BY FRANK DRUCKER, Publicity Director, Empire City @ Yonkers Raceway
YONKERS, NY, Monday, February 6, 2017—Pine Tab (Scott Zeron, $19) did something Monday night he hadn’t done since April Fool’s Day of 2013.
He won a race.
No foolin’.
Chasing odds-on choice Madhatter Bluechip (Jason Bartlett) around Yonkers Raceway’s oval in the $11,500, second race, Pine Tab—from post position No. 5--snapped the fave at the wire. He prevailed by a nostril in a life-best 1:57.2 while snapping a pesky 108-race losing streak (final 22 starts of ’13, 0-for-32 in 2014, 0-for-20 in 2015, 0-for-31 in 2016, 0-for-3 to start 2017).
“I knew it had been a while, but I had no idea it was that many races,” Zeron said.
“He was due,” Raceway crack statistician Fred Opper said.
The victory was Pine Tab’s seventh in 152 career starts, with that previous win coming at the Meadows. The 9-year-old Cantab Hall gelding is owned by Domino Stable and trained by Doug Rothlein.
