14yo win his 81st race

WOODSTOCK, VA — The14-year-old A Fool For Mark, the 2011 Horse of the Meet at Colonial Downs, put a punctuation mark on his return to Virginia by wiring the harness racing field for his 81st win today (Friday) at Shenandoah Downs.

Dustin Ingraham’s Western Ideal gelding beat six other pacers in a $4,000 claiming handicap in his 414th career start.

With Jim Meittinis in the sulky, the veteran gelding held off Lyons Johnny in deep stretch to win by one-half length. He cut fractions of :28.0, :57 4/5 and 1:26 2/5 and finished in 1:55 4/5, second fastest time of the day. The runner-up, a 12-year-old Mach Three gelding who was making his 265th start, stalked in second through most of the last half.

A Fool For Mark has bankrolled $322,863 from 39 seconds and 68 third place finishes in addition to the 81 wins. His life mark of 1:49 3/5 came as a 7-year-old at Pocono. He finished second last Friday on the Woodstock oval’s opening day, his first start in Virginia since 2014.

Fastest time of the day was authored by another of Ingraham’s horses — Movie Star — also driven by Meittinis. The four-year-old Ponder gelding crossed in a lifetime best 1:54 1/5 after passing Fritzie Pic Up Man and Cirrus De Vie in the stretch. He crossed one-half length the best for his sixth lifetime win.

Shenandoah Downs presents a 15-race card Saturday with first post at 1:00 PM. Live streaming is available at shenandoahdowns.com.