Bob Hechkoff wins AHDC Trot

Freehold, NJ— Bob Hechkoff learned long ago that if a driver has the best horse in the race there's only one place to be and that is on the front-end. And that's exactly where the veteran amateur harness racing driver put his Boots N Chains in the $9000 American Harness Drivers Club trot at Freehold Raceway on Saturday afternoon(12-19) and the 8-year-old trotter made every pole a winning one en route to a 2:01.1 victory.

After starting from the five-hole Hechkoff sent his charge to the lead and they had two lengths on their competition as they trotted by the first stanza in :29.1. Still comfortably in front as the field headed to the halfway point Paul Minore moved If I Must off the pylons and up to challenge. However Boots N Chains rebuffed his rival and he still had command.

When the leaders trotted by the three quarters they were still one-two. However on the final turn If I Must struggled and 18-1 shot Can Do, driven by Joe Lee, took up the chase and they trotted alongside the leader at the top of the stretch but Boots n Chains rebuffed the challenge and held strong all the way to the wire winning by a neck over Can Do. Two lengths in the rears garnering the show dough was Dark Pool, driven by Dawn Anderson.

Trained by Kyle Spagnola for Hechkoff,, Boot N Chains won for the fifth time this season and boosted his yearly earnings to over $46,000. For the winning driver, Bob Hechkoff, it was his 105th driving victory.

by John Manzi for the American Harness Drivers Club