By Rick Teverbaugh, Herald Bulletin Sports Editor
ANDERSON — There’s every reason to believe that Saturday afternoon’s Dan Patch Invitational will be one of the most competitive in the 16-year history of the event.
The race is slated to have a field of 10 and is scheduled to be the 13th race of a 14-race card. The approximate post time is 5:01 p.m.
The field has compiled an average of more than $1 million in earnings per starter.
It is easy to tab at least four horses who could carry the favorite tag by the time the gate swings open and unleashes the entrants.
One of those is Mister Big, a 6-year-old who was named the Older Pacer of the Year just a season ago. His earnings of $3.2 million is No. 5 on the all-time leading money winners list. There has been no decision yet on the driver for him.
Another 6-year-old, Winbak Speed, will also get a lot of action. He has made 17 starts this year and won nine of them. He has a time of 1:49 posted earlier this year at The Meadowlands.
Dali is another horse with many things that make him a contender for the title. He is 4 years old and is undefeated in two 2009 starts. He was second in last year’s Hoosier Cup and has drawn one of the top Hoosier Park drivers in Ricky Macomber Jr. Macomber has been the winning driver in two Dan Patch events.
Art Official also has to be considered a threat, having won the 2008 Hoosier Cup.
The complete field for the Dan Patch Invitational Pace, in post position order with driver and odds includes: Robin I Scoot (Sam Widger, 15-1), Southwestern Dream (Trace Tetrick, 8-1), Dali (Ricky Macomber Jr., 9-2), Rocket Fuel (Dan Shetler, 20-1), Royalton Star (Andy Shetler, 20-1), Mister Big (Brad Hanners, 2-1), Winbak Speed (Jim Morand, 7-2), Shark Gesture (Brandon Simpson, 6-1), Won The West (Greg Grismore, 12-1), and Art Official (Peter Wrenn, 4-1). Art Official will begin from the second tier in post position 10.
Leading into the Dan Patch Invitational is the $24,000 Haston Memorial set as race 12. The race is named in honor of driver-trainer Gregg Haston, who was tragically killed in a car accident in 1996. Haston was the winning driver of the inaugural race Sept. 1, 1994, behind BK Bentley. He also scored both the first driving and training titles in 1994.
Also, four divisions of 3-year-old trotting and pacing colts and geldings will be featured in Indiana Sires Stakes action.
Hoosier Park will host several other events throughout the day. Charity Chariots will provide guests with the unique opportunity to drive a racehorse around Hoosier Park’s oval beginning at 11 a.m. Guests select one of the Fab Five drivers to ride with them in a double-seated jog cart. A fee of $20 is charged with all proceeds going to charity. Registration begins at 10:30 a.m. near the winner’s circle.
Other activities include a Fab Five T-shirt giveaway to Club Centaur Rewards members while supplies last and children’s activities including face painting, a bounce house, and a magician. Jayne Bond and The Pink Martinis will perform two free shows on the casino floor later in the evening. The first show is set for 8 p.m. while the second show begins at 10:30 p.m.
Trainer Rachel Matthews will take on a different role Saturday as the Dan Patch horses prepare to go to the gate. Matthews will be aboard her retired standardbred, Survive This, serving as parade marshal.
Survive This, bred and raised by Matthews and her father, Mark, has always had a special place in the family. The 7-year-old son of Survivor Gold was bottle fed for the first few weeks of his life because his mother had a condition that prevented her to nurse the foal. He was later put in training by Matthews and developed into a racehorse.
During his career, Survive This won 10 races in 76 career starts, taking a career best time of 1:54.4 at Indiana Downs under the direction of driver Ross Leonard in 2007. He also marked a milestone for Matthews in the process.
Matthews and Leonard team up to care for a stable of 12-15 horses on Hoosier Park’s backstretch. When she gets time off, Matthews enjoys taking “Meatball,” as he is affectionately known around the barn, for trail rides.
