The recent hot streak for reinsman Leon Bailey continued on Sunday afternoon at Saratoga Casino Hotel as the Vernon Downs leading driver scored his first ever victory in a local Open. Bailey picked up the catch-drive behind the John Podres-trained Repeal Or Replace (So Surreal) who drew post two in the $15,000 Open Pace. Dismissed at odds of 15-1, Repeal Or Replace sat third in the early going as fast fractions of 27.1 and 56.1 were posted in lap one. Bailey made his move with the four year old pacer approaching the three quarter pole and Repeal Or Replace powered past the leader before opening up a big lead of his own turning for home. By the time the favorite Artful Way (Billy Dobson) could shake loose and shift gears, it would be too late for the veteran pacer to track down Repeal Or Replace whose first Open Pace score came in 1:53.2. Artful Way came up second-best while Lake Charles (Chris Long) earned the show spot. Repeal Or Replace paid $32.20 to win in the upset score and led an exacta and triple in the feature that returned $138 and $467.50, respectively. For Bailey, the win was his first ever in a local Open and one of two on the day for the 35 year old reinsman who has been on a tear of late at the Spa. Repeal Or Replace is owned by Karma Racing Inc. of Parkland, FL.

Live racing continues on Monday afternoon with a Pick Five carryover of $2,661. The Pick Five begins in the first race which is scheduled for noon.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Melissa Simser

Surreal Feeling (So Surreal) has had an incredible 2021 campaign and on Tuesday afternoon, the six year old mare recorded her eighth Open win of the season at Saratoga Casino Hotel. The Dale Lawton-trained distaffer returned to the Spa in October and secured one win and three seconds in four tries in the $15,000 Fillies and Mares Open heading into Tuesday’s try. Alek Chartrand has been the regular driver for Surreal Feeling in her local starts and was at the helm behind the 2-5 betting favorite in the feature. After a fast first quarter paced in 27.1, the race’s leader backed down the half to the tune of 57.4. Surreal Feeling picked up cover and charged up second-over before tipping off the cover past the three quarter pole. As the favorite shifted gears, Chasethecloudsaway (Luke Hanners), the winner of the last two installments of the Fillies and Mares Open at the Spa, motored home around the final turn. Surreal Feeling would not be denied though and stopped the timer in 1:55 for her eleventh win of the season and eighth in the local feature. Chasethecloudsaway continued her streak of finishing first or second every week dating back to August when she ended up as the runner-up to Surreal Feeling while Birch Island Betty (Billy Dobson) earned the show spot for the third consecutive week in the Open. The exacta with the favorites running one-two paid $9.40 while the triple came back $56. Surreal Feeling, who is the clear favorite for Filly and Mare Pacer of the Year at Saratoga, is owned by Chris and Dale Lawton.

Live racing resumes on Sunday afternoon with a matinee starting at noon.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Melissa Simser

Madhatter Bluechip (Muscle Hill) is in the midst of a big time comeback campaign after missing all of the 2020 season. The Tom Milici-trained trotter posted an Open win at Yonkers in September and returned to Saratoga Casino Hotel last week (November 1) off a three week layoff. Madhatter Bluechip finished second to Squee Hanover in that start. The nine year old got his chance at revenge on Monday afternoon at the Spa when he started from post four in a five-horse Open Trot which served as the feature on the card. Leading driver Jimmy Devaux wasted little time moving Madhatter Bluechip to the front-end where he put up fast fractions in lap one. Posting fractions of 27.2 and 57 seconds in the first half, Madhatter Bluechip faced very little pressure throughout the mile. The favored Squee Hanover (Billy Dobson) revved up the engine late in the mile before getting caught three-wide around the final turn. Madhatter Bluechip scampered away to win by a length and a half in a fast 1:54.4 as the race’s 7-5 second-choice in the wagering. Squee Hanover stayed hot and finished second while Cash Me Out (Phil Fluet) earned the show spot in the $15,000 feature for high-steppers. For Madhatter Bluechip, it was victory number eight on the season. The earnings from the win put the veteran over the $100,000 mark for the ’21 campaign and over the $400,000 plateau for his career. The exacta and triple in the Open paid $9.60 and $24.40, respectively. For the meet’s leading driver Jimmy Devaux, the victory in the feature was one of five on the day as he looks to cement his first ever Saratoga driving title.

Live racing continues on Tuesday afternoon with a matinee starting at noon.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Melissa Simser

Warrawee Unique, trained by Jeff Sorenson, won today’s feature pace in 1:53.2. He was driven to the win by Leon Bailey, who also had three other winners on Sunday’s card.

Chasethecloudsaway (Sunshine Beach) moved her record to two-for-two at Saratoga Casino Hotel on Tuesday afternoon. The Chris Petrelli-trained distaffer scored in the Fillies and Mares Open for the second consecutive week as she came from off the pace to repeat in the $15,000 Tuesday feature. Last week, Chasethecloudsaway toughed out a trip on the outside before drawing away from her rivals to win in 1:54 and spring the upset at odds of 25-1 in her local debut. On Tuesday, driver Luke Hanners again came from off the pace with the mare who was bet down to even money by the betting public. Surreal Feeling (Alek Chartrand) was the runner-up to the winner in last week’s feature while trying to overcome post eight but in this week’s installment of the ladies’ Open moved right out to the front end. Clicking off speedy first half fractions of 26.3 and 56.2, Surreal Feeling held strong throughout before getting edged out late this week by Chasethecloudsaway in a mile clocked in 1:54. Surreal Feeling, perhaps the most dominant mare at the Spa this year, had to settle for second best while Birch Island Betty (Jimmy Devaux) earned the show spot. Chasethecloudsaway’s victory was her fourteenth of the season and paid $4.10 to win on Tuesday and led an exacta and triple that returned $6.40 and $18.60, respectively. The Open winner is owned by David Del Pozzo of Methuen, MA. The feature winner’s connections secured a double on Tuesday as Del Pozzo, Petrelli and Hanners’ Beauty Is Blind (Betterthancheddar) scored a front-running victory in an $11,500 race for pacing mares.

Live racing resumes on Sunday afternoon at Saratoga with a matinee starting at noon.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Melissa Simser

Over the course of the last two months, Squee Hanover (Crazed) has been the dominant force among local trotters at Saratoga Casino Hotel. In the midst of his breakout campaign, Squee Hanover headed into Monday’s try in the $15,000 Open Trot with victories in three of his last four Open tries and in four of his last six attempts in the trotting feature. On Monday, Billy Dobson sat behind the Andy Gardner trainee who drew post six in the six-horse Open and came from off the pace. Squee Hanover rushed up first-over after a first lap that went in 57.3. The razor sharp five year old served as cover for Yonkers invader Madhatter Bluechip (Jimmy Devaux) who chased the favorite throughout but came up second-best in a mile clocked in 1:55.4. For Squee Hanover, it was the fifth Open Trot win of the season and the eleventh victory in ’21 overall. Madhatter Bluechip was the runner-up while Oh So Pine (Larry Stalbaum) earned the show spot. The exacta and triple, with the 6-5 favorite on top, came back $13.60 and $53.50, respectively. Squee Hanover is owned by Exceed Stables of Lamar, PA. For the second consecutive day, Dobson piloted four winners the card.

Live racing continues at Saratoga on Tuesday afternoon with a noon start to the action.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Cheyanne Mandy

Moonshine Kisses (Sunshine Beach) completed a big day for his connections as the five year old scored a victory in the Open Pace on Sunday afternoon at Saratoga Casino Hotel. Winning the Open for the third time in his last four attempts, Moonshine Kisses, who benefited from a scratch of last week’s Open winner Quagmire Bluechip, wound up cruising out to the early lead in the $15,000 feature. Clicking off first half fractions of 27 and 55.3, Moonshine Kisses never faced an anxious moment on Sunday, powering out to win decisively in 1:51.2 with Billy Dobson in the bike. His race’s 2-5 betting favorite, Moonshine Kisses bested Matticulous GB (Larry Stalbaum) to complete a chalky $5.50 exacta. The triple with Gunpowder N (Phil Fluet) third paid $21.60. The win was one of two on the day for the connections of Moonshine Kisses. Owners Kellogg Racing Stables, trainer Jackie Greene and driver Billy Dobson also teamed up for a victory early in the day with veteran Artful Way (Artistic Fella). One of the winningest horses in the history of the Open Pace at Saratoga, Artful Way prevailed in a $12,300 conditional pace on Sunday to move the nine year old’s seasonal earnings to over the $100,000 mark and bumping his career bankroll to over three quarters of a million dollars! For Moonshine Kisses, the win was his sixth in seventeen starts this season. Dobson piloted four winners on the Sunday matinee card.

Live racing continues on Monday afternoon with action kicking off at noon.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Cheyanne Mandy

North Country (Roll With Joe) completed a sweep of the Bunny Lake Pacing Series on Tuesday afternoon at Saratoga Casino Hotel. Owned by Jeff Nanna of Utica, NY and trained by Monica Krist, North Country set a lifetime mark in the first leg of the series (October 12) when she paced to victory in 1:54.4. Heading into the Final off a win in leg two, North Country wound up as the public’s 3-5 betting favorite following a late scratch of potential favorite Pursuit Of Speed. Distaffer Tsimis (Jimmy Devaux) scored in her division of leg two of the series following a runner-up try to North Country in the first leg and cut the mile in the Tuesday feature which was contested over a sloppy track. Tsimis was game on the lead but when North Country tipped off her cover, it was over. The sophomore filly paced right past the leader before powering away to win by almost three lengths in a mile clocked in 1:56.2. Tsimis held second while longshot Miley Rose (Jay Randall) came on to be third. For North Country, it was victory number seven on the season in a year in which she has now earned over $70,000. Billy Dobson drove the winner to all three of her victories in the series. Paying just $3.30 to win as the odds-on favorite, North Country led an exacta and triple that returned $9.60 and $91.50, respectively.

Live racing resumes on Sunday afternoon at Saratoga with a matinee set to kick off at noon.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Melissa Simser

Monday’s feature at Saratoga Casino Hotel was the $36,600 Jim Derue Memorial Trot Series Final. The 8^th annual series reached its conclusion with a race that on paper seemed like it could go one of several different ways. After all, the series’ two legs, which consisted of a total of seven divisions, saw six different horses prevail. The only two-time winner, John Stark’s Jr’s Cindy Michelle, made a break in Tuesday’s Final which meant that Pass Key (Cantab Hall), the race’s favorite, wound up inheriting the lead from his inside post position. Jordan Derue was attempting to win the series named in honor of his father and looked to be in a good spot to do so with Pass Key who is owned, trained and driven by Jordan.

The race’s 7-5 betting favorite travelled through a first half in a fast 57 seconds after parking out a longshot rival in lap one. Leg two winner Creemore (Chapter Seven) swung to the outside and followed the parked out rival before tipping three wide approaching the three quarter pole. Pass Key and Creemore engaged in a heavy duty battle around the final turn and went toe-to-toe in the stretch before Creemore surged in the final strides to prevail by a head in 1:57.4. The three year old gelding, who is owned and trained by Stalbaum, became the eighth winner of the Jim Derue Memorial Trot adding his named to the list of previous winners which consists of Jelectric, The Lindy Treaty, Showmeyourguns, Aberforth, Dressed To Impress, Missus Mia Wallace and Certify. Creemore paid $11.20 to win in the mild upset. Pass Key was the runner-up in a $34.20 exacta while Spotlessreputation (Dan Cappello Jr.) earned the show spot and rounded out a $153 triple. Stalbaum piloted the winner of Sunday’s Gary Kamal Memorial Pace Final as well as he sat behind the John Hallett-trained Some Deal Hanover. On Monday, Stalbaum piloted a hat trick as he not only won the Series Final but also guided the winner of the Derue Memorial Consolation King Jimmy to victory for trainer Robert Dill before scoring with Oh So Pine in the $13,000 Winners Over for trotters.

Live racing continues on Tuesday afternoon at Saratoga with a matinee that will feature the $35,200 Bunny Lake Pace Series Final. First post time is set for noon.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Melissa Simser

Some Deal Hanover won Sunday’s Gary Kamal Memorial Pace Final in 1:54.2. The 3 year old colt is trained by John Hallett and was driven to the win by Larry Stalbaum.