WEG regulars Steve Condren and Trevor Ritchie are both enjoying a holiday in Florida, albeit somewhat of a busman’s variety, as both are scheduled to drive in the opening division of the Mack Lobell Trotting Series at Pompano on Friday night.
There will be 16 starters competing
in the two $17,500 opening round divisions. The top
nine point earners after two legs will return for a $75,000 added final on
Saturday, February 26.
In the seventh race first division Condren is down to drive the top invitational trotter Hellava
Hush, who starts from post two. Condren drove the horse several times during his time in Canada last season. Last week the $484,000
career winner showed he is ready for the 2005 season, winning the Mack Lobell
Preview in his first start of the year with a two length 1:56 triumph.
Trained by William Gallagher and owned by Joseph Chnapko of Livingston, NJ,
Hellava Hush raced against the top trotters in North America last year, winning
six times with earnings of $144,000.
Ritchie is listed to drive Hunt M Down for trainer Harald Lunde. Ritchie is familiar with the seven-year-old SJs Photo gelding having driven him on numerous occasions at Woodbine and Mohawk.
Both the former and current world record double-gaited Standardbreds, True
Story and Chucaro Ahijuna, are also in the race. True Story, a $289,000 career
winner, starts from post six for driver George Napolitano, Jr. and is making
his 2005 debut off an easy 2:01.2 qualifying win last week at Pompano Park.
Argentinean-bred Chucaro Ahijuna, is looking to rebound from a recent breaking
problem and starts from post four for yet another Canadian driver, Kevin Wallis. Last week in the
Mack Lobell Preview, the eight-year-old gelding broke leaving the gate and
never rebounded, but two starts back, even after breaking at the start and
spotting the field ten lengths, came back to finish second by one length in 1:56.
The second Mack Lobell division features track record holder and 2003
Mack Lobell Series winner, Damon Runyon, who starts from post eight for Maritime native
Wally Hennessey. He has won the Open Trot at Pompano Park in two of his last
three starts, the fastest a 1:54.3 victory, just one-fifth of a second from his
track record time.
His main competition should come from Make It Hot in post four. A nine-time
winner last year, Make It Hot earned $110,000 in 2005 and after breaking and
distancing the field in the Mack Lobell Preview last week, came back two days
later in an official workout at the track and stopped the teletimer in 1:57.4.
The complete fields for both divisions are as follows:
First division – race 7
1. Double Eagle
2. Hellava Hush
3. Hunt M Down
4. Chucaro Ahijuna
5. Regal Visitor
6. True Story
7. Dunkster
8. Ultimate Sundance
Second division – race 9
1. Crest
2. Sweet Count
3. Beepbeep Move Over
4. Make It Hot
5. Muscle Boss Vita
6. Guy Gets Girl
7. Bubba Dunn
8. Damon Runyon
(Pompano)
