Barzgar done for year

Trainer Tom Harmer had hoped to race 2-year-old colt pacer Fox Valley Barzgar in the upcoming American National at Balmoral Park, but instead he has decided to turn the son of Incredible Finale out for the rest of the year.

The winner of the $410,000 Woodrow Wilson at the Meadowlands in early August in a career-best 1:50.2, Fox Valley Barzgar has not started since coming up sick after finishing third in the $285,000 Orange & Blue final at Balmoral Sept. 16, although he won a qualifier at Maywood Park in 1:56.2 over a “sloppy” track.

A six-time winner in eight starts with $289,550 in earnings, the Illinois-bred Fox Valley Barzgar was purchased in early July for Michael Polansky of New York. He won his Orange & Blue elimination by 6 ½ lengths in 1:52, but Harmer said he believed the colt was not 100 percent that night. Following the show outing in the rich final, Harmer discovered the colt was battling sickness.

“When I raced him in the eliminations for the Orange & Blue, he won but he wasn’t that good. We raced him back in the final and he finished third, and we drew blood on him,” Harmer told harnessracing.com Wednesday morning via cell phone as he was taking Fox Valley Barzgar to his winter home at Pompano Park in Florida. “His immune system was shut down to practically nothing; he had no life to him. After about three or four weeks we sent him to the University of Wisconsin and his immune system had gone up to about half of what it should have been.

“His blood was all screwed up. We gave him another week or so, and then I trained him down—he trained OK—and then he qualified. It was a pretty good mile as it was muddy and rainy and cold and windy.”

Harmer said he again checked Fox Valley Barzgar’s blood, and then, after consulting with Polansky, decided to call it quits for the year.

“I trained him back and drew blood, and it wasn’t up to par,” said Harmer. “I told Michael we could race him and he’d probably be first, second or third, but he said to turn him out.”

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