He often makes his pilots work harder than he does, but when Cycle Power closes like a jet, then it's worth it.
A field of eight pacers, six in on conditions, two to be claimed, were featured for a purse of $3,600 at Cal Expo on Saturday night (March 17) over a sloppy track, on which Cycle Power was a dramatic winner.
In advance of starting from the pole, driver James Kennedy faced facts.
"With the one-hole I thought I might have a decent shot, but I thought I was second best to Albion (Luke Plano)," stated Kennedy.
Urged at the start and again an eighth of a mile later to close off the four-hole on One And Only (Jim Lackey) to the 3-16ths, Kennedy had a bone to pick.
"I was actually upset at the situation because I had the hole and was holding my position - - but Lackey still kept trying for it. I finally had to let him go because if I didn't he would have put a wheel under me and would have taken me out of the race as my horse probably would have made a break."
Not letting One And Only in until just past the 5-16ths mile marker, did it concern Kennedy that he was now behind the gapping One And Only?
"I wasn't worried about that, I was just trying to keep my horse up on the bit - - which included popping the earplugs at the half (:58.1) to try to keep him in contention. At that point I wasn't thinking about my chances, I was just driving on the horse consistently to keep him in the race."
Urging his pacer again with three-eighths of a mile to go, then tipping him out midway through the final-turn, Kennedy once again urged his charge to the three-quarter mile station (1:27.2), but a surprise was forthcoming.
"After the three-quarters and off the turn, he actually dug in and went on earlier instead of late - - which is his norm. That was a good sign and kind of brightened my hopes up a little bit, and I thought I had a shot."
Moving three-wide late in the final-turn when Stanza (Steve Wiseman), who made a move to the lead in the second-quarter, broke, Kennedy's six year-old was brushing at the head of the lane, but the pocket sitting Albion had now taken over the lead and was soon five lengths to the good.
"I had to keep on chugging along and kept telling myself to keep driving because I was winded from getting after him the whole way."
Flying at the seven-eighths mile pole and within three-lengths of Albion, Cycle Power really turned it on with a sixteenth of a mile to go while drifting.
"I kept on asking and he dug in real good and responded very well. I knew I had gotten up and won the race."
Getting his neck in front on the wire, the Nathalie Tremblay owned & trained gelding, who was locked and loaded last week, won ($20.80) on this night, in 1:56.2. Albion had to settle for second, and One And Only finished another 4-1/2 lengths farther back, in third.
"He raced real strong tonight," concluded Kennedy, who had a driving triple on the card.
Live racing resumes at Cal Expo on Friday (March 23) & Saturday (March 24) at 6:00 p.m. (PDT). On every live card, Cal Expo offers free parking & free admission after 4:30 p.m. On Friday, Cal Expo offers Happy Hour from 4:00-7:00 p.m. on which Beer; Well Drinks & Wine are offered at $4 each, while a Burger with fries is offered at $5.
Cal Expo currently offers a reduced 15 percent takeout rate on all Pick 4’s. Additionally, all Late Pick 4’s now come with an increased $20,000-guaranteed gross pool. Also, the Friday Late Pick 4 will offer a 0% takeout on all winning wagers made on track or at Twinspires.com, while the Saturday Late Pick 4 will be broadcast on TVG.
