Auld Lang Syne Pace won by a nose

CUMBERLAND, ME – Machtu N (Mach Three) won the $6,000 Auld Lang Syne farewell pace for 14-year-old harness racing pacers at Cumberland Raceway on Saturday (Dec. 21), in a nail-biting tight finish with a fast-closing Rockaholic.

Scoring from post four, driver McGwire Sowers took Machtu N out for an early lead and had to work to get around Rockaholic (Andy Harrington) into a :29.4 opening panel.  From that point Sowers lead the 3-5 favorite through comfortable middle fractions of 1:02 and 1:31.2, when the pensioner pacers turned for home, a battle ensued for final bragging rights.

Rockaholic had gotten a perfect, two-hole trip while Machtu N had set relatively modest fractions, so the pair were equally prepared for the thrilling stretch drive.  While Rockaholic and Harrington were gaining ground with every stride, Machtu N and Sowers had just enough spark to hold on and prevail in 2:01.2, while the fans waited for a photo for win.

When the judges posted the final order of finish it was Machtu N that had won by a nose over his colleague Rockaholic.  The 14-year-old is owned and trained by Tammy Sowers and paid $3.20 for the win.

Urbana Bayama (Dave Ingraham) finished third; Calvin B (Mark Athearn) was fourth.

MACHTU N REPLAY

The entire day was a big delight for fans of Maine harness racing as twelve 14-year-old Standardbreds paraded in front of the stands, received Barbara Dresser-designed plaques while being recognized by the announcer, and were photographed with their connections.

Lucan Hanover p,3,1:48f, a world champion and winner of an elimination heat of the Little Brown Jug, lead the post parade, in the opener.  The son of Western Ideal is owned and trained by Aaron Hall and has accrued $1.4 million in purse earnings.  During his storied career he was the first sub-1:49 Standardbred on a five-eighths mile track and also won an elimination of the Breeders Crown during his sophomore campaign.

The entire day was dedicated to these special horses, with the first race marked for the soon-to-be retirees. Overall, the 12 horses have combined earnings of $4.9 million, which is an average of $414,082.  The combined start total is 3,692 with an average of 308 starts per horse.  Total combined wins for these foals of 2010 are 561, which is an average of 47 victories per horse.

The fastest record belonged to the aforementioned Lucan Hanover, who is also the most decorated Standardbred with 74 trips to the winner’s circle.  Eleven pacers and two trotters paraded in front of the stands individually, with the average win time of all the honorees an equally impressive 1:51.4.

The other retirees were Goin Manstyle, Heart Breaking, Ideal Rowan, R T Lange, Rockin Rambaran, Scottish Blue, and Ugly Stik.

Sunday’s (Dec. 22) final card of the year features two $12,500 pop up finals, as well as five races with purses of $10,000 each.  There is also the $8,000 Maine Amateur Driving Club final in race eight.

For the final card of the meet, the Pick 5 starts with the third race and carries a $7,500 guarantee, continues with our Pick 4 and Pick 3 toward the tail end of the program, and concludes with our High-Five Pentafecta in the final race—all with low 16% takeouts.

Free past performances can be found at: www.trackmaster.com/usta or on the US Trotting Association’s Strategic Wagering page.

This is the final day of racing for First Tracks Cumberland’s Winter meet. First post is 10:55 am.

Following the closing day, harness racing at the Southern Maine’s iconic oval will reconvene in April 2025.

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

by Chris Tully, for First Tracks Cumberland