Harness: All hail the undefeated King Of The North and Venerable

The post-Hambletonian question of the day on the DRF Harness Twitter account was "Which Hambletonian Day performance impressed you most?"

Unfortunately on Twitter you can only list four choices and we went with Captain Corey, Venerable, Manchego and Bella Bellini, while also asking people to comment if they felt strongly that another horse was more deserving. Here are the results:

Captain Corey 47.5%, Manchego 24.2%, Venerable 15.2% and Bella Bellini 13.1%.

King Of The North (3), Tattoo Artist and Atlanta (2), and Catch The Fire and Jujubee all received write-in votes.

It was no surprise to see Captain Corey top the list and everyone loves Manchego, but Venerable got my vote. As Whiteney Houston sang, I believe children are the future, and the 2-year-old trotting filly Venerable along with fellow freshman colt King Of The North appear to have a very bright future.

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Venerable was parked almost every step of the first five-eighths of the mile in the Jim Doherty Memorial and felt immediate heavy pressure once she assumed the top spot with pylon position. After such a disastrous journey, reaching three-quarters in 1:23 4/5, a clocking that was a full second faster than the Hambletonian Oaks recorded and only two-fifths slower than older trotters went one race later in the Vincennes, Venerable not only found more but laughed at her competition. She easily drew clear of those closest to her at three quarters and lost no ground to the closers in the field while stopping the clock in a stakes-record 1:52.

Even Hall of Fame driver David Miller, no stranger to handling top young horses, was surprised and impressed by the fight and staying power of the Walner filly.

"She's very, very special," said Miller about Venerable, now undefeated in four career starts. "I thought I was using her way too hard in the mile but at the top of the stretch she found more. I was very impressed with her."

As giddy as Miller was speaking about the filly, David McDuffee, who shares ownership with Mel Hartman, Paul Bordogna and Steven Arnold, was beaming after watching not only Venerable finish first in the $326,850 race but Delilah Hanover, another he co-owns, picking up third.

"I was thinking she's as good as I thought she was," said McDuffee with a laugh when asked about his thoughts in the stretch. "That is a hell of a mile. Obviously if you set a track record at The Meadowlands you have a hell of a filly."

McDuffee, who is not afraid to spend for what he views as quality at the yearling sales, spent $210,000 to buy Venerable from breeders Maumee River Stables, Black Creek Farm, Martin Schmucker and Steve Stewart at the Lexington Selected Sale and $440,000 for Delilah Hanover at the Standardbred Horse Sale in Timonium. While Venerable has already made back the initial sales price, McDuffee wasn't exactly worried about her Nifty Norman barnmate.

"They are both good horses," said McDuffee. "I think you'll see a lot more from Delilah Hanover going forward. I think she's a really good horse. She threw in kind of a clunker a week ago but she was good today."

From $231,673 winner Jolene Jolene, Venerable has already out-earned 3-year-old sister Ineffable (Cantab Hall) and is halfway to her 4-year-old Father Patrick sister Crucial ($528,598). Delilah Hanover is the second foal from Danielle Hanover and a Muscle Hill sister to Hambletonian Oaks fourth-place finisher Darlene Hanover ($356,462). Bred by Hanover Shoe Farms, the first colt from Danielle Hanover, Declan Hanover (International Moni), is slated to sell at Lexington in the fall.

Also owner of an unblemished record (5-for-5) and certainly impressive on Hambletonian Day is Peter Haughton Memorial winner King Of The North. With Mark MacDonald in the bike, the son of Walner's obstacle to victory was a somewhat slower pace (1:25 2/5 to three quarters) and plenty of traffic in front of him as he sat seventh with a quarter-mile to go.

"He showed how good he was," said trainer Ray Schnittker, who also bred the colt along with Steve Jones. "You don't know until they have to dig and he had to do that a little bit because it was kind of a tough trip with the traffic in front of him.

"It looked like he might've taken a bad step down the lane but he got it corrected and took off from there."

Armed with a 27 2/5 final quarter, King Of The North was sent widest by MacDonald and charged home to make up more than five lengths while out-finishing the mostly rail-skimming (until the stretch) Classic Hill by a half-length.

For Schnittker, who is no stranger to training star 2-year-old trotters having conditioned Deweycheatumnhowe to a 10-for-10 record and King Of The North's mom Check Me Out to a 14-for-16 record as a freshman, it never gets easier despite the experience.

"I think all it does is make you know that it is tougher than hell," said Schnittker. "His mother won the Merrie Annabelle by open lengths here on the same day, so he's right in the same footsteps."

Check Me Out was a superstar on the track, earning over $1.9 million in three years of racing. Her first three foals, all fillies, have done little to date, but the pairing with Walner to produce a colt seems to have produced gold in King Of The North. Check Me Out's next foal (2020) is a filly from new stallion Tactical Landing called Check Her Out.

We will all be checking out King Of The North and Venerable throughout the rest of 2021. While Venerable has since started again, winning a division of the Kentucky Sire Stakes at The Red Mile in 1:54 1/5 on August 15, Schnittker plans six to seven more races for his charge, with a trip to Woodbine Mohawk Park or The Red Mile as the next stop.

Certainly sparked by new blood from stallions like Walner, Downbytheseaside and others, It seems the 2-year-olds are stealing the show a bit in 2021, and that is just fine by me. There's always room for the next generation of talent.

Hambletonian Day Notebook

Nifty Norman was nifty indeed on Hambletonian Day with four wins, a second, a third and a fourth from seven starters on the card. That's impressive! Two of those wins came for David McDuffee as in addition to winning with Venerable, he is the sole owner of Hambletonian Oaks winner Bella Bellini.

Walner isn't the only connection between Venerable and King Of The North. The ownership group of the latter includes Schnittker-Ward, Arden Homestead Stable, Nolamaura Racing, and Steven Arnold, who owns a piece of both horses. That's some good investing!

When reviewing the results from Hambletonian Day (August 7) at The Meadowlands it is important to note how much the conditions changed from the start of the card to the finish. The track was much faster through the first seven to eight races than it was later in the 16-race card. Some trainers thought maybe there wasn't enough water on the track as the day progressed but the predominant issue was the wind. There was no wind when the card started, just mild winds through the second quarter of action and strong winds during the entire second half of the card. The sun also disappeared from the scene through the final four races or so. It is also worth noting that the wind was much stronger on the grandstand side than it was by the paddock.

Speaking of the track conditions, only three horses in the 16 races on Hambletonian Day led at the half and won. Not one of those types of winners was Bella Bellini in the Hambletonian Oaks. When asked about the closers track bias, driver Dexter Dunn said: "It is good, well maybe not good, but you have a chance if you are back a little bit, and that is good."

A number of stories have touted handle on the Hambletonian as just over $1.1 million. This was slightly confusing to me seeing as the handle popped up on the simulcast screen as $866,008 after the race was contested. After a bit of homework, it was clear that the reported handle included all wagers that ended with the Hambletonian. In 2020 that meant WPS, Ex, Tri, Super, Pick 3 and Pick 4. In 2021, added to those were Pentafecta, Double and Pick 6, which totaled $108,019.37. Apples to apples, comparing similar pools, handle was still up on the Hambletonian regardless, but it seemed like a worthwhile footnote to mention it. Actually, it's quite smart to end as many wagers as possible with the Hambletonian as higher totals in that race are good for the image of the sport.

Interestingly, handle for the eliminations is also recorded and for the last two years these races were placed as the lead-off leg or middle leg of the Pick 4. If those races ended the two Pick 4s and we could get a couple of 10-horse eliminations, total handle for the race (including elims) could reach $2 million.

There was a high level of confidence from "Team Svanstedt" in the paddock leading up to the Hambletonian. When I told Sarah Svanstedt I picked against them and why she looked at me like I had 10 heads. I did find her in the winner's circle after the victory and told her I should've listened.

Perhaps lost in the spotlight of Hambletonian Day or overshadowed by the grit and determination that Manchego showed in her John Cashman victory was that she passed fellow great mare trotter Hannelore Hanover on the all-time North American earnings list. The Nancy Takter trainee now sits 11th in earnings among all trotters on these shores and has a legitimate shot to reach third. Manchego would likely need to come back at age 7 to eclipse Bee A Magician ($4,055,865) in the top spot. Of course if you include foreign earnings Moni Maker wears the crown at $5,589,256.

It is a bit too early in the year to even think about whether Hambletonian winner Captain Corey will retire to stallion duty at the conclusion of his 3-year-old season, but one good thing for the trotting breed in North America is that the son of Googoo Gaagaa is likely to remain on these shores when he does begin his next career in the breeding shed. "I'm just a partner so I don't know for sure, but I hope we can stand him here in the future. I don't want him to go to Europe because I think he is needed over here," said co-owner Robert Lindstrom.

While it looked like Captain Corey was home free in the Hambletonian, driver Ake Svanstedt admitted after the race that he was far from confident as he came through the stretch. "The whole stretch I was afraid," said Svanstedt, who added that he only felt like a winner at the wire.