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Moon Beam wins qualifier in 1:53.1

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June 10, 2008

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After three lackluster qualifiers last month, and a bout of atrial fibrillation, the 3-year-old colt pacer Moon Beam finally got untracked Tuesday morning, winning a qualifier at Harrah�s Chester in 1:53.1. With trainer Eric Abbatiello in the sulky, Moon Beam sat a pocket trip until sprinting home with a final quarter of :27.4 to draw clear from his competition by 3 � lengths.

A $750,000 purchase last January at the Tattersalls Select Mixed Sale, Moon Beam is owned by Howard Schneidler. The son of Dragon Again suffered a knee injury last fall that resulted in surgery to remove bone chips, curtailing a freshman season that saw him win four times in six starts, with his second-place finishes coming in the finals of the Woodrow Wilson and Metro.

The atrial fibrillation was discovered after his third poor qualifier, which prompted Abbatiello to send the colt to the University of Guelph, where the heart rate was converted back to normal. Abbatiello said he continues to treat the colt.

�Usually when the convert is done it won�t go bad again for six to nine months, if they ever do,� said Abbatiello before the colt won his Chester qualifier. �What you have to do is balance the electrolytes and supplement it with potassium chloride on a daily basis.�

Abbatiello said Moon Beam will make his 2008 stakes debut in either the Hoosier Cup or Art Rooney elims, both scheduled for June 28. Then hopefully it will be on to the Meadowlands Pace.

"We're going to get a late start, but hopefully a good start," said Abbatiello. "We are disappointed in missing the North America Cup, but we still have the Meadowlands Pace.

�I�m looking forward to it,� he added. �I�ve never been in the big races before, and I�ve been in the business full time since 2000.�

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