Yonkers salutes Stalbaum for 5000th winner

At Yonkers Raceway on Monday night, they honored harness racing driver Larry Stalbaum for reaching the big 5000.

Stalbaum won his 5,000th career race earlier in the afternoon at Monticello Raceway, but we decided to ignore that malfeasance and give him his props anyway.

Stalbaum was presented with the congratulatory sign, recognizing his latest accomplishment.

"A tired driver and a lot or tired horses," Stalbaum sheepishly said, though the numbers beg to differ.

Stalbaum, who turns 52 next month, is a native of Valparaiso, IN.

He won his first race in 1986 and was a leading driver in Michigan before making the move east.

Now based in Matamoras, PA, Stalbaum plies his craft in Westchester, as well as Monticello and Pocono.

The Stalbaum/Kim Asher Stable is annually among the leaders locally, with Larry, as his career total confirms, also a sought-after catch-driver.

Want to make Stalbaum smile?

Bring up Special Report.

The career $1.5 million earner won the 2008 final ($390,000) of the George Morton Levy Memorial Pacing Series here (1:51.4), the highlight of the hard-knocking gelding's 59-victory career.

Stalbaum's best seasons were 2004 (wins, 421) and 2012 (purses, $4.38 million), and has earned seven figures in purses every season since 2003.

Frank Drucker