Birminghim wins in return

The stakes winning 4-year-old mare Birminghim used a methodical first-over march on Monday to win her seasonal debut, prevailing in the $6,800 fifth-race trot at Pompano Park in 1:57.2.

Driven from post three by Trevor Ritchie, Birminghim settled along the pylons in fifth place as Make It Hot (Tom Sells) showed the way through an opening quarter mile in :29. As the trotters moved by the grandstand for the first time, Make It Hot was challenged by two-time seasonal winner Curly Whirly (Mark O’Mara), who quickly rushed to the front and claimed the top spot, moving by the half-mile pole in :57.2.

As the field continued it’s trek down the backstretch, Ritchie angled Birminghim off the pylons to begin her first-over assault, and the mare quickly trotted her way to third place, as Curly Whirly reached the three-quarters split in 1:27.3.

Curly Whirly entered the stretch with a half-length advantage over Birminghim, but that margin was rapidly diminishing, and by mid-stretch, Birminghim had taken control of the race.

Unchallenged through the final yards, Birminghim prevailed by 1 ¼ lengths over Make It Hot, while Class Action N (Rick Schaut) finished third.

Owned by Torkil Pedersen of Trondheim, Norway, and trained by Harald Lunde, Birminghim closed out 2006 with $163,375 in seasonal earnings despite visiting the winner’s circle just once in 19 starts.

During her juvenile campaign, Birminghim visited the winner’s circle on four occasions, including three Gold final victories in the Ontario Sire Stakes for 2-year-old trotting fillies.

Monday’s victory was the first for Birminghim since a May 18, 2006 triumph in a $45,007 Ontario Sire Stakes Gold elimination at Hiawatha Horse Park in Sarnia, Ont. The daughter of Striking Sahbra has now prevailed in six of 33 starts during her career, and has a lifetime bankroll of $463,713.

With one swift move at the start of Monday’s $10,000 Open Trot from Pompano, Battleshoe Victor seized control of the race, and trotted to a front-end victory in 1:55.4 for his third win of the year.

Guided from the inside post by Pompano Park’s leading driver Bruce Ranger, Battleshoe Victor took the field through moderate fractions of :28, :58.1, and 1:27.3, before entering the stretch with a 1 ½-length advantage.

After denying the first-over bid of Railee Possible (David Ingraham), Battleshoe Victor extended his lead through the wire, prevailing by 2 ¾ lengths. Railee Possible held on for second over the pocket-sitting Rovasreadytorumble (Wally Hennessey), who checked in third.

Owned by Michael Polansky of Loudonville, N.Y., and trained by Tom Harmer, Battleshoe Victor has won two of his last three starts at Pompano, and was the second-place finisher in this year’s $77,800 Mack Lobell Trotting Series final. (Pompano)

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