Endofstory blossoming for Doug Dilloian, Jr.

Despite not making much noise at two, Endofstory (Lazarus N) has a new tale to tell this harness racing season as a sophomore.

With just five starts under his bay belt, he has amassed three wins and a second, with earnings of $38,125 and a mark of 1:50.4, taken in his last start, a $30,000 New Jersey Sires Stakes leg at The Meadowlands on May 11, where he won in a commanding performance with Todd McCarthy at the lines, pacing his final panel in :26.4.

Doug Dilloian, Jr., trains the rugged 3-year-old son of Lazarus N, p, Q1:48.3 ($3,070,095), who has every reason to be a good horse, and looks to be one of the favorites in this weekend’s $240,000 New Jersey Sires Stake Final (NJSS) at the Meadowlands. He is currently tied for first in the standings with Arbitrage Hanover in the 3-year-old Colt Pace division.

Bred in the purple; besides the lineage of his sire, Endofstory is out of the Western Hanover p, 3, 1:50.4 ($2,541,647) mare Olivette Hanover p, 3, 1:53.3f ($26,641), herself out of the one-time top Chicago-based mare, Ohyouprettything p, 3, 1:50.4 ($1,279,368).

Bred by Paul V. Marino of Concord, MA, and foaled on April 19, 2021, at Walnridge, New Jersey, Endofstory was a $19,000 yearling purchase at the Harrisburg Sale on Nov. 19, 2022.

To date he’s made a favorable return on that initial purchase price, with earnings of $44,125 and a mark of p, 3, 1:50.4. Originally owned by a partnership of three owners, he was sold at the end of his non-descript 2-year-old season that saw him earn just $6,000 in two starts to Lick Creek Stock Farm of Hartford City, Indiana, on Nov. 6, 2023. That moniker includes David and Paul Clamme and Bret Wilfong, who, as partners, own three Standardbreds.

As well, Endofstory has a full brother in Donoharm p, 3, 1:57.1 ($25,105) and is a half-brother to Brother James (by Sweet Lou) p, 5, 1:50f ($206,996);  In High Cotton (by Somebeachsomewhere) p, 5, 1:51.4f ($189,160); My Three Girls (by Art Major) p, 6, 1:53.2f ($144,179); the 2-year-old filly Its Written (by Captain Crunch); and the yearling filly Stay Ready (by Stay Hungry).

Endofstory began his 3-year-old campaign with a winning Hoosier Park qualifier on March 27, pacing in 1:56.4 for Kyle Wilfong and follow that up by winning his pari-mutuel debut in 1:54.4 on the front end for that same driver. He was then second and seventh in two subsequent races for trainer Jace Sundeen, before shipping east and into Doug’s barn, where he promptly won Leg One of the NJSS in 1:51.1 by 2¼ lengths; his last quarter clocked in a hasty :26.1.

“He’s a highly talented horse with big speed and is a fairly easy horse to be around; you don’t know he’s in the barn,” Doug, who is based at Gaitway Farms in New Jersey, offered. “When I went to race Combustion at Oak Grove, I got a call from Jace Sundeen, who got my number from a friend, and he asked me if I would take the horse to race out East. He said he thought the horse was improving.”

When Endofstory arrived in New Jersey, Doug was not sure what to expect from the youngster.

“I only had him about eight days before the first sires stakes leg, and I knew that the owners had bought him off Ongait for like $20,000 as part of a dispersal, but I really didn’t know much about him or his true ability,” Doug said. “But when he won the way he id in that first start, I was really surprised, and after that, I wasn’t sure what to expect in the second leg—whether we could rely on him to be that good again or not, but he certainly validated himself and proved that he was serious.”

Doug said he thinks a combination of factors could be the reason Endofstory has come of age.

“I think the combination of farm life and being in a new spot really appeals to him,” Doug noted. “Also, I think he really took to The Meadowlands surface. But all of my horses go out for two or three hours before they jog and train, and I try to baby them, but I also believe that horses need to be outside a good part of the time, too. From day one this horse was happy to go out in the field.”

Doug, 39, hails from Tinton Falls, NJ, said he prefers to keep a smaller stable of ten to 14 horses.

“My best friend, who lives in Australia, and I, got serious about importing horses, and we got a group of friends to invest and become owners. My main ownership group is three guys, and I like to have limited numbers because it is manageable, and I can be hands on with every horse that way.”

Endofstory definitely seems to have acclimatized well to his new surroundings and will likely have Dexter Dunn in the sulky on Saturday night.

“Todd McCarthy won both legs with Endofstory and both legs with Pelling’s (trainer Brett) Arbitrage Hanover, so he’ll stick with Pelling,” Doug noted. “But we’re happy to have Dexter steering him. He’s pretty simply rigged but does have kind of a funny mouth. I’m a snaffle bit, low head, long hobble, kind of guy, and I think we might start subtracting some of his equipment as time goes on, but since I’ve had him such a brief time, I want to keep things the same for a while. He’s a good-mannered horse overall and in a race is very manageable.”

by Kimberly Rinker, for Harnesslink