June 8, 2024, by Chris Tully, for First Tracks Cumberland

CUMBERLAND, ME – Cain MacKenzie’s Martaritaondarocks paced the fastest mile of the Friday (June 7) program, taking her $4,400 fillies and mares conditioned pace in 1:57 flat.

Driven by Drew Campbell, the consistent 5-year-old daughter of Pet Rock was ducked into the four hole in the first turn, while 3-5 favorite Pickmepickme (Walter Case Jr.) marched on to take command.

With a soft 29.1 opening panel, Campbell pulled his charge out at the 3/8’s pole and was roughing it up first over into a 59 second half.  As the rest of the pylon sitters gapped off the leader, Campbell was able to duck Martaritaondarocks into the two hole at the 5/8’s marker.

As Duck N Roll (Nick Graffam) was rolling on the outside, Martaritaondarocks was sitting tightly on the helmet of the leader through the 1:27.1 third stanza.  As the outer flow diminished, Martaritaondarocks found daylight and used a slingshot move off the turn to challenge Pickmepickme at the head of the stretch.

Gaining ground with every stride, the 8-5 second choice rock and rolled to the wire to grab the swiftest mile of the day by 2-1/4 lengths.  Owned and trained by Cain MacKenzie, it was the mare’s third win in her last five starts.  She paid $5.20 to win.

Pickmepickme finished second; Duck N Roll was third.

The co-featured $5,500 trot was captured by Luvcrunchess in 1:58.4, picking up her first win of the season.  Driven by Walter Case Jr. for trainer Ryan Hall and owner P T Stable, the 8-year-old daughter of Dontyouforgetit paid $12.00 to win gate-to-wire.

Favorite Little Macabee (Drew Campbell) finished second; Power Mitt (Kevin Switzer Jr.) was third.

In other events, former Maine Sire Stakes champion South St Dottie picked up her second win of the season for Team Graffam, scoring in 1:58.1.  A wire-to-wire effort, the 4-year-old mare paid a surprising $24.40 prize.

Team Athearn grabbed another score with track record holder Dynamical Tad who posted a 2:02 time to win the $4,400 conditioned trot.  It was his second win in three weeks, having scored on May 17 and set a 2:01 Cumberland benchmark for 4-year-old stallions.  He paid $10.60 to win.  Owned by Barbara Dresser, he is trained by Gretchen Athearn and was driven to victory by Mark Athearn.

While the 10-race card of live harness racing begins at 3:15 pm, First Tracks Cumberland will also offer simulcasting from Saratoga Race Course on Saturday (June 8) for the $2,000,000 Belmont Stakes, doors open at 10:45 am. 

The First Tracks Cumberland meet continues throughout upcoming Summer months with regular racing on Friday and Saturday each weekend during the extended pari-mutuel meeting, which runs through August 3. 

For additional information, visit our website at firsttrackscumberland.com, or find us on social media at https://www.facebook.com/FirstTracksCumberland/

June 6, 2024, by Chris Tully, for First Tracks Cumberland (Joe Shaw photo)

CUMBERLAND, ME – George Fenno’s Instant Replay has been a consistent top pacer in Maine this season.  Winning two of his last three starts, the 4-year-old son of Lazarus will try to redeem his first and only loss of the season this Saturday (June 8) at Cumberland in the $6,000 featured sixth race.

Aside from his third place finish last week, Instant Replay has rewarded his backers with $13.80 and $3.40 two-dollar win tickets in his previous two outings.  Nonetheless, he is still the second choice on the TrackMaster morning line, pegged at 7-2 with Walter Case Jr. resuming his role from the horse’s first win.  Saturday he scores from post 3, and since that time he has also been driven by Dave Ingraham and Mike Stevenson.

The 5-2 favorite is a horse moving up in class, Runrunjimmydunn N, post 4.  Trained by Ryan Hall and driven by leading driver Kevin Switzer Jr., he comes off a win in his last start, pacing in a seasonal best 1:55.4.  The third and fourth choices are Bet On Joe (post 2, Bruce Ranger) and Lexus Witha View A (post 5, Nick Graffam).  Every one of the seven entrants has a 1:57.1 or faster seasonal mark, with Instant Replay being the most lightly raced. 

In addition, the track hosts another two $5,000 divisions of the Maine Amateur Driving Club (MADC) series, sponsored by the Blue Seal Feed Stores of North Yarmouth and Windham, Maine.

While the 10-race card of live harness racing begins at 3:15 pm, First Tracks Cumberland will also offer simulcasting from Saratoga Race Course on Saturday (June 8) for the $2,000,000 Belmont Stakes, doors open at 10:45 am. 

The action starts on Friday’s (June 7) 10-race card, with the track offering punters a $5,000 Pick-5 guarantee in races 3 through 7.  The popular wager has an attractive 16% takeout on the 50-cent minimum bet.

Free past performances can be found on the US Trotting Association’s Strategic Wagering page:

http://handicapping.ustrotting.com/index.cfm or https://www.trackmaster.com/freeContent/usta/freeContentFiles/hpl/cub0607x.pdf

The First Tracks Cumberland meet continues throughout upcoming Summer months with regular racing on Friday and Saturday each weekend during the extended pari-mutuel meeting, which runs through August 3. 

For additional information, visit our website at firsttrackscumberland.com, or find us on social media at https://www.facebook.com/FirstTracksCumberland/

June 6, 2024, by Chris Tully, for First Tracks Cumberland

CUMBERLAND, ME – First Tracks Cumberland is pleased to announce a $5,000 Pick-5 guarantee on Friday (June 7) in races 3 through 7.  The popular wager has an attractive 16% takeout on the 50¢ minimum bet.

Free past performances can be found on the US Trotting Association’s Strategic Wagering page:

http://handicapping.ustrotting.com/index.cfm

First Tracks Cumberland is proud to offer simulcasting from Saratoga Race Course on Saturday (June 8) for the 156th renewal of the Test of the Champion, the $2,000,000 Belmont Stakes, doors open at 10:45 am.  Live harness racing is also on tap, first post is 3:15 pm.

The First Tracks Cumberland meet continues throughout upcoming Summer months with regular racing on Friday and Saturday each weekend during the extended pari-mutuel meeting, which runs through August 3. 

For additional information, visit our website at firsttrackscumberland.com, or find us on social media at https://www.facebook.com/FirstTracksCumberland/

June 2, 2024, by Chris Tully, for First Tracks Cumberland (Joe Shaw photos)

CUMBERLAND, ME – Keystone Phoenix and Walter Case Jr. paced away from the field en route to a benchmark lowering 1:54.1 romp in the $6,000 feature at Cumberland Raceway on Saturday (June 1).

Scoring from the track’s ‘sweet spot’ post 4, Case put his charge right on the lead and played ‘catch me if you can’ with the rest of top pacers.  Despite a mild brush into the 28.0 opening panel to get past the pylon-protecting Miss U Big Mike (Dan Deslandes), the pacesetting duo then rolled through the half unfettered in 57.0.

Gaining ground with every stride, bystanders and horsemen alike knew something special was about to happen with the pair were comfortably on top by four at the three-quarters and the timer flashed an exciting 1:25.0, which is a rarity at the iconic Southern Maine oval.

With the battle for second the only lingering concern, Case rolled the 6-5 favorite through the final turn with just two remaining variables: how fast, and by how many?

The margin of victory was an open 5-1/2 lengths and when the timer read 1:54.1 it indicated a new track record for an aged gelding, which was just two ticks off the all-age track record of 1:53.4.

Trained by Ryan Hall and owned by P T Stable, the 10-year-old son of Well Said paid $4.60.  Keystone Phoenix, a foal of 2014, hails from the famed Hempt Farms Pennsylvania nursery, which was founded by Harness Racing Hall of Famer Max C. Hempt in 1942.

Rocksapatriot (Dave Ingraham) finished second; Instant Replay (Mike Stevenson) was third.

It was the third victory of the day for the connections of trainer Ryan Hall and owner P T Stable (Patrick Tortofello), who had two earlier scores with Kevin Swizter Jr. driving: Thorn Road (1:56.0; $3.80) and The Downtown Bus (1:57.0; $3.00).

Walter Case Jr. also enjoyed three wins on the card.  The first occurred in the opener with Marc Tardif’s Pickmepickme (1:57.3; $4.80), and the second a tote-board busting $28.80 with Benson Merrill’s Ten Beaches Later (1:57.3).

The Maine Amateur Driving Club (MADC) is relishing a resurgence of activity with the past few weeks witnessing two $5,000 divisions in each program, with some familiar faces basking in the beam of the photo finish light.

Despite being assigned post 7, Hunter Lofthus grabbed his second win in a row with his own Forrest Blu, taking the first division by a scant neck in 2:00.0 and paying $8.40 to his backers. 

Hunter ‘Hot Lead’ Lofthus is now well atop the drivers standings in the MADC, which is quite impressive given the fact that he got his first lifetime win just 6 months ago.  An electrical lineman and tree expert by trade, Lofthus has 54 points, which puts him ahead of Benson Merrill (46) and Todd Whitney (36) in the top three. 

Relative newcomer Jonathan Bresnahan picked up his first win of the season, after just three starts in the MADC series.  Bresnahan scored with a catch drive aboard Hula’s Boy in 2:01.0, who is trained by Logan Lanpher.  They paid $7.60 to win. The MADC is sponsored by the Blue Seal Feed Stores of North Yarmouth and Windham, Maine.

The leading driver at Cumberland through eight weeks of racing is Kevin Switzer Jr., who has a commanding 35 wins, ahead of Dan Deslandes (22), Bruce Ranger (17), Walter Case Jr. (16) and Drew Campbell (15.)

The leading Cumberland conditioner is Jeff Deslandes with 21 wins, followed by trainers Lester Dancer (11), Sara Harrington (10) and Bob Marston (10).

Racing resumes Friday (June 7) where the track will offer its regular slate of wagering options on the live harness racing card, with the addition of a $5,000 Pick-5 guarantee.  Early betting on the Belmont Stakes will also be available.  

In addition, First Tracks Cumberland is proud to offer simulcasting from Saratoga Race Course on Saturday (June 8) for the 156th renewal of the Test of the Champion, the $2,000,000 Belmont Stakes, with doors opening at 12 noon.

The First Tracks Cumberland meet continues throughout upcoming Summer months with regular racing on Friday and Saturday each weekend during the extended pari-mutuel meeting, which runs through August 3.  Post time is always 3:15 pm.

For additional information, visit our website at firsttrackscumberland.com, or find us on social media at https://www.facebook.com/FirstTracksCumberland/

June 1, 2024, by Chris Tully, for First Tracks Cumberland (Joe Shaw photos)

CUMBERLAND, ME – Both $5,500 co-featured events on Friday’s (May 31) Cumberland card were wire-to-wire romps by their respective victors, Broadway Giant and Pretty Gorgeous.

In the top trot opener perennial leading reinsman Bruce Ranger sent Broadway Giant right to the top and never looked back.  Hitting the opening panel in 28.4, the 10-year-old son of Broadway Hall settled in on the point and allowed the battle for second to appear in his rear-view mirror.

Steve Wilson had 13-1 longshot Inquiring Mind safely in the two-hole after the start, but Dan Deslandes had the French trotter and 6-5 favorite Elegant Dulupin ranging up on the outside into a 59.2 half mile marker, after letting a parked-out Jax Spratt (Aaron Hall) into the three-hole.  Following the live cover in the outer flow was Walter Case Jr. with Luvcrunchess.

Down the backside the final time the leader had gained some separation as Little Macabee (Drew Campbell) pushed three-wide into the 1:28.1 third panel with the rest of the field gapping behind the pacesetter and bunched up in the final turn.

As they turned for home Broadway Giant was on top by four and looking for more.  The scuffle for second stormed on with the challengers giving chase to no avail.

Broadway Giant prevailed by a comfortable 2-3/4 lengths in 1:59.1, a new seasonal mark.  Owned and trained by Ron Patoine, it was his third win in six starts this year, pushing his lifetime earnings to $165,858.  He paid $9.80 to win.

Elegant Dulupin FR finished second; Inquiring Mind was third.

A few events later and the $5,500 fillies and mares pace witnessed another front-end folly with Kevin Switzer Jr. leading 6-5 favorite Pretty Gorgeous through a 28.0 first panel tussle with the pylon protecting Gimme Some Lovin’ (Andy Harrington).

While Switzer cleared with the wagering choice, he backed down the tempo to a 58.2 half, prompting Case to pull A Black Diamond first over and challenge for the lead.  With Harrington and Gimme Some Lovin’ glued to Switzer’s helmet, and Case rolling on the outside the pack hit the third stanza in a furious 1:26.1.

As the field turned for home Pretty Gorgeous drifted out into the center of the track, allowing Harrington and Gimme Some Lovin’ to get a momentary advantage.  Pretty Gorgeous fought back valiantly once she straightened out again and prevailed by half a length in 1:56.2, the swiftest race of the day.

Trained by Benson Merrill for owners John and Thelma Kiernan, the 7-year-old daughter of I’m Gorgeous assembled her sixth win of the year and equaled her season’s best record. She paid $4.60 to win.

Kevin Switzer Jr. won four races on the program, Bruce Ranger won three and Walter Case Jr. grabbed a double, including a tote-board shattering $77.40 win ticket with Oceanview Echo.

Racing continues Saturday (June 1) with a 10-race card, featuring a $6,000 conditioned pace where George Fenno’s Instant Replay will seek his third win in a row. There are also two divisions of the popular Maine Amateur Driving Club (MADC), sponsored by Blue Seal Feeds.

The First Tracks Cumberland meet continues throughout upcoming Summer months with regular racing on Friday and Saturday each weekend during the extended pari-mutuel meeting, which runs through August 3.  Post time is always 3:15 pm.

Looking ahead, First Tracks Cumberland is proud to offer simulcasting from Saratoga Race Course on Saturday, June 8 for the 156th renewal of the Test of the Champion, the $2,000,000 Belmont Stakes.

For additional information, visit our website at firsttrackscumberland.com, or find us on social media at https://www.facebook.com/FirstTracksCumberland/