Ranger aims for return

Driver Bruce Ranger, who was involved in a three-horse accident late Saturday night at Pompano Park Harness Track, may return to racing Wednesday night.

Ranger, 47, of Pompano Beach, was taken to North Ridge Medical Center complaining of back pain after he was vaulted from his sulky in the 10th race. A horse in front of Ranger fell to the track as the field approached the half-mile mark and Ranger could not avoid running into them. A third horse also ran into the pileup. The two other drivers involved in the accident, Kevin Wallis and Daryl Bier, escaped with only minor injuries and returned to action in the very next race. All three horses in the accident were able to walk off the track with only minor injuries.

“Anytime that you are in an accident like that one and can escape without any broken bones you got to be thankful,” said Bruce Ranger. “I was X-rayed and checked out by the doctors and everything seemed to be OK so they discharged me early Sunday morning.

“I am pretty sore right now,” Ranger added, “and I will get some acupuncture treatments Monday and Tuesday and hope to be driving again on Wednesday. I don’t remember too much from the accident but everyone has told me it was pretty bad. I am just going to see how I feel day to day. I want to get back to driving and if I feel OK on Wednesday then I will drive.”

Ranger is Pompano Park’s all-time winningest driver. Over his career he has 6,384 wins and $22,771,000 in purse earnings by the horses he has driven. He is the 10th leading driver in North American this season with 161 wins in 2006. His Universal Driving Rating (UDR) or “batting average” is second in the nation at .412.

(Pompano Park)

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