YONKERS, NY, Tuesday, April 1, 2014—Favored Extreme Machine N (Eric Goodell)
prevailed from loosest of pockets Tuesday night, winning Yonkers Raceway’s
$67,400 final of the Sagamore Hill Pacing Series.
The Teddy Roosevelt-approved series, for
3- and 4-year-old colts and geldings, culminated with Yonkers Raceway’s richest
race of the season to date.
Extreme Machine N, as the 9-10 favorite,
won the draw and watched as Artist Night (George Brennan) set sail on a
mission. That mission included a 28-second opening
quarter-mile and :55.3 half. All the while, Extreme Machine N was pacing just
enough to make sure outside leavers Ashley’s Husband (Jordan Derue) and A
Stitch in Time (Ron Pierce) had no holes.
Artist Night had
five lengths at the wicked 1:22.4 three-quarters before Goodell asked his
charge to close ranks. The margin was a length-and-a-half entering the lane,
but the fractions were shockingly taking their toll.
Extreme Machine
N went by, getting the best of a three-hole-sitting Sir Michigan Z Tam by a
half-length in a life-best 1:52.1. Artist Night held third, beaten a couple of
lengths, with City Hall (Brian Sears) and Touchdown Mindale (Andy Miller)
grabbing the remainder. Wilcox (Dan Dube), “Ashley” and A Stitch in Time
rounded out the order.
“I haven’t seen
the end to him yet,” Goodell said. “I didn’t want to be right on George’s
(Brennan, driving Artist Night) back, and even with those fractions, I was
worried I waited too long.
“In the (final)
turn, he started to come back to me. (Extreme Machine N) steers a bit funny,
and has a lot to learn, but the more experience he gets over here, he’s just
going to get better.”
For Extreme Machine N, a 4-year-old Down
Under Mach Three gelding owned by Joseph Muscara and trained by Darren Cassar,
he returned $3.90 for his third win as many seasonal/series/North American
starts. The exacta paid $18, the triple returned $42.20 and the superfecta paid
$104.
A trio of series consolations, worth $25,000, $12,500 and $12,500,
respectively, were won by I Dreamed a Dream (Pat Lachance, $14) in 1:54.2,
Rolandale Buster (Dube, $8.20) in a life-best 1:54.4, and Artacus (catch-driver
Miller, $38.20) in a life-best 1:54.
Tuesday’s Pick-5 pool, fortified with a
$7,907.68 carryover and featuring a $25,000 guaranteed pool, induced $32,731 of
fresh coin into the equation.
The winning combination of 3/4/6/1/5
returned a tidy $16,228 to a pair of intelligent handicappers.
The Raceway's five-night-per-week live schedule continues, with first post
every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 7:10 PM. Evening
simulcasting accompanies all live programs, with afternoon simulcasting
available daily.
