Tyler Miller spent much of his spring and early summer in Kentucky, racing at Oak Grove and the local fairs with an occasional trip back east, but now he is concentrating on the Middle Atlantic states – and made an impact at Harrah’s Philadelphia on Thursday, Sept. 3 by winning both of the trotting features with “Team Orange Crush” horses.
The richer race was the $18,750 conditioned contest for developing horses. Miller went directly to early command with the Chapter Seven-Fade Into You sophomore colt Flex Up ($22.20), then, while shuffled to third, saw favourites Greenma (Mark Herschberger) and Moni Buys Happynes (Corey Callahan) make several exchanges of the lead during fractions of :27.2, :57.1 and 1:25.2. The two-wide outer tier behind the dogfight had not given Flex Up clearance, so Miller had to back his colt out and was two-, three-, and four-wide late on the turn and into the stretch. Flex Up got in gear and caught Allioop Blue Chip (Troy Beyer), the horse just in front of him entering the stretch, by a neck while taking a new mark of 1:55. Moni Buys Happynes was third.
The “Orange Crush” family connections show here, as Tyler’s mother Julie trains Flex Up, and his dad Andy is co-owner as Miller Iannacone along with Jean Goehlen, AC Crawford Racing Stable and Mortgage Boys Stable. The winning colt is now seven-for-19 lifetime.
The Miller connections also show with the six-year-old Muscle Hill-Seviyorum gelding Little Expensive ($5.80), winner of the $18,056 fast-class conditioned feature, with VIP Internet Stable LLC replacing the last two owners of Flex Up. Handicapped to the outside post eight, Little Expensive was four-wide to the first turn and three-wide much of the way around it, finally getting on top by the :27.1 opening station. Little Expensive and Tyler Miller did get a breather to the :57.2 half, then darted past three-quarters in 1:25.1 and raced home to complete the 1:54.2 mile. The winner was a length ahead of pocket-sitter Frank The Elder (Patrick Ryder), who in turn won a photo with Yall Keep Dreaming (Jonathan Ahle) for the deuce. Little Expensive won for the 23rd time in 74 starts.
Patrick Ryder and Corey Callahan had three sulky triumphs on the 14-race card, with two of Callahan’s coming for trainer David Wiest. Driving doubles were recorded by Tyler Miller (both for his mom Julie), Russell Foster, and Mark Herschberger.
Racing comes right back at Philly on Friday at 12:25 p.m., with a fine group of female pacers assembled for the $14,000 USD featured conditioned race; there will also be a carryover into the fifth-race Pick-5. Then on Sunday, Harrah’s Philadelphia will host the $1.4 million USD Pennsylvania Sire Stakes Championships card for three-year-olds, with many Grand Circuit stars contesting their respective $300,000 USD finales – and there will be a $10,000 guaranteed Pick-4 pool on the four big races.
(PHHA/Harrah's Philadelphia; photo of Little Expensive winning on April 21)