Shenandoah Downs Spring Meet closing weekend

WOODSTOCK, VA —- 5/21/2024 —- Spencer Goldin’s Lucky Streak (Luck be Withyou) reached the harness racing winner’s circle for the fifth time this spring at Shenandoah Downs when the 4-year-old gelding powered home to a 1:53 1/5 score Sunday in another wire-to-wire performance.

Trainer Alexandra Goldin’s pacer capped off a sensational seven-week stand in Woodstock in which he collected a pair of seconds — in addition to the five wins — from seven outings. Eric Davis was in the sulky for all the starts.

In Lucky Steak’s opening weekend start, he was sent off at odds of 20-1 and came from behind in the stretch to power home six lengths the best and reward his backers. He was favored in three of his next six starts and wired the field in three straight races. His season’s best time of 1:53 came in an April 28 start.

Pam Wagner’s K J Todd, winner of the 2023 Virginia Breeder’s 3-Year-Old Championship for colt & gelding trotters, captured his fourth race of the meet Saturday in a $10,000 winners-over event.

Reinsman Fern Paquet Jr., leading driver at the meet by wins, led a nice three-wide move at the three-quarter pole which positioned his trotter perfectly for a stretch duel with front stepper Creekside Pete (Trixton). Wagner’s 4-year-old gelding was a half-length better at the finish and he established a new life mark of 1:56.0.

Earlier in the campaign, K J Todd dominated the Blue Ridge Trotting Series which was open to graduates of the Virginia Harness Horse Association’s Certified Residency program. He won the prep by ten lengths and the $25,000 final by 2-3/4 lengths.

David Jarvis’s Creekside Pete (Uncle Peter) was runner-up in the winners over feature, giving the 8-year-old gelding three wins, a pair of seconds and a third during the meet. The Stacey McLenaghan trainee is now just $34 shy of the $300,000 earnings mark. Darren Olsen’s Black Hope hit the wire third and provided the consistent 5-year-old Bar Hopping gelding a top-three finish in all seven meet starts.

In Saturday action, driver Scott Woogen — who serves as VHHA President — reached the winners circle three times including a pair in U.S. Drivers Club races which he won by a half-length in each. The first came aboard his Tipperary Hill and the latter came with Debbie Warnick’s Baltimore Jack N. Oscar Johnson and Scott Warnick are the respective trainers. Woogen, who won the Shenandoah U.S. Drivers Club Series last fall, kicked off Saturday’s card with a win aboard his trotter K J Kyra which Johnson also trains.

In the Club’s final Series race on Saturday, driver Kevin Altig won his first pari-mutuel race ever when he directed Darren Olsen’s Fox Valley Mondo to victory in 1:58 3/5. Previously, Altig had won nine Fair races – eight at the Frederick Fair (Maryland) and one at the Shenandoah County Fair. Trainer Oscar Johnson surprised Altig with a traditional ice water bucket drenching afterwards.

The 2024 series in Woodstock resumes later in the year during the fall meet which runs from September 14 thru October 27.

John Wagner was leading trainer in the spring standings with 14 wins. Scott Warnock and Alexandra Goldin tied for second with 12 each while Stacey McLenaghan had ten. Fern Paquet, Jr. was top driver again with 22 wins followed by Eric Davis with 18 and Corey Braden with 15. Archie Buford and William Carter tied for fourth with 13 apiece.

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

by Darrell Wood, for Shenandoah Downs