Winbak Dimensions fastest

Legacy Racing Stables, a group of eight friends who play at the same golf course, haven’t owned horses for long, but they kicked off the New York Sire Stakes season with an outstanding two-win day on Tuesday, June 20, at Monticello Raceway. The afternoon card featured six Sire Stakes divisions for 3-year-old pacing colts worth $290,586 and total purses of more than $360,000.

Both Legacy Racing winners, Gimmebackmybullets and Predator DVM, were trained and driven by local horsemen--Ed Hart of nearby Middletown, N.Y., trains the pair and leading Monticello driver and Goshen, N.Y., resident Stephane Bouchard drove them.

“Today has been unbelievably fun,” said Neal Brickman of Legacy Racing Stables. “Last year they didn’t do as well as expected and they’ve come back really well.”

Brickman explained that the ownership group was formed last year by Blue Chip Farms owner Tom Grossman and they purchased six horses out of the first crop by Bettor’s Delight, who stands at Blue Chip in Wallkill, N.Y. Although these two purchases provided limited returns last year—Gimmebackmybullets earned $33,500 and Predator DVM never made a start—the two $48,431 purses the group pocketed on Tuesday kicked off a promising season.

Gimmebackmybullets remained perfect in four seasonal starts with a 1:56.4 wire-cutting effort and boosted his career earnings to just under $64,000. Predator DVM scored his sixth career win in 11 starts and increased his earnings to $45,600.

Expected division standouts Winbak Dimensions and Tuffofthetoughest both won their events and set themselves up at the horses to beat in the coming weeks.

Winbak Dimensions, last year’s New York Sire Stakes champion, scored the fastest division in a mile-cutting 1:56.3 victory with regular driver John Cummings Jr. Bill Heinz trains the Village Jove colt and owns him with brother Jack.

“This was a very nice first Sire Stakes start and we’re very pleased with it,” said Heinz. “We plan to go to the Hoosier Cup (on Saturday, June 24).”

Tuffofthetoughest, also a son of Bettor’s Delight, was in the only division forced to race during a short downpour at the raceway and won easily in 1:58.1. Ray Schnittker was in the bike for his co-owners Kelk’s Inc., Ed Pachuta and Frank Baldassare. The victory pushed the colt over $200,000 in career earnings.

Top driver David Miller made a stop at the Monticello oval for the first time in five years and picked up some New York Sire Stakes money in the process by steering Winbak Speed (Village Jove) to a 1:56.4 win for owners Edward Ercolani and Michael Peterson. This division also featured the best comeback of the day when ETA recovered from a break at the start to finish a strong second.

Jeff Gregory steered Park Hill to a 1:56.4 victory in his division for trainer Bill Popfinger, who owns the colt with George Muzea and Leigha Castelo. (Monticello)

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