Bugaboo Lou brings the heat in winter series opener

WILKES-BARRE PA – After the Winter Is Coming Series got underway with trotting action on Monday at Pocono Downs at Mohegan Pennsylvania, the pacers had their turn in the harness racing spotlight Tuesday, contesting a single $15,000 first round prelim. (There will be another preliminary round on both gaits this coming week, and the top performers will be eligible for their $20,000 Series Championship during the last week of the Pocono season, which closes Saturday, November 21.)

The series pacers were led by Bugaboo Lou, an altered son of Sweet Lou who sat in the two-hole the majority of the mile, then showed a :27.2 kick which was enough for him to keep Deuce Hanover a length away at the 1:50.4 finish. The winner of $281,966 was driven by Jim Pantaleano for trainer Richard Johnson and owner Richard Hernandez.

BUGABOO LOU REPLAY

Top overnight event Tuesday was a trot for developing diamondgaiters, which went to the Walner sophomore filly Whatarace Hanover, a 1:53.4 winner for driver Tyler Buter and trainer Åke Svanstedt, whose Åke Svanstedt Inc. shares ownership with S R F Stable. Victory in the $15,500 event boosted Whatarace Hanover’s lifetime earnings into the six-figure range.

Anthony Napolitano piloted four Victory Lane participants on the Tuesday card to give him a remarkable thirteen victories in the three-day Pocono week. Braxten Boyd had three winners; meet leader Tyler Buter and James Kennedy had two. Kennedy guided both winners from the barn of Bruce Clarke; Team Svanstedt also had a pair of success stories.

There are only seven cards remaining in the 2026 Pocono season. The mountain track’s next card will be on Saturday at 1 p.m., and it will have fast-class pacing features for $27,500 and $21,000, plus four $10,000 divisions of the second preliminary of the Game Of Claims Pacing Series for horses base-tagged this week at $12,500. Free Pocono program pages are or will be available at www.phha.org.

For complete race results, click here: US Trotting results.

From the PHHA / Pocono Downs