Keystone Dakota, and mother and son team Melissa and Brett Beckwith won Saturdays open pace in 1:55.1

-Melissa Simser

As has been the case dozens upon dozens of times over the course of the last five years, Artful Way (Artistic Fella) won the Open Pace on Saturday night at Saratoga Casino Hotel. The three-time Pacer of the Year at the Spa, Artful Way made his first start in the Open in 2022 on Saturday while coming off a win in the $13,000 Winners Over. The Jackie Greene-trained superstar was the 2-1 second-choice in the betting when driver Billy Dobson blasted him out to the front end in the $15,000 feature. The ten year old carved out first half fractions of 27.1 and 57.2 on a cold and snowy evening in Saratoga Springs before being met with the challenge of the race’s odds-on favorite Lake Charles (Leon Bailey). The veteran leader dispatched the first-over bid by the public’s top choice with relative ease and just needed to hold off fellow past Pacer of the Year Crockets Cullen N (Larry Stalbaum) in the stretch, a task that he was more than prepared for. Artful Way stopped the timer in 1:55 for his second victory in three seasonal tries. Paying $6.00 to win, Artful Way led an exacta with Crockets Cullen N that paid $36 in a five-horse feature while the triple came back $67.50 with the favored Lake Charles earning the show spot. Artful Way is owned by the Kellogg Racing Stables of Queensbury, NY.

Live racing continues on Sunday afternoon at Saratoga with a matinee beginning at Noon.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Melissa Simser

Lake Charles (Well Said) won the Open Pace three times in 2021 at Saratoga Casino Hotel. The Amanda Kelley trainee took the feature in two of the final three installments of it last season. Following a second-place finish in his ’22 debut last weekend, Lake Charles found himself in a four-horse Open on Saturday night. Leon Bailey sat behind the five year old who wound up powering past former Saratoga Pacer of the Year Crockets Cullen N (Larry Stalbaum) in the early going. The Kelley trainee sizzled through a first quarter of 26.4 before reaching the half in 56.4. The favored Hudson Phil (Billy Dobson) won last week’s installment of the $15,000 Open Pace and revved up the engine late in the mile on Saturday but did just enough to come up second-best to Lake Charles who hit the line in 1:54.3. Lake Charles, a winner by two and a quarter lengths, returned $7.50 to win and led an exacta with the favorite second that paid $11.60. Crockets Cullen N finished third. The winner is owned by the Scheigert Racing Stable of Saratoga Springs.

Live racing resumes on Monday afternoon with a matinee starting at Noon.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Melissa Simser

Hudson Phil and driver Billy Dobson won the first open pace of 2022 in 1:55. Hudson Phil is trained by Jackie Greene.

Melissa Simser

Winning the Open Pace at Saratoga Casino Hotel this year is nothing new to the Scheigert Racing Stable, trainer Amanda Kelley and driver Greg Merton. That tandem has teamed up to win the featured race for pacers four times this year with their Some Waratah A. In recent weeks, it’s been a different member of the Kelley stable who has been competing in the $15,000 Saturday night feature. Lake Charles (Well Said) finished third last weekend and on Saturday night, the four year old drew the rail for his most recent try in the Open Pace. Merton was aggressive with Lake Charles and cut the mile with the 8-1 shot in the betting. After moving through a quick first quarter of 27.2, Lake Charles got a breather before reaching the half in 57 seconds. The favorite charged up first-over but was rebuffed by the gutsy Lake Charles who held off a late charge in the stretch from last week’s Open winner Quagmire Bluechip (Brett Beckwith) as well as Sports Obsession (Shawn Gray) to secure his first ever victory in the local Open. The win, which came in 1:52.4, was the third of the season for the Kelley trainee. Quagmire Bluechip finished second to extend his “on the board” streak in the Open to five straight while Sports Obsession earned the show spot. Lake Charles paid $18.20 to win in the upset and led an exacta and triple in the six-horse feature that returned $189 and $589, respectively. The win was one of three for Amanda Kelley and Greg Merton who also scored victories with their Our Corelli N (Bettor’s Delight) and Fox Valley Inferno (Sportsmaster) who each went wire-to-wire in conditional paces on Saturday.

Live racing will take place on Tuesday and Wednesday afternoon next week with matinees beginning at noon. Sunday racing will start up next weekend (Sept 12) with action also kicking off at noon. In his final start of August, Talking Tom broke his maiden with Jimmy Devaux in the sulky, a win that would break the seal for the improved pacer. He went on to rattle off three consecutive

Mike Sardella

Photo: Cheyanne Mandy

Young reinsman Brett Beckwith has enjoyed a solid freshman season in the sulky at Saratoga Casino Hotel this year and on Saturday night, the 18 year old drove his first winner in a local Open. Beckwith has been the regular pilot for Quagmire Bluechip (Art Major) throughout the summer and the five year old has enjoyed some success in the Open Pace at the Spa. Coming into Saturday’s try in the $16,000 Open, Quagmire Bluechip had a two second-place finishes and a pair of thirds in his last six starts. Almost every week, he has been a longshot in the feature. In Saturday’s nine-horse Open, Quagmire Bluechip did what he always does and took back in the early going. The favorite was on the front-end and faltered opening the door for a host of closers to have a shot in the stretch. When the dust settled, it was Quagmire Bluechip who reigned supreme stopping the timer in a lifetime-best 1:53 to give Beckwith his first career victory in a local Open. Dismissed at odds of 14-1, Quagmire Bluechip paid $30 to win and led an exacta with fellow longshot Machiatto A (Jay Randall) that came back $228.50. The triple was completed by Lake Charles (Greg Merton) and returned a hefty $2,538 in a race which was a longshot bettor’s delight. Quagmire Bluechip, whose win was his fifth of the year, is owned by the Abbott and Costello Stable of Clinton, NY and trained by Janice Connor.

The co-featured Fillies and Mares Open went the way of Robyn Camden (Art Professor). The Rob Harmon-trained distaffer has always thrived when she’s come to town, winning at a high percentage whenever she ships into the Spa to compete in the Open over the course of the last few years. On Saturday, she left a bit in the six-horse Open for the ladies and got away fourth before following the live cover of Miss Irish Rose A (Larry Stalbaum) past the half. After Miss Irish Rose A cleared the lead, Robyn Camden set her sights on the new leader and gunned her down in the stretch to record the victory in 1:53.4. It was win number six on the season for Robyn Camden who is owned by Jason Osullivan of Dublin, Ireland. Robyn Camden was driven to victory by Jay Randall who came up just shy of sweeping the double feature after finishing second in the “boys” Open with Machiatto A.

Live racing resumes on Monday afternoon at Saratoga with a first post time of noon.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Cheyanne Mandy

Surreal Feeling (So Surreal) brought her talents back to Saratoga Casino Hotel on Saturday night and the pacing mare who has made winning a habit at the Spa added another victory to her collection in the evening’s co-feature. Surreal Feeling has raced at Yonkers and Pocono Downs in recent months and has thrived but her successes at Saratoga have been stark this season. The Dale Lawton-trained distaffer was the 1-5 betting favorite in the Fillies and Mares Open on Saturday, a race that served as the co-feature along with the $15,000 Open Pace for the boys. Driver Alek Chartrand moved Surreal Feeling out early but had to settle into fourth position in the six-horse co-feature before pulling her first-over approaching the half mile pole. The six year old mare took it from there and despite racing overland in a 27.3 third quarter powered past the leader before drawing away in the stretch to win by a measured length and a quarter in 1:53.3. Earlier this season, Surreal Feeling put in a track record-matching performance as she scored in a dazzling 1:51.3 to tie the previous mark for fastest of any aged pacing mare in the 80 year history of racing at Saratoga. On Saturday, Surreal Feeling won the local Open for the sixth time this season and for the fourth consecutive start in it. Thats Incredible (Shawn Gray) finished second while Pammy Jo (Mark Beckwith) earned the show spot. Surreal Feeling, who is co-owned by Chris Lawton and her trainer Dale Lawton, has hit the board in all nineteen of her starts this year in what has been a masterful campaign for the talented mare.

The $15,000 Open Pace for the boys went to Crockets Cullen N (Christian Cullen) who scored for the third time in his last four starts in the feature for colts and geldings. Crockets Cullen N is the winningest horse in the local Open Pace over the course of the last three seasons but didn’t have a win in the Saturday feature before scoring on July 31^st. The ten year old veteran went coast-to-coast last Saturday (Aug 14) and had little difficulty doing the same in this weekend’s installment of the Open Pace as he overcame a 26.4 first quarter on the lead to prevail in 1:52.2 for owner/trainer/driver Larry Stalbaum. Quagmire Bluechip (Brett Beckwith) was the runner-up in the Saturday co-feature while Odds On Brexit (Jimmy Devaux) earned the show spot in his Open debut. The exacta and triple with the 9-5 second-choice in the wagering on top paid $35.40 and $116.50, respectively. The win was one of three on the night for Stalbaum as both a trainer and driver as his Itsonlyrocknroll A and Union Station also secured Saturday scores.

Live racing resumes on Monday afternoon with a matinee beginning at Noon.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Cheyanne Mandy

Crockets Cullen N (Christian Cullen) added another win to his lengthy tally of Open Pace victories in his career at Saratoga Casino Hotel on Saturday night as the veteran pacer went coast-to-coast. The ten year old veteran made it look easy as he cruised out to the early lead with his owner/trainer/driver Larry Stalbaum guiding the way. Crockets Cullen N was the even-money betting favorite on Saturday as he traveled unopposed for the majority of the mile, clicking off a first half in 56.4 before powering away from his rivals to win in 1:52. The horse who owns the fastest time of the season at Saratoga from a 1:50.3 score back in July, Crockets Cullen N recorded his decisive victory by three and a half lengths. His win was the second in the Open in 2021 but adds to his total as the winningest Open Pacer at the Spa over the course of the last three seasons. Michaels Boy (Brian Cross), the longest shot on the board, was the runner-up to Crockets Cullen N in the feature while Quagmire Bluechip (Brett Beckwith) earned the show spot. The Stalbaum stable star paid $4.10 to win and led an exacta and triple that returned $45.60 and $222, respectively.

Live racing resumes on Monday afternoon with a matinee starting at Noon.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Cheyanne Mandy

No horse has won the Open Pace at Saratoga Casino Hotel more than Crockets Cullen N has since 2019. Larry Stalbaum owns, trains and drives the veteran pacer who loves to win and recorded victories in the local pacing feature fifteen times between the 2019 and 2020 campaigns. This year, though the now ten year old came into Saturday night’s try with four wins on the season, he had yet to prevail in the Open Pace in ’21. That changed on Saturday for Crockets Cullen N as he got a ground-saving journey in the $14,000 feature before finding open road in the stretch and flying home. Crockets Cullen N got away third in the six-horse Open and stuck to the inside path as the leader Some Waratah A (Greg Merton), a four-time winner of the local Open Pace this season, set the fractions in the feature. Hudson Phil (Billy Dobson) sat the pocket to Some Waratah N and powered past that one late in the mile. All the while, the rail opened up for Crockets Cullen N who surged in the stretch before reeling in his rivals to record the first win of the season in the local Open for a horse who has made a home in the Saratoga winner’s circle over the last couple of years. On Saturday, the classy veteran stopped the timer in 1:53, paying $11.40 to win in the mild upset. Hudson Phil was the runner-up to complete a $34.60 exacta while Some Waratah A finished third to round out a $149 triple. Stalbaum went back-to-back on Saturday as his American Zest A cruised to a decisive victory in 1:53.1 in a $10,500 conditional race for pacers.

Live racing resumes on Monday afternoon with a first post set for noon.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Cheyanne Mandy

Trainer Ron Burke had three of the seven participants in this year’s installment of the Joe Gerrity Jr. Memorial Pace at Saratoga Casino Hotel. The top-flight conditioner brought his superstar This Is The Plan (Somebeachsomewhere) to town to lead the trio of pacers in the $150,000 race. Yannick Gingras piloted This Is The Plan who brought his close to $2.3 Million in career earnings to the Spa and wound up as the 7-5 betting favorite in the 12^th annual Gerrity. Gingras moved the standout to the lead in a 26.2 first quarter before giving way to fellow Burke trainee Backstreet Shadow (Tim Tetrick). That one retook command after the sizzling first quarter and cruised through the first half in 55.2. It appeared that after three quarters went in 1:22.3 that it would come down to those two stalwarts but just then is when yet another Burke trainee tossed his hat into the ring. Rockapelo (Matt Kakaley) was the longest shot on the board in the Gerrity and he shook free around the final turn before surging in the stretch. When This Is The Plan powered past Backstreet Shadow turning for home, it appeared that he had the race wrapped up until Rockapelo exploded in the lane and those two photoed for the win. This Is The Plan prevailed by a nose and stopped the timer in 1:50.2, the fastest clocking of the season thus far at Saratoga and in doing so, won for the fifth time in the 2021 campaign. Burke trainees comprised the entire trifecta as they ran one-two-three in the season’s biggest events for pacers. The exacta with Rockapelo second paid $116 while the triple with 8-5 second choice Backstreet Shadow third returned $337.50. This Is The Plan, who now has seasonal earnings of over $600,000, is owned by Burke Racing, Weaver Bruscemi, J&T Silva- Purnell & Libby and Lawrence Karr. The 12^th winner of the Gerrity was the runner-up in the 2019 installment of the memorial race when he finished second to stalwart Mcwicked at Saratoga two summers ago. Incredibly, Gingras and Burke are the twelfth different driver and trainer to win the Gerrity since its inception in 2009.

Live racing resumes on Monday afternoon at Saratoga with a thirteen race matinee that kicks off at Noon.

Mike Sardella

Photo: Melissa Simser-Iovino