He was talking about tonight’s $138,500 Dayton Pacing Derby at Dayton Raceway and the nine-horse field that has a combined 229 victories and career earnings of almost $13.4 million.
The most talked about horse in the robust lot is State Treasurer, a six-year-old stallion who is having a dream season. He’s won eight of 15 races, set a world record (1:47), hit the board on all but two starts and earned $788,357, third best in the nation for older pacers.
Along with the Pacing Derby, the $137,750 Dayton Trotting Derby, another Grand Circuit Stakes race, will highlight tonight’s 13-race card. Post time is 6:35 p.m.
Among the name drivers in sulkies tonight will be Hall of Famers John Campbell and David Miller and Yannick Gringas, harness racing’s driver of the year last year and the top money winner in North America.
“This will put us on the national harness racing map,” said Keidel. “This is great for Dayton.”
Although the Pacing Derby features several top horses – Doo Wop Hanover (Campbell), All Bets Off (Kakaley) and 11-year-old, Gringas-driven Foiled Again, the richest harness horse in history ($7 million) – State Treasurer, with Miller on the reins, is the 5-2 morning line favorite.
On May 29, he won his third straight Molson Pace at the Western Fair in London, Ontario. Since then he’s won the $513,750. Canadian Pacing Derby at Mohawk, the $150,000 Roll With Joe at Tioga and the $215,000 U.S. Pacing Championship at the Meadowlands.
“He’s just gotten more mature with age,” trainer Dr. Ian Moore said by phone from Canada. “He’s getting better each year. He just handles things better.”
While this isn’t quite a rags-to-riches story, State Treasurer went from being a $6,500 yearling at the Standard Horse Sale to a stallion who has hit the board on 52 of his 86 races and made $1.7 million.
As co-owner Sally MacDonald said of this her first race horse: “We refer to him as our once-in-a-lifetime horse.”
Although State Treasurer was beaten his last time out, Moore said one thing never changes:
“In the five years he’s raced for us, he’s never given us a bad race. Even the times he has finished out of the money, he has given all he had. That’s his best trait – that desire.
“Every time he goes to the track – whether he’s jogging, training or racing – he gives you everything. He’s just full of it. He knows what he’s there for.
“He thinks he’s the best now and he likes to go show it.”
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