Kody Massey added five driving wins to his meet-leading total while overseeing multiple track-record miles on Wednesday, Sept. 10 at Northville Downs at Barry Expo Center in Hastings, Mich.
Massey's third win on the afternoon came in the seventh race with Royalty Girl, who established a new track record for a three-year-old pacing filly in 1:59.2 for owner/trainer Jim Ingersoll. Royalty Girl, a daughter of Odds On Equuleus-Odds On Volatility, grabbed the lead on the give-and-go just past the quarter in :28.4, put up middle fractions of :59.2 and 1:29.3, and held off Artistic Cat (David Lake) by a half-length. Absolutely Real (Charles Taylor) finished third. The filly has now won two straight races after beginning her career with five winless attempts. She paid $4.80 to win.
In Race 11, Meadowbrook Lady ($24.20) brought Massey home win number four on the day as a pocket-rocket winner. Meadowbrook Lady, who is owned and trained by Samuel Eicher, sat second through :28.3, :58.2, and 1:27.4 splits before shooting to the front and winning by 2-1/4 lengths in 1:56.4, which equalled the track record for an aged pacing mare that was set by Avalon Freeze on Aug. 27. Go Go Lyla Jane (Kim Pluta) finished second, followed by Rock Ur Wings (Ty Goodell). The winner, a seven-year-old daughter of Jk Endofanera-Lady Lakers, is now 21-for-136 lifetime.
Massey got on the board in the fourth race with Word To The Wise ($7.80) for trainer Paul Cloer, Jr. The duo stopped the clock in 1:58.4, winning by a head. In the sixth race, Rosas Show G ($8.60), with Massey in tow, was the pocket-tripping winner by 1-1/4 lengths in 2:01.3 for owner/trainer Cloer. Finally, in Race 12, Massey won for the second straight week aboard the Jim Eaton trainee Bet Mine ($7.20), who made it three wins in a row with a half-length score. He completed the mile in 1:56.1, missing the all-time track record he set the week prior by a fifth of second.
To date, Massey has 1,826 driving wins and has amassed $8,660,429 in purse earnings. When asked how it feels to be off to such a hot start at the new facility for Northville Downs, he replied “Well, winning races never gets old. I love to win. With that said, I just really appreciate all the trainers and owners that make it all possible for me. I truly love racing horses. There’s nothing I’d rather be doing.” Wednesday's haul brought his seasonal tally to 25, and he now leads the drivers' standings by 13 wins over his next-closest rival, Lake.
While Lake may be trailing Massey in the standings, he still had a major impact of his own on Wednesday. He drove Rose Run Vincent ($3.20), whom he trains and owns, to a 1:59 mile that matched aged trotting track record in the second race. The eight-year-old son of And Away We Go-Real Housewife meted out the fractions of :29, :59, and 1:28.3 and drew off by eight lengths in his 27th lifetime win in 156 starts. Little Jedi (Art McIlmurray) finished second over Stoneborough (Pluta). The record was initially set on Sept. 2 by Peter The Con, who won later on Wednesday's program in 1:59.1.
In Race 9, Noble Dale ($5.40) set a new track record for a four-year-old pacing gelding in 1:56.2 with Lake at the lines for owner-trainer Jocelyn Bates. The son of The Panderosa-Noble Trixie was on top through :28, :57.2, and 1:26.4 panels and was three-quarters of a length the best over Liberal (McIlmurray), with Rockin Pulse (Taylor) completing the ticket. Noble Dale, who is now 10-for-59 lifetime, rewrote the record that Mr Pnut laid down earlier in the card in 1:57.
Lake also won with Racing Glory ($7) in the eighth race and had a triple on the day.
Cloer had two training wins added to his tally on the 12-race afternoon to move into a first-place tie with LeWayne Miller for leading trainer.
Racing at Northville Downs at Barry Expo Center in Hastings, MI returns next Tuesday, Sept. 16 and Wednesday, Sept. 17 with a first post time of 1:00 p.m. each day.
(With files from Northville Downs; photo of Kody Massey and Bet Mine winning on Sept. 3)