Two of Parker’s winners were trained by Gary Messenger as
the veteran conditioner moves toward the top of the trainer’s
leaderboard.
Parker and Messenger combined for a pair of trotting
victories; first with Brenda Messenger’s veteran Hey Nugget in a 2:02
clocking and then with John Wagner, Syl King, Jr. and Dr. Scott Woogen’s,
Four Starz F in 2:03.
However, Zeke’s fastest ride of the day over the muddy
race course came behind Woody Hoblitzell and Linda Buchu’s , Foreign Soil when
he hustled the 4-year- old I Am A Fool pacing mare to a
gate to wire 1:57.3 victory.
Foreign Soil had been racing in $5000 claimers at
Pompano Park and was purchased by Hoblitzell and Buchu on
April 16 and sent to Monticello to trainer Bruce Aldrich, Sr. In
her first start here on April 30 Foreign Soil made a break behind the
gate and finished last. Since then Parker and the pacing mare have
reeled- off three consecutive victories.
Parker got a slow start on the 2012 season after having
prostate cancer surgery in early January and did not return to the
sulky until mid-March. And even when he got back in the bike wins came slowly
at first. However, with the three he added to his totals on May 21 the 17-time
driving champion now has 50 winners at the meeting and finds himself in
unfamiliar territory in eighth place on the local leaderboard.
As he approaches his 59th birthday Parker has
mellowed with age. No longer with the killer instinct of old, he still can
handle himself with the very best. Moreover, after his recent life-threatening
surgery Zeke has gotten philosophical about his life
and his career.
“ I went through some scary times earlier this year and I’m
thankful everything worked out alright,” Parker acknowledged and then
added; “ Ya’ know, when you’re lying in a hospital bed as I was,
you have a lot of time to think and about where you’ve been and where you’re
going. I’m proud of what I have accomplished and maybe things won’t be as
great as they once were, but I’m just glad I’m back doing what I
love to do.”
