Mighty M was 'Trot Town USA' on Wednesday

Monticello was “Trot Town USA” Wednesday when the Raceway presented nine trots on the 13-race afternoon card, highlighted by a new track record for aged trotting stallions when Ray Schnittker guided Armbro Barrister to a 1:57.3 triumph in the $13,000 Preferred Trot. That clocking was one tick faster than the former mark that the Malabar Man stallion established a year ago, nearly to the day.

Sent off as the betting favorite in the race, Schnittker sent Armbro Barrister to the lead and they trotted through fractions of :29; :58.4 and 1:28.1 before finishing a length ahead of Final Legacy (Bruce Aldrich Jr.). Four Starz Trump was third for Stephane Bouchard.

“He’s a good horse and especially good on a half (mile track)," Schnittker said after the race. “We never were in trouble anywhere in the mile.”

The victory pushed Armbro Barrister’s seasonal earnings to $58,892 and his lifetime bankroll to $519,994. The trotter is owned by Schnittker, Kelk’s Inc. and Earl Scheelar.

Of the four $9,700 New York Sire Stakes late-closer trots for 3-year-old colts and geldings that dotted the program, Fears Not A Factor and Billboard King were arguably the most impressive.

Fears Not A Factor, a Credit Winner gelding , scored an oh-so-easy gate-to-wire triumph in a 2:01.1 clocking for driver Bouchard. The colt trotted his last half mile in :59.3 with a :29.2 final stanza en route to turning back Little By Little (Ivan Davies) and Mr. Taurus (Billy Parker Jr.).

The winner is owned by Sandra Stoddard and trained by Mike Tompkins.

Billboard King used the overland route from the half to get in contention at the three-quarters which was clocked in 1:32.1. Still two lengths off the pacesetter CJ's Victory (Bouchard) at the top of the lane, Billboard King, a Giant Hit gelding, put together a :29.4 final quarter to collar Blazing Winner and go on to a one-length victory in a time of 2:01.4.

Claude Huckabone Jr. drove the winner for his dad, Claude Sr.

McCoy, an altered son of Yankee McCoy, won the first NYSS late closer in a wire-to-wire 2:01.4 clocking for driver Mike Forte. They turned back Dean of Vassar (Scott Mongeon) and Pacific Voodoo (Ed Lohmeyer).

However, railbirds were impressed with Pacific Voodoo, who went offstride at the start and spotted the field nearly 30 lengths and then rallied to get the show dough, albeit some  six lengths behind the winner.

The race winner, McCoy, is owned by Louise Lavec and trained by Lou Talarico II.

« Back