MR - GARY CAMPBELL’S 1:56.2 VICTORY LADY ON THE ATTACK A NEW RECORD FOR AN AMATEUR DRIVER ON A DOUBLE OVAL

Monticello Raceway  has hosted amateur driving events for nearly four decades. Those races, mostly for sportsmen,  usually didn’t produce  fast miles. But as  the younger upstarts seek to pursue  careers as drivers, using the amateur races  to gain needed experience, the final times have  been  faster than usual..

Over the years many notables of today, especially at Monticello Raceway, began their fledgling careers as an amateur driver. Perhaps the most prolific of the aforementioned  former amateur reinsmen  is  last year’s Hambletonian and Hambletonian Oaks winning driver  and Driver of the Year, George Brennan.

Brennan who grew up in the Monticello area began his illustrious career in amateur races before going on to greatness and today many consider Brennan to be among  the best of the best.

Jordan Stratton, too, another  alumnus of Monticello Raceway’s amateur races today competes regularly with Brennan at Yonkers Raceway  where he is among the Hilltop oval’s leading drivers.

In 2008 Stratton became the youngest driver- at age 21- to win the driving title here at Monticello Raceway after showing his prowess  in amateur events in previous seasons.

But  Brennan and Stratton weren’t  alone in using amateur races to further their careers.  Current Monticello standouts, Jimmy Taggart, Jr. Greg Merton and Mike Merton and Kyle DiBenedetto are also products of amateur racing.

As good as the aforementioned tailsetters were during their pre-professional careers ,  none turned in the fastest mile ever by an amateur driver.

That  record belongs to Gary Campbell. On June 21^st Campbell guided Lady On The Attack, to a 10-length  1:56.2 victory in the final of the Catskill Amateur Drivers Series. Prior to Campbell’s triumph Dave Yarock’s 1:56.4 victory with Big John B  was the fastest amateur mile  ever on a double oval

“My mare was real good in the Catskill Final,” Campbell remembered. “I had to gun her the lead in:28.2 and she just kept on going. I was like a passenger-- a smiling one at that. She eased up a bit in the last quarter or she may have approached (1):55 and a piece.”

Two legs of the Catskill  Amateur Driver Club are slated this weekend at Historic Track.

“I’ll be there to  test them,’ Campbell warned. “ Lady On Te Attack should get around the Goshen oval real well.”