Meadowlands: Greenshoe just misses track record, Swandre The Giant steps up

Greenshoe rebounded from his first loss of the season with a commanding 1:50 1/5 win in the second of Saturday’s (July 13) two $153,000 Stanley Dancer Memorial divisions for 3-year-old male trotters at the Meadowlands, defeating Pilot Discretion by 3 3/4 lengths to stamp himself as the favorite for the August 3 Hambletonian. Super Schissel was third, another eight lengths back.

The time was one-fifth of a second off the stakes and track record for a 3-year-old male trotter set by Six Pack in a division of last year’s Dancer Memorial.

In the first Dancer division, Swandre The Giant overtook favorite Green Manalishi in the stretch to win by one length in a career-best 1:51 3/5. Reign Of Honor finished third.

Greenshoe, beaten a head in the Earl Beal Jr. Memorial on June 29, started from post seven in the Dancer and settled in third behind Pilot Discretion and Don’t Let’em for the first half of the race. Driver Brian Sears put Greenshoe in motion from there and was alongside Pilot Discretion as they came out of the final turn before cruising to victory.

“All along he’s been a really talented colt, has a really high turn of speed, and he showed it tonight,” Sears said. “He’s done everything we’ve asked all year long and he’s done it pretty easily, pretty in hand, so we’re real happy with where we’re at right now.”

Greenshoe, who was the 1-5 favorite, is trained by Marcus Melander for owners Courant Inc., Hans Backe, Lars Granqvist and Morten Langli. He has won six of nine career races and earned $403,223.

Last year, the highly-regarded colt went off stride behind the starting gate or at the beginning of each of his four races, although he was able to recover and win two. The son of Father Patrick, out of Designed To Be, has been on his best behavior this year for Sears.

“I’m always nervous when he races,” Melander said. “Even if he’s behaved in all his starts this year, I still don’t trust him because you know one little misstep can cost you the race. Today (Sears) left a little bit out of there (from the gate) and kept him calm, and he behaved.”

In the second division, David Miller drove Swandre The Giant to his first Grand Circuit win after picking up nine of his 10 previous victories in Indiana Sires Stakes competition. The colt, a son of Swan For All out of Adagio, is trained by Ron Burke for owners Diamond Creek Racing, J&T Silva Stables and Howard Taylor.

Swandre The Giant, sent off at odds of 5-1, raced without shoes and added Lasix for his Meadowlands debut. He has won 11 of 18 career starts and $417,568. He has won two of six races this season.

“It was definitely the Lasix, and they pulled his shoes off too,” driver David Miller said after Swandre The Giant snapped a four-race skid. “He felt really strong. Through the stretch I was getting by (Green Manalishi) without even asking him yet. He trotted right on by. He went a huge mile.”

Last year, Swandre The Giant won his first seven starts, all in Indiana, for trainer-driver Brandon Bates before being sold to his current owners.

“He dominated Indiana and Brandon did a great job developing him,” Diamond Creek’s Adam Bowden said. “This is the kind of horse that we saw. Finally, he realized that.”

-Courtesy of the U.S. Trotting Association. For more information, please visit www.ustrotting.com