Lloyd Arnold Free-For-All Pace Friday

Reagan Blue Chip (American Ideal), going in razor-sharp harness racing form right now, gets top billing in Friday night’s $12,500 Lloyd Arnold Free-For-All Pace at Cal Expo Harness.

Watch and Wager LLC will present 10 races with first post at 6:45 p.m. and an Open Trot headed by Pridecrest will be the co-feature on the evening.

The 7-year-old Reagan Blue Chip is owned by Nathalie Tremblay and Dave Kuri, is conditioned by Tremblay and will be guided by Chip Lackey from the outside slot.

The hard-hitting gelding is coming off back-to-back solid miles with Nick Roland, just missing to A Major Omen in a game first-over effort two weeks ago and then igniting late in last week’s top dance to get the job done in a blanket finish.

A Major Omen comes into the Arnold having posed for pictures following four of his last six trips to the post for his owner/driver/trainer Gerry Longo.

Sent off the even-money choice in last week’s clash at this level, he lost his best chance when he had some traffic issues in the lane and was beaten only a neck for the whole thing in another strong tour.

Rounding out the field are Heavens Gona Rock, Allmyx’sliventexas, Kamara, Officer Jim, Handsome Harvey, Unfiltered and Bombay Hanover.

Longtime owner Barbara Arnstine passes

Longtime California owner Barbara Arnstine passed away last Saturday in Sacramento following a brief illness.

Barbara and her husband Don purchased their first horse, Big Time, in 1972, a move that set off 50-plus years of excitement owning dozens of horses and winning hundreds of races.

A fixture on the California scene, Barbara continued her involvement following her husband’s death in 2020.

It was just last Friday that the Arnstine legacy saw Little Miss Boss scoring a California Sire Stakes victory, a win that gave Barbara and her trainer Kathie Plested great pleasure.

At the family’s request, Watch and Wager and the California racing community look forward to fully celebrating her life in December in conjunction with the rebranded Barbara and Don Arnstine Pace.

Our condolences to the Arnstine family and friends and we look forward to telling more of her story in December.

by Mark Ratzky, for Cal Expo Harness