By john manzi for NAADA
Fresh
off a season where her driving talents earned her 2015 National Amateur Driver
of the Year honors Hannah Miller is back in the winner’s circle after she
copped a division of the North American Amateur Drivers Association trots at
Monticello Raceway on Thursday afternoon, January 28. She shared the limelight
that afternoon with Paul Minore who reined the winner in the other split.
But
it seems that “Hurricane Hannah” has picked up where she left off last year
when she scored a front- end triumph with Jacks To Open in a time of 2:01.2.
And for Minore, his 2:03 victory came behind his own trotter, Wygant Prince.
In
her division Miller sent the veteran trotter to the lead and was pressured by
AJ Destiny and driver Bob Hechkoff. With
the two leaders racing side by side toward the quarter pole Miller refused to
grab into Jacks To Open so Hechkoff backed off and fell into the two-hole behind her.
“He
(Hechkoff) kept yelling to me to take a hold and let him go but I refused to
grab into my horse because the last time I did that it cost me the race,” she
said referring to the $25,000 Billings Series Final when she got jammed and
Jacks To Open jumped it off.” And besides,” she added, “he was real
‘steppy’ today anyway.
After
AJ Destiny settled in behind Jacks To Open Miller led the field by the halfway
point and she was able to give her trotter a breather up the backside.
As
the field raced by the third stanza Woody and Joe Lee charged from behind to
get along side Jacks To Open and the two races nearly side by side around the
final turn. Although Woody was a threatening presence in the lane Jacks to Open
had enough in the tank to rebuff the challenge and go on to a one length
triumph. AJ Destiny held on for third
money.
Owned
by Nick Surick and Hannah Miller Jacks To Open paid $4.00 for win.
Paul
Minore, a former high school coach who’s most famous pupil was the great
Olympic gold medalist, Carl Lewis, had no trouble in his contest with Wygant
Prince.
After
starting from the four-hole Minore was content to be on the outside until
everyone settled in along the pylons, and when they did he hustled Wygant
Prince to the lead and they cruised on to an easy 2-1/2 length triumph.
“I
was waiting to get everyone settled before I sent my horse to the lead because
he’s especially good on the front-end,” Minore said after the race. “He has
been resting and out for a while and he came back real strong.”
Finishing
second, some 2-1/2 lengths behind the winner, was Nautilus De Vie driven by
Dave Yarock. Cassa’s Image took home the show dough for owner -driver Bobby
Krivelin.
Sent
off as the odds-on favorite Wygant Prince paid $3.80 for win.
The
next leg will be contested at Yonkers Raceway on Thursday, Feb. 24.
With the event scheduled last Saturday at Freehold Raceway
snowed-out today’s race became the second event in the 12-leg series which is
slated to culminate in a $15,000 Final on April 7 at Yonkers Raceway.
