With already one Hambletonian victory under his belt, trainer Per Henriksen is looking at grabbing another this year with Andover Hall colt Clerk Magistrate.
The Hambletonian hopeful makes his next start in the eliminations for the $350,000 (est.) Stanley Dancer Memorial on Friday, July 4 at the Meadowlands Racetrack. The top five finishers in each of the two eliminations advance to the final on July 11, the last major prep race heading into the $1.5 million Hambletonian on August 2.
Clerk Magistrate drew Post 4 in the first of the two elims (Race 5). Trevor Ritchie, who won the 2000 Hambletonian with Yankee Paco, has the driving assignment. Among the competitors they will face is the undefeated, early Hambletonian favourite Deweycheatumnhowe.
"It's been 22 years since Nuclear Kosmos," said Henriksen of his first Hambletonian win in 1986. "That's too long. I'm due and I've got Trevor Ritchie driving. Schnittker's horse (Deweycheatumnhowe) seems to be the best one right now, and we'll certainly get some indication on Friday being in against him."
Henriksen's name is synonymous with top trotters. The 62-year-old Norwegian native won the 1986 Hambletonian with Nuclear Kosmos, 1999 Hambletonian Oaks with Oolong, and last fall, pulled off a shocking 50-1 upset in the Breeders Crown Three-Year-Old Filly Trot with Southwind Serena. He finished fourth in the 2007 Hambletonian with Please Poppy during a career season in which he trained 103 winners and earned $1.4 million.
Clerk Magistrate originally sold for $40,000 as a yearling (Harrisburg) and raced for Steve Elliott as a two-year-old. Henriksen and Ann Karin Larsen, who race as Asa Farm, purchased him privately for an undisclosed sum.
"We bought Clerk Magistrate privately last November," he said. "Ole Bock came to me, and he said he had a horse he wanted to sell and he thought he was worth the money. I looked at his race replays at the Red Mile and I liked what I saw. He was a big, clumsy colt and came home in 28 seconds there with trotting hopples. So, I went to look at the horse, I liked him and bought him. He had no issues. The only thing was he carried a little bit too much weight in his front shoes and the trotting hopples. Going from two to three years old, I figured I could take of some of that.
"I thought I had a good horse, so I went ahead and staked him to basically everything," he continued. "I mean, we won't know for sure until we get there obviously. Hopefully, he'll turn out to be a really good."
Clerk Magistrate has won four of eight starts this season, including an impressive 1:54 romp in the $274,190 Goodtimes on June 14 at Mohawk Racetrack.
Clerk Magistrate - $274,190 Goodtimes
"I've been able to bring along Clerk Magistrate gradually," Henriksen noted. "He won his first start this season in 1:59.3 at Mohawk. Then, he got a little sick on me and tailed off, but I wasn't worried about it. I just let it take its course. He came around and now he's a player.
"By no means was I as surprised as the betting public was of his Goodtimes elimination win [paid $34.20]," he added. "Trevor Ritchie had never sat behind him before, and I told him don't look at his lines. He's better than that and we haven't seen the best of him. He went ahead and trotted his last quarter in :26 and change in his elimination. In the final, he dropped in, pulled first over, kept the pressure on and just drew off. He came out of that race fine, and if I'm right, he's even better now."
Henriksen was a Meadowlands regular for decades before moving to a farm in Norwood, Ontario, four years ago.
"I don't have a track," he said. "I have a straightaway and a hill that I train on. I always held my own when I was down in New Jersey. I never tried to get the customers that could buy the $100,000 and $200,000 yearlings. I competed with those guys, even though I bought $25,000 and $30,000 horses.
"I knew what the slots money did up here, and since I only train trotters it's great because they write a lot more of trotting races," he continued. "I was looking for something new. I came up here and stayed with Nat Varty for a while. I liked the area and bought a farm."
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(Meadowlands)