Freehold: Jason's Camden takes a shot in Dexter Cup elimination

Whenever Harvey Eisman is given the opportunity to name a racehorse, he keeps it all in the family. It has nothing to do with pedigrees, but everything to do with his grandchildren.

“It’s a fun tradition they’ve done,” said trainer Julie Miller, who trains Jason’s Camden, a horse co-owned by Eisman that is named after his son-in-law and year-and-a-half-old grandson. “They get a little kick out of it.”

Jason’s Camden can provide some more thrills in the weeks ahead. On Saturday (April 27), the 3-year-old colt trotter will compete in the $39,650 Dexter Cup elimination at Freehold Raceway. The top-seven finishers from the eight-horse field advance to the $118,950 final on May 4, where they will be joined by bye-recipient Osterc.

The Dexter Cup is the traditional first stakes race on the road to August’s $1 million Hambletonian Stakes, the sport’s premier race for 3-year-old trotters. Jason’s Camden is among the Hambletonian-eligible trotters in the Dexter Cup, along with Cavill Hanover, Whirl Winds K, HL Revadon, and Osterc.

Eisman co-owns Jason’s Camden with the Andy Miller Stable Inc. and Jeff Gural’s Little E LLC, which bred the colt. Jason’s Camden, a son of Muscle Mass out of Palm Beach Chic, was purchased for $48,000 at the 2017 Standardbred Horse Sale, at which time he was named Palm Beach Muscle.

“I’m only a part owner in these horses, but I do get to name quite a few and that’s nice,” said Eisman, a Michigan resident who has been involved in harness racing since 1977. “All the grandkids go in order naming the horses every year. It was Camden’s choice since he was just born and his mother (Julie) came up with Jason’s Camden.”

Some other current horses co-owned by Eisman include Alana’s Brilliance, Ev’s Girl, Zack’s Got The W, and Luv U Bye Click, which is a reference to the way one of Eisman’s young granddaughters gets off the phone with him.

Jason’s Camden won five of nine races last year, finished second on three occasions, and earned $67,750. All his victories came in preliminary rounds of the New York-sired Excelsior “A” Series and he finished second in the final. He also finished second in a division of the Simpson Stakes at Harrah’s Philadelphia.

“He was a pretty nice horse in New York for us, but one of those slow learners and kind of went through the motions to start,” Miller said. “I feel like at the end of the year he kind of understood the program and wanted to do his job.

“He handled the half-mile track really well (last year) so we thought the Dexter Cup would be a good opening race for him. He showed a lot of consistency last year. He’s a nice big horse, an honest horse, very willing. Hopefully we make it to the final and get a good draw there.”

Jason’s Camden, who is making his season’s debut in the Dexter Cup, will start Saturday’s elimination from post seven with Andy Miller in the sulky. He is 5-1 on the morning line.

“He’s pretty docile,” Julie Miller said. “He just goes about his day and doesn’t need constant attention like some of the others. But when you put the race bike on him and get him behind the gate he’s all business.

“He’s primarily staked in New York but we threw in the Hambo. He would be a longshot for that race, but in case he ends up peaking at that time he’d be in there.”

Cavill Hanover, trained and driven by Ake Svanstedt, is the 5-2 Dexter Cup elimination favorite from post one. Cavill Hanover, also making his seasonal debut, won three of seven races and $67,193 last year. All three victories came on the New York Sire Stakes circuit.

Osterc, who received the bye based on earnings, was last year’s Pennsylvania Sire Stakes champion. He won five of seven races in 2018 and earned $226,401. He is trained by Per Engblom.

Racing begins at 12:30 p.m. (EDT) and the Dexter Cup elimination is race 10.