Clements drives first winner since 2016

The Daniel Clements comeback tour stopped in the Hiawatha Horse Park winner’s circle on Saturday (May 14) as the harness racing driver won for the first time in almost six years.

Clements, a London resident, returned to the sulky last week after retiring from the lines in 2016. On Saturday, he steered Santa Monica to a hard-fought victory in the third race.

Santa Monica, a Steelhead Hanover mare, responded to Clements’s calls for early speed and fought off Byrds The Word (Tyler Borth) to claim the front. After a :27.4 first quarter, Clements settled his charge down for a :59.1 half time but had to up the tempo soon after as Noir (Travis Henry) launched a first-over assault.

Noir reached the leader’s flank as they completed three-quarters in 1:28 and found even more pace at the top of the stretch. With Noir at her bridle and meters remaining, Santa Monica battled on and kept her head in front for the 1:58 triumph.

Noir was game in defeat, a length clear of third-place finisher Trion De Vie (Ondrej Gois).

Jason Libby trains the winning mare for owners Douglas Dunbar of Woodstock, Brad Dunbar of London, and Lorrie Keeling, another Woodstock resident. Santa Monica’s win was her seventh lifetime in 30 tries, and her bankroll is now $19,028.

Clements has earned a cheque for his mounts’ connections in all eight of his return starts. The horseman has now won 2,547 races from 17,450 appearances in a career that began in 1986. His previous win came at Tioga Downs on July 17, 2016 aboard Mikes Powerhouse. That gelding, now 10, is currently racing in Ontario.

Also on the card, Hiawatha’s 2021 leading trainer, Tyler Nostadt, sent out three winners on the 10-race program. Willywin (1:58.4), Dinner At The Met (1:55.1), and Santanna Tony (1:57.2) all scored for the Nostadt barn. He already has five wins at the Sarnia, Ont. oval and 55 overall this year.

Hiawatha Horse Park will host its next card on Saturday, May 21 with a 1:00 p.m. first post.

For full race results, click here.

by Nicholas Barnsdale, for Harnesslink