Harrisburg, PA---The final full week of the Pennsylvania Fair Circuit’s tour through the western part of the state started on Tuesday and Wednesday, with The Erie County Fair (Wattsburg) in the northwest corner of the state and the Indiana County Fair 130 miles to its south-southeast both presenting a two-day program, with freshmen racing followed by sophomore action.
Because of its more-central location, Indiana generally drew bigger fields than Wattsburg, but it was at Wattsburg that the two track records of the two days were set, with both horses setting a divisional track mark for the third time this campaign.
On Monday, the Great George Two-Annabelle Lane freshman trotting filly A Little Laid Back, 9-for-11 lifetime, won in 2:07.2 for owner/trainer/driver Roger Hammer, taking 3/5 off of Missive’s divisional mark set last year, while on Tuesday the Western Terror sophomore pacing gelding Royaltyhasarrived came home in 59.3 to stop the clock at 2:01, equaling Straight Character’s Wattsburg standard for his group and missing the filly She’salilfireball’s overall track record by 2/5 in rolling to his ninth straight win for driver Brady Brown, trainer Steve Schoeffel, and owners Virginia and Kathy Schoeffel and Michael Munn.
The fair circuit’s leading performers were fairly equally split between the two tracks, and that statement applies to the fairs’ leading trainer and driver, too – Roger Hammer, who won three at Wattsburg on Monday and two at Indiana on Tuesday. Breeder/owner/trainer/driver Hammer was behind the Nuclear Breeze gelding R N Nate when he won at Indiana in the meet’s fastest mile, 2:01.4; Pennsylvania fair fans are anticipating a showdown between the 10-9-1-0 Royaltyhasarrived and the 9-8-1-0 R N Nate, and hopefully before the Fair Championships at The Meadows on October 6.
The leading driver at Indiana was “The Comeback Kid” Brandon Givens, reporting home first seven times, while at Wattsburg Chris Shaw made an equal number of visits to Victory Lane. Six of Chris Shaw’s septet of triumphs were trainer by his brother Jason to make him Wattsburg’s leading trainer, while at Indiana Todd Schadel harnessed five winners, driving three himself Tuesday and then deputizing Givens twice on Wednesday as he went to the pari-mutuels. Special mention in the trainer ranks should be made of Indiana conditioner Greg Town, who went undefeated during the meet – and his win with his only starter, Wontyoutakemyhand, also was the first victory of his career, which consists of eight starts.
So many other outstanding horses (3-year-old pacing filly Betterthanrevenge, 8 for 8 at the fairs, and 2-year-old trotting filly Connie Jean, undefeated in six fair outings, for two examples) could have their own stories written about them, but time and space constrain us. The stars of the circuit will have another chance to shine at Stoneboro over the Labor Day weekend, with freshmen racing on Friday (10 a.m.) and sophomores on Sunday (noon). Stoneboro will the last stop on the fair circuit’s “western swing”; the last three events on the calendar will be held “over East” at York, Gratz, and Bloomsburg through the rest of the month.