Oh Oh It's Magic 5 for 5 in NY

July 10, 2007

The New York Sire Stakes 3-year-old trotting filly class made their second seasonal sojourn to Yonkers Raceway Monday night with $293,566 in purse money on the line. The fastest divisional winner was Vanity Plates, who took her split with a 1:58.2 tally, while Oh Oh It's Magic remained undefeated in five starts in NYSS action.

The daughter of Conway Hall, co-owned, trained and driven by Chris Ryder, won her $58,933 division by two lengths. The 8-5 second betting choice, Vanity Plates put away a stern, second-move challenge from 6-5 favorite Angie Blue Chip in a :28.3 third panel.

"She's a bit a a quirky filly, so I thought I'd be better off driving her myself from the beginning," Ryder said. "We (co-owners Mathias Meinzinger, Margaret Dey and Crescent T Stables) had Sire Stakes in mind with her, and she's turned out rather nicely. I just hope she doesn't get sick for the (Sept. 15 NYSS) final, like she did last year."

Oh Oh It's Magic remained perfect (five-for-five) against the statebreds, taking her $58,933 event as the odds-on choice in an easy 1:59. Carl Gillespie trains and Jim Morrill Jr.drove the daughter of Credit Winner for owner Carolyn Atherton.

"She's just a nice-mannered filly," Morrill--who's driven her in all New York events--said. "Even when a few of the other made breaks early, it didn't bother her. She just went about her business."

Princess Ironstone (Gingras) and the pace-setting Hungadream (Jim Doherty) completed the ticket. Second-choice Aiken For Clay (Stephane Bouxhard) was one of the early malcontents.

For Oh Oh It's Magic, her sixth win in seven '07 efforts was worth $3.70 to to chalkies and increased her seasonal bankroll to more than $187,000.

The evening's first NYSS division produced a 28-1 surprise in the form of Alidade (Brian Mattison), who won by a charging neck in 1:59.1 at a $58 mutuel.

Cocktail Hour (Ivan Davies), who entered play as the divisional co-leader (with Oh Oh It's Magic), pulled uncovered down the backside (at 1-2), only to go the wrong way in a hurry. That development helped the cause of the winner, who outgamed One Day Wonder and Rosy Prospect in a lifetime-best effort.

"She tries every start," Mattison said. "A lot of things just went her way tonight."

Alidade, a Credit Winner lass co-wned (and trained) by Paul Kelley, William Weaver III, Jim Winske and Sterlingbrook Racing, led a $490.50 exacta, $3,124 triple and $2,525 Zager and Evans superfecta (first two finishers and ALL).

Odds-on commodities Conway Maid (John Stark Jr., $3.10) and Ada Girl (Ray Schnittker, $3) easily took care of business in the other two NYSS events, worth $58,933 and $57,833, respectively. The daughters of Conway Hall--both of whom had made breaks at Goshen last weekend--prevailed in identical 1:59.2 performances. (Yonkers Raceway)

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