Action Broadway powered to the lead with a quarter-pole move and held on late to capture a division of Wednesday’s Keystone Classic at The Meadows in a stakes
record 1:54.4.
The $82,002 event for three-year-old filly trotters was contested over three divisions, with Bone A Fide and Behindclosedoors taking the other splits. All three fillies bettered the previous stakes record of 1:55.4 established by Swoosh Hanover in 2008. Dave Palone enjoyed a stakes driving double, among his six victories on the 15-race card, with Bone A Fide and Behindclosedoors.
Action Broadway was making her second start following a costly break in the American National and appeared in top form. Nevertheless, she was all out for Brett Miller to fend off the late charge of Christiana Hanover, who fell a neck short. Merger Blue Chip was third.
“In my opinion, when she’s right, she’s the fastest trotting filly in the country,” Miller said. “She’s a little tough to drive, and she had a little accident after the Elegant Image. She just now seems to be coming back into form.”
Virgil Morgan, Jr. trains the daughter of Broadway Hall-Photo With Molly, who extended her career bankroll to $238,238, for Ken Sommer.
Bone A Fide earned more than $200,000 at two and looked to be a force in her division. But her sophomore campaign became what conditioner Ron Burke calls a “train wreck.”
“It’s been a disaster,” Burke said. “Anything that can go wrong has gone wrong. She showed some flashes, but every big race, we ended up in the wrong spot or made a break. She really hasn’t been as bad as it seems. I have no doubt she’ll be a very nice mare at four and five. She’s got the body, the size and the ability.”
Treated with Lasix for the first time In the Keystone Classic, Bone A Fide showed signs of turning things around, scoring a facile front-end victory in 1:55.2. Barham Hanover was 1-1/4 lengths back in second, with Apple Plush third.
Burke said Burke Racing Stable, Sam Pullano, Larry Karr and Phillip Collura might send the daughter of SJs Photo-On The Bones to the Breeders Crown.
“We’ve thrown good money after bad already with her,” Burke said. “We stick to it. We’re not quitters.”
Sent off the 1-5 favourite, Behindclosedoors made the lead before the quarter but had to dig in to thwart the late threat of Up Front Juansteen and down that rival by a half-length in 1:55.3. Ally Gal Ridge completed the trifecta.
“I think I’d have been better off stretching her out,” Palone said, “because when you go slow fractions like that, you let others in the race. I wasn’t dissatisfied with my filly. I knew Up Front Juansteen would be a handful. It was still a good mile — especially off slow fractions.”
Chuck Sylvester trains Behindclosedoors, a daughter of Andover Hall-Margarita Nights, who now boasts earnings of $365,630, for Melvin Hartman, Herb Liverman and David McDuffee.
(The Meadows)