Three for Ranger, moves to top of leaderboard

CUMBERLAND, ME – Top New England harness racing reinsman Bruce Ranger picked up three wins Monday (Dec. 27), a hedge against Drew Campbell’s two wins, to grab a one victory lead in the long-running battle for the dash winning title at the inaugural First Tracks Cumberland extended pari-mutuel meeting.

Ranger, who won the $6,000 featured trot with Broadway Giant for the second time in as many weeks, never missed the board in any race in which he participated.

With six starts on the eight-race program that had been postponed from Sunday (Dec. 26), Ranger grabbed three wins, two seconds and a third-place finish.

Broadway Giant is owned and trained by Ron Patoine and has three wins in his last four outings.  A 7-year-old son of Broadway Hall, he paid $3.40 to win.

And Up We Go finished second and was driven by Mike Stevenson who is one win away from victory number 2,000.  Eternal Faith (Nick Graffam) finished third.

BROADWAY GIANT REPLAY

Driver Drew Campbell has been neck-and-neck with Ranger for the last month, trading positions on the top spot of the talented drivers’ colony.  With just two days left of the meet, it’s anyone’s guess who may emerge victorious.  As of this writing the score stands at 71-70.

One of Campbell’s victories, Kim’s Day, posted the fastest race of the day, tripping the timer in 1:58.3.  Owned and trained by Kim Vafiades, the conditioner enjoyed two wins on the day’s card.

Racing resumes Wednesday (Dec. 29), which is the re-scheduled date of the finals for the $10,000 Rick Cushing Memorial and the $15,000 Fred Nichols Memorial Late Closers.  Post time is 11:00 a.m.

Also on the card are races named in honor of two gentlemen that have dedicated the last twenty years of their lives to Maine Harness Racing.  Marc Warren, the Northeast Regional Manager for United Tote, and Mike Gurney, the current Site Supervisor for International Sound, will both be recognized for their decades of service to the industry.

The Winter Festival extended pari-mutuel meeting continues with live harness racing through December 31, 2021, which is also the date of our special retirement ceremonies for 14-year-old Standardbred horses, which includes a special pari-mutuel match race between retiring trotters Mike Cushing’s Roadshow Vic and Mark Harris’ Beer League.  The two veterans have won a combined $610,000 lifetime.

Also, on Friday (Dec. 31) First Tracks Cumberland hosts the final of the Maine Amateur Driving Club, sponsored by Blue Seal Feeds, and will recognize the leading driver and trainer of the meet trackside.

For more information, go to our website: firsttrackscumberland.com.

For full race results, click here.

by Chris Tully, for First Tracks Cumberland