by
john manzi for the CKG Billings Series
In
his other life Paul “the Coach” Minore was a Phys Ed teacher and track and
field coach at Willingboro High School in New Jersey whose most famous pupil
was the great track and field standout and former Olympian great, Carl Lewis.
He got involved in amateur racing prior to his retirement and now Minore
devotes himself fully to the sport he loves.
On
Sunday afternoon, July 12, in a CKG Billings Series trot at Saratoga Raceway
“Coach Paul” rallied his veteran trotter, Wygant Prince, to a come-from-behind triumph
in a 1:58.2 clocking. It was close a close finish but in the deep stretch they
trotted by Morosita Bi and driver James “Call Me Jimmy” Marshall IV to
win by a neck. The pace-setter Timmy T, driven by Bobby “Rapid Rail” Krivelin,
faded and finished third
“I
fell into the two hole leaving (the starting gate) and when Bobby (Krivelin)
wouldn’t let Jimmy (Marshall IV) go I got a perfect trip,With all the speedy
fractions on the front-end all I had to do was wait for room in the stretch and
when it came my horse was fresh and he trotted to victory,”Minore said.
Timmy
T, the 3-2 betting favorite in the race, sped out to the lead from the six
hole. Once there Krivelin played hardball and parked-out Morosita Bi and the
two trotters raced as a team through speedy fractions of :28.2; :57.1 and
1:26.4 until the top of the lane when Marshall’s trotter gained command. In the
stretch Morosita Bi was confronted by
Wygant Prince and the veteran trotter went on to victory and both Wygant Prince
and “Coach Paul” each had their third
seasonal triumphs; Wygant Prince against other trotters and “Coach Paul”
against other amateur drivers.
The
winner is owned by Minore and trained by Taylor Gower. He paid $20.40 for win and for “Coach Paul” it
marked his 82nd amateur driving victory.
