One needed a perfect trip, one didn't, but the result was the same - - a win.
Conditioned & claiming male and female pacers were co-featured at Cal Expo on Friday night (March 30) in a pair of $3,600 events, on which Ivegotwhatuneed and Bewareofthisaffair were victorious.
In the race for the boys, driver Lemoyne Svendsen sent Ivegotwhatuneed to the lead from post-two in the field of five and obtained the top spot just as the field entered the first-turn while already controlling the tempo into a :29.2 opening quarter.
Yielding past the three-eighths mile pole for the pocket to Stanza (Steve Wiseman) into a :57.4 opening half-mile, the nine year-old tracked tightly with "go" in an effortless :28.2 third-quarter with Stanza reaching that station, timed in 1:26.1.
Now on the move at the head of the lane and creeping forward to the seven-eighths mile marker, mother-nature now played into the stretch-drive.
"The headwind was bugging us pretty good down the stretch and my horse was struggling to get through it," stated Svendsen. "But he kept fighting because that's the type of horse he is - - he's always got fight in him."
Under urging with an eighth of a mile to go and continuing to gain, Ivegotwhatuneed still had to deal with a digging in Stanza, but got his nose up with a sixteenth of a mile to go, but with Stanza refusing to quit. Being urged and driven late, the gelding got his head up at the wire. Owned by Marty Garey in partnership with trainer Bob Johnson, Ivegotwhatuneed won ($3.60) in 1:55, thus recoding his 37th career triumph. Stanza had to settle for the place honors, and Myra's Hiho (Scott Cisco) finished one-length farther back, in third.
"He raced his kind of race and got the job done - - it was a good race," finished Svendsen. The conditioning victory for Johnson was one of three training scores on the program.
Distaffers were in the spotlight later in the card, on which Bewareofthisaffair was much the best.
Coming away in sixth position from post-position five in the field of seven into a :28.4 first quarter, Svendsen moved his charge first-over at the 7-16ths mile station into a :57 first-half. Steadily gaining until attacking Frankly Scarlett (Steve Wiseman) past the midway point of the final-turn, the six year-old put a long neck up while parked at the three-quarter mile pole, timed in 1:26.3.
Drawing clear to the top of the lane, Bewareofthisaffair opened up with an eighth of a mile to go, and kept expanding her lead while Svendsen tucked his sword with a sixteenth of a mile to pace while on their way to a solid 3-3/4 length win ($11.60). Bred & owned by Wendi Wiener, and trained by Nathalie Tremblay, Bewareofthisaffair stopped the timer at 1:55.3, a lifetime best and the third of five piloting scores for Svendsen. Majestic Lass (James Kennedy ) finished in second, and favored Sleigh Belle (Scott Cisco) finished one-length farther back, in third.
"She was strong, strong tonight - - she was just awesome," said Svendsen.
Live racing continues at Cal Expo on Saturday (March 31) at 6:00 p.m. (PDT). On Saturday, Cal Expo offers Happy Hour from 4:00-7:00 p.m. on which Beer; Well Drinks & Wine are offered at $4 each, while Hotdogs, Fries & Sodas are offered at $2 apiece.
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.
