95-year-old trainer wins first race in four years

(WOODSTOCK, VA — 9/16/2024) —- 95-year-old harness racing trainer William Fletcher collected his first win in four years during the fall season opening day card Saturday at Shenandoah Downs with 4-year-old pacer Billy Boy B (Roddy’s Bags Again).

The son of Roddy’s Bags Again was making his first start of the year – as was his nonagenarian conditioner – and was fresh off a September 11 runner-up qualifying mile at Harrington. In Saturday’s sixth race, Fletcher’s gelding sat third through the first half of the non-winners of 1 mile event until driver Chuck Perry took the eventual winner outside down the backstretch, hit the third fraction in front by one length over previous leader Opals On Fire and cruised home crossing in 2:00.0. The winner, who was turned out for eight months after his last start in November, returned $7.40.

Fletcher, who lives in Oak Hall, Virginia — located on the state’s Eastern Shore — was a produce farmer who got involved in harness racing in the 1960’s. His last win came with Breeze Away B, a former Virginia Breeder’s 2-Year-Old Filly Pacing champ, in 2020. The daughter of Nuclear Breeze won five races that year and as a freshman in 2019, captured both the Breeder’s prep and $42,275 final in that division. Fletcher lives five hours from Woodstock but caught a ride with owner/trainer Robert White of Chincoteage who whose Antares Star competed on the same card Saturday.

In other action, driver Eric Davis had a pair of three-win afternoons both Saturday and Sunday, and five of the combined six victories came aboard horses trained by Alexandra Goldin. The pair connected with Spencer Goldin’s Marcus Seelster who won his 25^th career race Sunday in wire-to-wire fashion in 1:54 1/5, tying the weekend’s fastest mile. Howard Kaufman and Joshua Kaufman’s Speaking Of Coffee wired the field Saturday in the same finishing time with William Carter in the sulky.

The Davis/Goldin battery also scored with Awesome Times Two, Blue Bayou Deo, Cheyenne Ryan Lee and Dynomites Peak. Davis’s sixth came aboard Kasey Bendix and Virginia Marvel’s Dancin Image. Goldin, who recorded wins number 30 thru 34 over the two days, is enjoying her best training year ever.

Husband-wife duo of driver Jack Killeen and trainer Alexandria Killeen collected two wins and a second from three starts on Sunday’s card. A regular at The Meadows, reinsman Killeen led J-S Swanman and Six To Won to their respective 32^nd and 3^rd career victories and had a runner-up with Ahabs Wildflower.

Fastest trotting mile of the weekend was authored by Shantae Gant’s 7-year-old Donato Hanover gelding Vulcan Hanover who crossed in 1:57 4/5 Sunday in the $8,000 trotting feature. The Michael Whitaker trainee has thrived at the Woodstock oval, especially when driver Billy Carter is in the bike. Over the past four years, Vulcan Hanover has won 17 pari-mutuel races at Shenandoah Downs —16 with Carter at the helm — and another six during the Shenandoah County Fair.

The 7-week meet resumes this weekend with cards on Saturday September 21 and Sunday September 22 at 1:05 PM. Fans both days can enter the “VHHA Own a Horse for a Day” promotion and try to be one of eight contestants that get a unique chance to own a horse the following Sunday and keep the share of purse money their horse earns in a $5,250 race. Sunday is also the track’s annual Wiener Dog Derby with a full field of 40 dachshund dogs expected to compete after races 4 thru 8.

Free Trackmaster past performance programs are available for all race days at shenandoahdowns.com. Derby Bill Watson’s complimentary selection sheet is available there as well. The Shenandoah simulcast signal is streamed on Dish-TV so fans around the country can wager Virginia races at their favorite track or simulcast outlet, and online via Twinspires, TVG, Xpressbet and NYRAbets. The track is located at the Shenandoah County Fairgrounds at I-81, Exit 283 in Woodstock, halfway between Harrisonburg and Winchester.

For complete race results, click here: US Trotting results.

by Darrell Wood, for Shenandoah Downs