Pace For The Cure At Northfield

Published: October 7, 2019 08:56 pm EDT

MGM Northfield Park will be hosting 'Pace for the Cure' on Saturday, October 12. The event is for female drivers and is an effort to offer a novel event for horse racing spectators, as well as use harness racing’s platform to raise funds and awareness to fight breast cancer.

The event has been well received by horsemen and has grown to two divisions on the evening’s program, with female drivers traveling to Cleveland to compete from New York, New Jersey, Indiana, Pennsylvania and all over Ohio. Horsemen will also show their support for the event by dressing their horses in pink harnesses, ribbons, sulkies, etc.

The one-mile dashes will each carry a purse of $7,000 and will help raise money for the American Cancer Society.

“The ‘Pace for the Cure’ is a great way to highlight both harness racing and the awareness and support for breast cancer research,” said Brent Reitz, MGM Northfield Park Vice President and General Manager.

Fans can join in the drive to eliminate breast cancer by purchasing raffle tickets ($1 each or five for $3) and depositing their raffle tickets in to bags that correspond with their favorite “Pace for the Cure” driver. Tickets from the winning bags will be entered in a drawing for prizes. Raffle tickets can be purchased at Northfield’s promotional table on the first level of the grandstand on Saturday, starting at 6PM and continuing until post time for the “The Pace.”

In addition, a silent auction will also take place from 6-9 p.m. Items available in the auction are an MGM Northfield Park concert and dinner package, a YETI cooler filled with game time snacks, a Kitchen Aid Mixer and Ghirardelli baking package and a special dining package hosted by MGM Northfield Park’s Executive Chef Chris Poplin.

Among the participants this year’s first division is Jazmin Arnold, perhaps the highest percentage driver among women this year, sporting a .492 average. She recently won a race over the Flying Turns on Sunday. Arnold was also victorious in this year’s Ohio Lady Driver Series Championship at the Delaware County Fair. She will take on Renee Bouslaugh, Lauren Harmon, Rachel Kaneoka, Monica Banca, Mary Birkhold, Alisha Binkley and Sabrina Shaw.

The second division clashes royal harness racing bloodlines as Devan Miller and Kiara Morgan, daughters of David Miller and Virgil Morgan, Jr., square off. They will be facing Emily Hay, who won this event last year. Jayne Weller, the most accomplished driver among the two races is also in the second division. Weller has registered exactly 200 victories and is the daughter of June Weller, the only female to ever drive in harness racing’s crown jewel, the Little Brown Jug.

The “Pace for the Cure” is a marquee event highlighted in the undercard of night featuring the $125,000 Courageous Lady, a Grand Circuit open stakes race for three-year-old filly pacers.

(Northfield Park)

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