Charles Town-loving pair of veterans clash in handicap

No Advantage and Peaceful Bliss, a pair of older males who have combined for 13 victories at Charles Town, are among five 2010 stakes winners entered in Tuesday night’s $35,000 Winter Handicap, an overnight stakes that will be contested at seven furlongs.

Both the 6-year-old No Advantage and the 7-year-old Peaceful Bliss warmed up when the weather turned colder in the waning months of 2010.

Based at Penn National with trainer Stephanie Beattie, No Advantage ended a 10-race losing streak when he came from ninth to take the $75,000 Auld Lang Syne at Parx Racing on New Year’s Eve. He followed up by finishing second in the one-mile Native Dancer at Laurel Park two weeks ago.

No Advantage, who was good enough to finish second in the Grade 3 W. Donald Schaefer at Pimlico last spring, is 3 for 7 at Charles Town, including a win in the $100,000 Wild N Wonderful in 2009.

Peaceful Bliss is based at Charles Town, where he has won 10 of 37 starts in his long career. He has been sharp in two of his last three starts, winning the $51,000 A Huevo going 1 1/8 miles in late November and getting up by a nose facing open company in a second-level optional $25,000 claimer at 6 1/2 furlongs last time out.

The field also includes Rummy’s Command, upset winner of the Sophomore Sprint at Mountaineer in mid-November; Crimson Comic, wire-to-wire winner of the off-the-turf Memorial Day Handicap at Mountaineer, and Kruger Park, who won a six-furlong handicap at Portland Meadows in February 2010. Kruger Park would need at least one scratch to get in off the also-eligible list.

Among the others, Peppi Knows owns some back class and is proven over the course. Now 4, Peppi Knows finished second in the Grade 2 Remsen as a 2-year-old. In his first appearance at Charles Town in late November, Peppi Knows cruised to a six-length victory, earning a career-best 94 Beyer Speed Figure, while racing 6 1/2 furlongs.

The most intriguing newcomer is Tap Tap I Win, a Penn National-based 5-year-old who has been in front or within a half-length of the lead at the stretch call in eight of his last nine races, all at slightly longer than one mile. Tap Tap I Win has not raced since Oct. 13.