished second, but when the numbers popped up, he was third,” said Conger.
Quick Trick has since become an Open-class competitor at Northfield. In the 2024 Myron Charna President’s Pace, he closed late to finish a strong third.
While he hasn’t won since mid-June, his connections are confident about his chances in Saturday’s event.
“He gives his all every race and while the post position [seven] isn’t great, the fast early fractions should help us,” said Conger.
No matter what happens on Saturday, nothing can take the positive attitude away from this star-studded gelding.
“He whinnies to the other horses in the morning, loves his treats and he is a very fun horse to have in the barn,” said Conger.
(With files from Northfield Park)