Pennsylvania Fair finals race goes down to the wire

GRATZ PA – During the first 50 days of the 2026 Pennsylvania Fair Circuit schedule, only two days were wiped out due to inclement weather. Unfortunately, over the last 24, three cards have been lost – the two-year-olds entered to race at the Gratz (PA) Fair were washed out on Sunday, although their sophomore stablemates did get to go on Monday (after being the victims of the last two cancellations).

The cancellations are especially important at this time of year, as there are only two more stops left on the PA Circuit this season – this coming Saturday and Sunday at a Two-Day Event at the Somerset County Fair in Meyersdale PA, and the Bloomsburg Fair finale the Friday and Saturday after that.

Horsemen not only want opportunities to keep their horses sharp – the $200,000 Pennsylvania Fair Sire Stakes Championship Day is at The Meadows not far off, on October 9 – but they also want to have their horses earn one of the eight automatic starting spots in the finales, and not racing does not give a late developer the chance to earn her or his way up.

And the competition is fierce this year: none of the eight divisions (age, sex, and gait) is yet able to crown a point champion (who earns a blanket done up in stable colors), and in virtually every division there are between six and ten horses who could work their way to a qualifying spot, or on the other side, be overhauled for a Finals berth. One notable reference is in the three-year-old filly trot group, where no fewer than seven horses still have a mathematical chance of being #1 – and a couple of them are not even assured to make their Final.

The three-year-olds did get to race, but their Monday contests helped little with clarifying their relative rankings. In the four sophomore sections, the #1- and #2-ranked horses all raced – and among the eight, only one won and two more placed. The two 1:57.1 winners in the three-year-old colt pace – Thai Hanover (driver Eric Neal for trainer Mitchell York), who earlier won a Hempt Consolation at Pocono, and More Than Guapo (driver David Wiest for trainer Justin Wiest) – raised themselves to thirteenth and fourteenth in points in their divisions and are not likely to make their Championships. No horse on the Circuit has more than two 2:00 miles, and the six that do are all sophomore colt pacers.

The three-year-old filly pacer Lovebug Hanover (driver Kyle Bolon, trainer Kevin Johnson) has won six of seven Fair starts since being claimed – but now it is mathematically impossible for her to win her points crown. She, Papi Knows (7), and Don’t Be Late (6) have 19 Fair wins among them, and should have quite a run-in.

In the colt trot ranks, trainer Steve Schoeffel had both winners: Tymal Kryptonite, whom he drove and who is undefeated after five fair starts with a 2:01 tally, and Clark, second in the group and the only winner (as noted above) after 2:01.2 score with Shawn Johnston. Schoeffel also has the divisional #1, Family Guy, who was third after a hard trip for driver Steven Fedokovitz – Schoeffel already plotting strategy to have a “familiar” driver behind his trio of trotters.

The faster of the filly trots went to Whiskey Woman (Todd Schadel, 2:01.1); the other cut saw Cocktail Captain (driver Aaron Johnston, trainer Nathan Bresnahan) grab her fourth fair win (as many as anybody in her group) in defeating #1 Hot For Her and #2 PA Patricia, third and second respectively in this heat.

Steve Schoeffel saw his trotters continue their winning ways as he was top driver (3) and trainer (4) for the shortened meet.

Meyersdale draws Thursday for its Saturday-Sunday races; then Bloomsburg will round out the traveling show. Something will have to give way over the next two weeks – and horsemen will be working hard to see that their horses will be part of “the big show.”

From the PFHHA, MSOA and PHHA partnership