Two-year-old New York-bred freshman filly trotters had their turn at the big money at Buffalo Raceway Sunday afternoon with four races worth over $30,000 and two Excelsior races worth over $12,000.
The fastest mile of the day was turned in by Daytona Blue Chip (Credit Winner-Down Goes Debbie), who went wire-to-wire in a lifetime best 2:01.1 with trainer-driver Ray Schnittker in the sulky.
The $80,000 Lexington Selected Yearling Sale purchase cut fractions of :29.2, 1:00.3 and 1:31.1 en route to a four and a quarter length victory over second-place finisher Single Sock (Dan Daley).
“She’s great gaited,” said Schnittker. “The plan was to put her on the lead and go from there.”
Daytona Blue Chip ($5.90) is now two-for-two this year, and her winning time was just four-fifths of a second off the track record of 2:00.1, held by Schnittker’s 2009 filly Munis Blue Chip.
Another filly getting her picture taken was Royal Malinda ($14.00), trained and driven by Dan Daley. The Rc Royalty filly won in 2:03 for her first victory this season.
“You got to hang on a little with these two-year-old trotters,” said Daley. “But she got there, and that’s all that counts.”
In the second division, we got our first look at the offspring of Crazed. Crazy Grigio (Crazed-Musetta Hanover) made a strong stretch brush to nip the 4-5 favourite Lola De Vie (Jim Morrill Jr.) to register her first lifetime win in 2:03.2 with Stephane Bouchard in the bike.
“She was pretty handy for the first time I drove her,” said Bouchard. “At the top of the stretch, I knew I had Jimmy’s horse measured. She’s a really nice filly.”
The other NYSS winner was Bullville Ata Girl ($8.70), who is by Malabar Man and out of the Conway Hall mare Bullville Forever. She was timed in 2:04.3 with Stephane Bouchard at the controls.
(Buffalo)
