An astute horse player once said “time only counts in jail”
when referring to handicapping a harness race. “Class wins out” he added.
Final times were usually a good barometer when trying to
pick a winner in a horse race, but today that idea might not ‘hold water’.
With all the new equipment, and there is plenty of it, and
improving breed of horseflesh, the horsemen of yesteryear wouldn’t believe the
final race times that trotters and pacers produce today.
There were always fast times on the big mile tracks of long
ago but final times on the double ovals have improved to where even cheaper
claiming pacers today shade the two-minute mile--the former standard of
excellence—and many obliterate it.
Monticello Raceway opened in June of 1958 and prior to 1974 there
were just 12 recorded miles in 2:00 or faster. Now, a two-minute, or faster,
mile hardly raises an eyebrow. It seems like the new time-standard is
1:55 which was a world record clocking in 1955 when a pacer by the name of
Adios Harry was driven to victory by Luther Lyons one warm summer evening over
Vernon Downs three-quarter mile oval.
Perhaps a time of 1:55 is a non-entity on the mile and
5/8th mile tracks, and that clocking is even becoming passé on
half mile tracks.
However, a 1:55 clocking here at the Mighty M doesn’t happen
often and is a special local accomplishment. But yesterday, (July 29) there
were two miles clocked faster than 1:55 and one that stopped the timer in
1:55.1 which excited- to an extent- the local rail birds
.
True, at some other half mile tracks if a horse can’t
pace in 1:55 or better he won’t get much purse money. But here in the fresh
Catskill Mountain air miles faster than 1:55 are far from commonplace.
The fastest mile on the Tuesday (July 29) card was turned in
by a pacer named Johnny Grippa and driver Jimmy Devaux when they toured the
Mighty M oval in 1:53:3. A time like that may not be special downstate
but here it was the fastest mile of the year, thus far.
Johnny Grippa, a 6 year old Cam Cardshark gelding, owned and
trained by Jack Sheehan, cut all fractions (27.2; 57.2; 1:25; 1:53.4)
carrying a $12,500 claiming tag and finished one and half lengths ahead of
Bettorsluckystreak (Jimmy Taggart, Jr.) and Memory Game (Mike Merton) who
ended-up in a dead-heat for second.
Sent off at odds of over 5-1 Johnny Grippa paid $12.60 for
win.
The other swift mile was recorded by Muscleshooter when
driver Austin Seigelman yielded command at the quarter pole and retook before
the paddock turn and went on to score a 1:54.1 triumph, three lengths ahead of
Tyler’s Great (Jimmy Marohn, Jr.)
Owned by David Hamm and trained by Chris Marino,
Muscleshooter returned a $3.00 win mutuel.
By the way, the pacer who won in A:55.1 was Ideal
Carver, driven by Bruce Aldrich, Jr. And every one of the 10 races on the card
went in 1:59.3 or faster.
