By Mark Ratzky, publicity – Cal Expo Harness
Last Friday night saw
Nathalie Tremblay making a pair of winner’s circle appearances, sending out the
pacers Windsong Lindsey and Lilbitofmama for solid victories.
Windsong Legacy carries the
banner of Ericka Lugar and was guided by Mooney Svendsen, while Lilbitofmama is
the pride and joy of her owner/breeder Wendi Wiener and had Luke Plano in the
sulky.
Windsong Legacy was rattling
off her second straight victory last weekend and has certainly turned things
around of late. She romped home over a softer group on February 16 in a 1:54
1/5 tour, then repeated that clocking in another coast-to-coast score while up
a notch in class.
Lilbitofmama closed out the
program with a 9-1 upset as he did the track-and-attack to perfection for Plano
and was up by a half-length. He is a 6-year-old son of Little Steven out of the
Distinguishedbaron mare Mamahaswhiskerstoo and was also recording his second
win of the year.
***
Cal Expo has announced that
the guaranteed gross pool for the 20-cent Pick 4 on Saturdays has now been
raised to $50,000, with the guaranteed pool for Friday’s Pick 4 remaining at
$30,000.
The Pick 4 is one of two
wagers each night at Cal Expo with a reduced 16 percent takeout rate, the other
being the 50-cent Pick 5, which is offered on the first five races of each
program.
"We started our guarantee at
$25,000, went to $30,000. then $40,000, now $50,000,” said Cal Expo General
Manager Chris Schick. “The Saturday Pick 4 guarantee equals that of The
Meadowlands and Woodbine. We have now joined an exclusive club. The low 20-cent
minimum, coupled with the low 16 percent takeout, have certainly proved a
powerful combination.”
Trotting Sire Stakes,
distaff Pace share spotlight
A $4,200 contest for pacing
fillies and mares headed by Shesamysterytome and Shark Festival and a $6,500
California Sire Stakes for 4-year-old trotters head the marquee at Cal Expo
Friday night.
First post for the 11-race
program is 6:10 p.m.
Set to do battle in the first
Sire Stakes of the season for the 4-year-old trotters are Lodi Jazz Player with
Tony Succarotte; Bo Plenty, Leon Smith; Indio Azteca, to be guided by Gerry
Longo; Gravel Girl for George Luster; and Never Onebadchange with Pierre Girard
in the sulky.
Looking at the co-feature,
Shesamysterytome is a 4-year-old daughter of Mystery Chase who is owned by
Ashleet Sluggett and Trevor Williams with Ryan Grundy reining and training. She
established her 1:54 2/5 career standard here earlier in the meet.
The bay mare was runner-up to
Blue Note in the Alan Kirschenbaum Final on February 2 and has come back with a
third and a fourth-place finish while racing at the Open level in her last two
outings. She has a tough, first-over trip when facing a very sharp Delightfully
Wild in last week’s appearance.
Shark Festival usually comes
with a solid finish and has to be respected as she also drops out of the Open
ranks for this assignment. Medinah Racing and Scott Ehrlich own the Shadow Play
mare with Kathie Plested training and Steve Wiseman handling the lines.
She recorded her most recent
score on January 13 in a conditioned event, exploding in the stretch to win
going away by three-quarters of a length with Mooney Svendsen at the controls.
She has a 1:53 3/5 mark that was established two years ago.
