Pocono: 2-year-olds turn in first miles in qualifiers

Ten fields of 2-year-olds went behind the starting gate at Pocono Downs at Mohegan Pennsylvania on Wednesday morning – two divisions for colts of each gait, and three each for their filly counterparts.

The biggest winner in the freshman qualifiers was trainer/driver Todd Schadel, who sent out three successful pupils. He had the quickest of the baby trotting distaffs out for their education, the International Moni – Janderson miss Jakarta Hanover, who went wire-to-wire in 2:00 1/5, with a last quarter of 28 3/5. Schadel co-owns the precocious miss with Jim Simpson.

Fastest of all the day’s freshmen was the Huntsville – Peppermint Patty gelding Vandiemen Bluechip. He pounced from the pocket with a 28 1/5 last quarter to stop the timer in 1:57 3/5 for driver Scott Zeron, trainer Ashley Eldred, and Blue Chip Bloodstock Inc.

Huntsville also sired the swiftest pacing filly, Bronx Barista (dam Apricot Sour). She moved from well-back early and went her own last three quarters in 1:27 1/5 in reaching the wire first in 1:59 for driver Mark MacDonald and trainer Ray Schnittker, the latter co-owner with Ted Gewertz and Kitefield Stable.

Trainer/driver Åke Svanstedt sent out the continental-bred Tony Adams S, a son of Muscle Hill – Dreamgirl Hornline, who raced in the pocket then buzzed home in 28 3/5 to win in 2:00 1/5 for Stall Arsenal AB.

Svanstedt also debuted a very promising older horse, the Creatine ridgling Asteroid, who has almost $200,000 in career earnings and who was racing in Sweden and Norway at the end of last year. Asteroid rocketed to a wire-to-wire 1:54 1/5 victory in his qualifier, with a last quarter of 26 4/5. Asteroid is owned by Suleyman Yuksel Stables Inc. and Michael Falk.

These qualifiers can be seen on the PHHA website, www.phha.org

-edited release (Pocono/PHHA)