Hard-hitting distaffers kick off Sunday racing
By Mark Ratzky, publicity – Cal
Expo Harness
A contentious Open III event for pacing fillies and mares
headlines the first Sunday program of the Cal Expo meeting.
Racing is now being conducted here under the Watch and Wager LLC banner
on Saturday and Sunday nights with a first post of 4:45 Pacific on Sundays.
Plans call for an expansion to a three-night-a-week schedule on December 26
with Friday action being added to the mix.
Looking at the feature, High Bet Hanover is a 6-year-old daughter
of Bettor’s Delight out of the Artsplace mare Highland Dexter who is owned by
Kc C Carvalho, conditioned by Tim Brown and will once again have the services
of Luke Plano.
The bay miss was a close second in the first two legs of the
aforementioned Funicello Series, then rode a second-over journey to victory in
the October 18 finale of the event as she showed the way home by a length and a
quarter over Wild About Eagle in that event while lowering her mark to 1:53 4/5
in the process.
Wheeled back in a conditioned contest last weekend, High Bet
Hanover was sent off the 4-5 favorite. She found herself well back early and
with too much to do, but did come calling late to finish second while missing
by three-quarters of a length in another big mile.
Wild About Eagle will be looking to avenge her loss to
High Bet Hanover in the Funicello final. The 7-year-old daughter of The
Panderosa is owned by Kathy Plested and Mark Benvenga with Steve Wiseman doing
the driving and training.
In last week’s tour she drew the tough 9 slot, but was able to
leave strong and eventually settled into the two-hole by the quarter. Once
straightened for home, she took aim on favored pace-setter Windsun T Bird and
overhauled that one by a neck while recording a 1:55 flat mile.
High Bet Hanover goes for solid trio
High
Bet Hanover figures to have her share of backers in Sunday’s filly-mare main
event as she goes postward for the productive team of owner Kc C Carvalho,
trainer Tim Brown and pilot Luke Plano.
The
6-year-old Bettor’s Delight mare captured the finale of the Annette Funicello
Series two starts back while lowering her lifetime mark to 1:53 4/5 in the
process, then finished gamely be second while taking on males in last week’s
assignment.
“We
bought her privately last year to fill a spot we needed with our Minnesota
barn,” Brown related. “She had a good meet, but then she started hitting
herself and there were some shoeing issues that had to be worked out.”
High
Bet Hanover lost tough decisions in the first two legs of the Funicello, but
got the job done in the finale while changing tactics to ride a second-over
journey to the stretch.
“Luke
used to have her, so he knows her real well and drives her great,” Tim said.
“I actually think she’s better when she can
sit near the pace, but she got a perfect trip in the final and it all worked
out.”
Sunday’s
headliner is a chance for High Bet Hanover to renew acquaintances with Wild
Wild About Eagle, who hung a nose decision on her earlier in the meet before
completing the exacta behind her in the Funicello finale.
Tim
Brown and Kc C Carvalho have formed one of the more lucrative owner/trainer
relationships on the Cal Expo backside in recent memory. “I’ve trained for him
for three years now, and he’s more like a brother to me than an owner. He’s
very much involved in everything to do with the horses.”
