Beback's big bombs at Buff

Veteran reinsman Ron Beback Jr. had the night of his life at Buffalo Raceway Saturday, bringing home four winners, three of them real longshots. Beback won the featured $9,000 Open Pace with Walkinshaw, who paid a handsome $42.20 to win; three races later, he scored with Fleeing The Scene, who paid $29 in the co-featured $7,200 eleventh race; and his other two winners were Blue Tees, $49.20 in the sixth, and Sugar Doggy, $8.80 in the ninth.

In the featured eighth race, Walkinshaw, a 7-year-old Water Town gelding, won for the first time in four starts this year in 2:00.1 over a track rated "good." Owned by N. Pyziklewicz and E.R. Pokornowski, Walkinshaw and Beback put on a thrilling stretch drive that saw him beat Filly’s Victory and driver Ken Holliday by a neck. Cannae Sandra (Kevin Cummings) was one-half length behind in third.

“Loved the fact that Filly’s Victory set the pace,” said Beback. “Got real lucky when the passing lane opened up and there was just enough room to get through.”

Walkinshaw and Beback were sitting third for the first half of the race while Filly’s Victory and Holliday were setting fractions of :29.2 to the quarter and :59.2 to the half-mile station. The top three finishers entered the top of the stretch for home all within a length of each other, but a :30.1 second last quarter by the winner was enough to take home the winning prize.

The $4,500 share of the winning purse boosted Walinshaw’s 2007 bankroll to $6,376 and $150,424 lifetime. Mark Pokornowski is the trainer.

A jump up in class didn’t bother Fleeing The Scene and driver Beback, who earned a hard-fought victory in the co-featured $7,200 eleventh race in 2:00.2, which was the second fastest race of the night. Owned by Jennifer A. Mann of West Seneca N.Y., the 7-year-old bay gelding by Jate Lobell won for the first time this season.

Leaving from post position five in the field of seven, Fleeing The Scene and Beback settled in fifth as eventual third-place finishers Northern Raucous and driver Holliday were setting the early fractions, :30.4, 1:01.4, and 1:31.2 to the three-quarter mark. At the top of the stretch, Fleeing The Scene and Beback swung to the outside and uncorked a :29 last quarter that beat second-place finishers Kilkerran Union and reinsman Jim Morrill Jr. by a head.

The $3,600 share of the winning purse put Fleeing The Scene’s lifetime bankroll at $112,210. He paid a hefty $29 to his lucky backers. Angelo Nappo is the trainer.

The other hot driver on this wintry night was Morrill, who had a triple: (K-Jack $3) in the third, (Muddy Creek, $3.10) in the fifth, and (Urbane, $7.60) in the 10th. (Buffalo)

« Back