DRF HARNESS HOME DIGITAL HARNESS EYE HARNESS PPS DRF BETS ENTRIES ARCHIVE THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2021 Let It Ride N looms large in the Open Pacing landscape after retirement defections NEW PLAYERS but Norman has been around too long to get excited about final times. JAYWALKING “They do an absolutely great job with the DOUBLE YOUR track surface at The Meadowlands,“ said FIRST DEPOSIT By Jay Bergman Norman. “It doesn’t seem to matter whether @BergmanJay we’re in the middle of winter or the summer UP TO $250 with the kind of miles we’re seeing.” With a late November start to his North American campaign, Let It Ride N won all JOIN NOW Perhaps one of the best aspects of this sport is how things change from year to year. In four races in the month, covering Harrah’s 2021 there will be a brand new older pacing Philadelphia, Dover Downs and The Meadow- division that may have some familiar faces lands in his progression up the class ladder, but likely will provide a much different look and each time exhibiting a vicious closing than 2020’s edition. kick at the end of rather quick miles. While Inside this issue Gone from the landscape is the brilliant Norman refuses to take much, if any, of the Bettor’s Wish. Not added to the division credit for simply adding Lasix and letting Let are the retired Horse of the Year Tall Dark It Ride N do the rest, the trainer still needs to Derick Giwner: Walking through the Stranger or the ill-fated Papi Rob Hanover, send a sound horse to the races. major stakes for 3-year-olds, Page 5 both spending the rest of their active careers at Hanover Shoe Farms. With the Borgata Tim Tetrick talks 12,000 wins and (nee Levy) Pacing Series nominations dead- more, Page 7 line of February 15 behind us, racing fans will get a chance shortly to see what looks differ- Darin Zoccali: Track announcer ent in 2021 in just four short weeks. becoming an unappreciated job, Page 9 When the dust settled in November follow- ing the TVG Finals at The Meadowlands, Team Tritton has overcome obstacles to there was a sense who the players would succeed in U.S., Page 11 become in March at Yonkers, but there was a seismic shift to the landscape in the months On The Backstretch: Profile of owner/ that followed, as Let It Ride N, an imported breeder Judy Chaffee, Page 13 son of Rock N Roll Heaven, started making the rounds. His trainer Richard “Nifty” Norman $100,000 GTD Early Pick 5 Analysis for didn’t know what to expect at first. Sat. Feb. 20 at Mohawk Park, Page 18 “He was a top-class horse but had a pretty Industry: Game of Claims continues at rough last two years,” said Norman. “We DERICK GIWNER knew he was bleeding, but you never know Trainer “Nifty” Norman said that Let It Pocono; Scenes from “The Deck”, Page 19 what the difference will be with Lasix.” Ride N is staked to “everything” in 2021. Comments? Questions? Let It Ride N has been good from the start since arriving in North America. “His feet were a bit sore, but we worked on Email the Editor [email protected] “I was hoping to have a good non-winners that and he’s better now,” said Norman. $15,000 to non-winners of $20,000 type,” said Let It Ride N caught the attention of many TO ENSURE PROPER delivery Norman. Well, that’s where Let It Ride N owners looking to add quality to their collec- OF THE NEWSLETTER VIA would start out, but by the end of 2020 he was tion and Norman was able to strike a deal making a beeline towards Open company. A with William Hartt. EMAIL, ADD [email protected]. 1:48 1/5 off-the-pace win at The Meadowlands com to your contact LIST in January is extraordinary to say the least, CONTINUED ON PAGE 3 2021 Ohio Sires Stakes Nomination Deadline March 15, 2021 2 & 3-year-old Ohio-bred trotters & pacers *Only foals sired by a stallion registered with the Ohio State Racing Commission are eligible to the Ohio Sires Stakes* Ohio Sires Stakes conditions, schedule & nomination forms available at Kim Rinker, OSDF Administrator www.racingohio.net 614-779-0269 [email protected] © 2021 Daily Racing Form, LLC - 10 Grand Central, 3rd Floor, NY, NY 10017 The Best Trotting Colt of his Generation GREENSHOE KY Futurity Champion, Sub 1:50 trotter, Millionaire AMIGO VOLO 2x Breeders Crown Champion, World-Record Holder Other top earners include Crucial, Sister Sledge, Panem, etc. BY CANTAB HALL OUT OF GALA DREAM REDUCED 2021 FEE: $17,500 CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 “It was a deal I had to make,” said Norman of the sale that gave 80 percent of the ownership to Hartt. It’s the first horse Norman will train for Hartt, but the partnership is likely much of the reason Norman can now view 2021’s racing season entirely differently than he might have. “We’ve staked him to everything this year,” Norman said on Monday (2/15), clearly suggest- ing that Hartt’s entry paved the way for a potentially epic campaign. Following a brilliant 1:48 1/5 win on January 2 at The Meadowlands, Norman needed to find out a bit more about his exiting protégé. “He had never raced on a half-mile track,” said Norman, checking back on the history of the horse Down Under. “I knew if we wanted to nominate him for the Borgata, we’d have to try him.” LISA PHOTO The test flight took place on January 11 at Yonkers Let It Ride N owns the fastest mile of 2021 at 1:48 1/5 set at The Meadowlands. and needless to say Let It Ride N passed with flying colors. Having been assigned post eight, driver Dexter Dunn was forced to navigate the four turns that guaran- the pace. More importantly, going down the road this stakes season, if teed he’d be spending much time in the two-path. While able to get he’s to compete and win at the highest level he’s likely going to have to away sixth, Let It Ride N was not advancing while the half mile race four quarters at top speed. was a tepid 56 3/5. While the pace accelerated some on the back- Looking ahead Norman at least likes the optics of a horse that won’t stretch, Dunn simply allowed Let It Ride N to race behind cover, a be in the group. strategy that would likely doom most horses at Yonkers. Let It Ride “With Chris’ (Ryder, Bettor’s Wish) horse retired I think it opens N proved to be unlike most as he rallied late in the short stretch at it up a bit,” said Norman. What is yet unknown is how many of last Yonkers posting a 26 4/5 final quarter at the end of a 1:52 1/5 mile. year’s 3-year-olds will be able to join this group, with horses like No With the Yonkers win Norman was confident he could move forward Lou Zing, Cattlewash and Breeders Crown champion Sandbetween- and at the same time mapped out plans for the rest of the season. mytoes facing older foes for the first time. “He’s doing fine now,” said Norman. “I’m going to race him in the For all racing fans it exciting to see what new faces will add to the first leg of the Borgata (March 15). I won’t race him before that.” weekly drama to the open pacing class of 2021. With a long plan towards the major stakes, Norman is pulling from his experience and hoping to capitalize in the short term while not risking future success. “It’s a very tricky series,” Norman said of the Borgata. “It’s gener- ally all about getting into the final. I just don’t want to make the mistake of over-racing him.” What concerns Norman is the potential to have too many demand- ing starts in the preliminaries just to reach the final. He knows the perils of a couple of outside draws and what they can take out of a horse, especially if a win is needed to qualify for the final. “Right now, I’m happy the way he’s been raced since arriving,” said Norman. “A lot of people when they bring over these horses, I believe make a mistake and put them on the front end immediately. They are not used to that type of early speed.” It’s a cautionary tale that Norman understands and it’s much of the reason we have only seen Let it Ride N race from off the pace in all of his North American starts. What’s interesting of course is what eventually will happen once NEW IMAGE MEDIA PHOTO horses with this type of resume are put on the front end. It’s likely that Training resumed last week and live racing returns Feb. 18 over the course of the series at Yonkers we’re going to see if Let It Ride at Woodbine Mohawk Park. N is just as vicious leading a field as he is in devouring them from off DRF Harness Digest | 3 | February 18, 2021 Visit us online at drf.com/harness First-Crop 3YOs in 2021 include: FLAWLESS COUNTRY (pictured) PASS Champion (1:53.0, $430,423) DELAYED HANOVER Winner of Bluegrass Series (1:53.4, $136,418) Six yearlings sold for $100,000 or more last year TYPE A Winner of Matron Stakes (1:55.0, $164,779) THE BEST SON OF MUSCLE HILL AT STUD BY MUSCLE HILL OUT OF FLAWLESS LINDY | 2021 PRIVATE FEE Walking through the major stakes schedule for 3-year-olds September 23 – Little Brown Jug at Delaware EDITOR’S EYE County Fair: Race once again falls in a By Derick Giwner @harnesseyeguy tough spot sandwiched between the $250K Kentucky Sire Stakes finals on Sept.