Wisconsin’s Harness The Stars Tour comes to a close

Viroqua, WI --- Harness racing in the State of Wisconsin came to a close this past weekend, thus ending the Harness The Stars Tour sponsored by the Wisconsin Harness Horse Association. The Vernon County Fair in Viroqua capped of the year-long racing season and did so in exciting fashion.

Trotters stole the card on Saturday (September 17). Jet Flow, owned, trained and driven by Orval Bronkhorst of Brandon, Wis., won both heats of the NW $1,500 trot.

The first division of the Free For Trot had split heat winners. The first was won by One Man Wolf Pack (Dave Ginter) and the second brought 10-year-old veteran Starry Night Star (Gabe Wand) back to the winner’s circle. The second division of the Free For All Trot was won in straight heats by Fair Trial, a 7-year-old Muscles Yankee gelding owned by Horseman’s Financial Agency & Premier Racing Stable. The Jay DeLong trained and Ben DeLong driven Open class trotter took a two-hole trip behind eventual Wisconsin Trotter of the Year Windsong Erica. But in the end Fair Trial got up for the victory, breaking the five-year-old track record. He trotted the mile in 2:03.3, knocking one and two-fifths seconds off the previous record.

USTA District 4-B Director Bob Yohn highlighted the rest of the day by winning all four of the pacing races. Prairie Ibeezabub and Set the Tempo each won in straight heats in their respective divisions of the NW $750 Pace.

Despite overnight rains and cool temperatures, racing continued on Sunday (September 18) on a wet racing surface in which only two drivers brought home winners on the eight-race card. Adam Turnbull of Sharon, Wis., won both divisions of the NW $8,000 Pace, the first with a 10-year-old pacer he had just purchased, Whose Trick N Who, and the second with an 8-year-old mare, Erica’s Blossom.

Susan Schroeder photo

Gabe Wand (left) and Benjamin DeLong (right) fight for the driver’s title.

Wisconsin’s leading driver, Gabe Wand, scored victories in the other four races of the day. Lemondrop Martini, owned by Gabe and his father Robert, easily won both heats of the NW $1,500 Pace. Lemondrop Martini’s second heat win gave Wand his 100th career victory which was celebrated trackside. Do Me Bliss with Wand in the bike won both heats of the Free For All Pace, in the fastest times of the day, 2:04.3 and 2:04.4.

It was a tight race for top honors all year, and it was all decided at the Vernon County Fair. Spicymac, owned by Sally Amundson and Jay DeLong, held off Erica’s Blossom, owned by Adam Turnbull, for Wisconsin’s top pacing honors. Windsong Erica, owned by Janice Simmons of Mequon, Wis., held off Get Physical, owned by Gary and Donna Magee of Shawano for top trotting honors.
In the driver’s race, WHHA President and USTA District 4 Director Gabe Wand captured his third consecutive driving title while 17-year-old Benjamin DeLong picked up the runner-up honors.

Year-end awards will be presented at the WHHA annual banquet on January 21, 2012. For information on the awards ceremony or a complete recap of the Harness the Stars Tour, log on to www.wisconsinharnessracingtour.com or contact WHHA President, Gabe Wand, at 608,574,5468 or gabewand@yahoo.com.