For Opinion, click here for View from the Racetrack Grandstand

Monday, August 20, 2012

CKG Billings - VERRUSO; TROYER; BILLINGS WINNERS ON AUGUST 18

This past weekend there was amateur action in both regions of the C.K.G. Billings Harness Driving Championship Series.

In the East, Tony “the Capo” Verruso emerged victorious at Vernon Downs while in the Midwest Bob “Lumberman” Troyer won his contest at the Lake County Fair in  Painesville, Ohio.
Of the two victories the easiest-- if it is easy winning a race-- was in Ohio when “the Lumberman” zipped top the front in a four- horse trot and cruised to an easy two- length triumph with his own Witch’s Magic Brew in a 2:06.1 clocking. Larry “Over head Slam” Steenbergen, back in Billings action after a few years hiatus,  guided Miss Tiger Lilly home second while Dave “Linemaster” Ehrenberg  took home the show dough with Swivel Hips.

However the contest in Vernon, NY wasn’t so easy for “the Capo” .  After starting from post three his trotter Sam’s Honeybee was left in the dust and by the time Verruso got his charge untracked he found himself seeing them all, ninth and last, some nine lengths off the lead.
But after they passed the  halfway point Verruso got Sam’s Honeybee in high gear  and he just kept feeding him racetrack. They were still sixth, but three-deep , as they passed the three- quarters and around the final turn they cleared the road trouble and were in third position  just a length and half off the  pace-setter Dusty Diamond, driven by  “Gentleman Jamie” Marra.

As Dusty Diamond headed for home, Sams’ Honeybee rallied as did Gate Keeper and driver Vladimir “Butch” Melnichenko. The three trotters were necks apart as they approached  the wire and when the photo was taken it showed that Sam’s Honeybee and Tony Verruso were a neck better than Gate Keeper  in  a 1:58.1 clocking. Another short neck back in third place was Dusty Diamond.
“My horse went a great trip after starting slowly,” Verruso said. “ When we headed down the stretch it became a real horserace and we all battled to the finish. My horse turned out to be the strongest in the lane and at the wire I knew we had won it.”

With his victory Verruso moved closer to the top on the east region leaderboard  now solidly in  third place behind Bob “Rapid Rail” Krivelin and Dacve “Steadt As” Yarock.  And  Troyer moved up to third place in the Midwest but still trails Steve “You’re Never too” Oldford and Mike “the Doo Wop Doc” Caston.
For Troyer it was his  fifth win in nine seasonal drives and win number 68 lifetime while Verruso  notched his fourth win of the season  and 44th of his amateur driving career.