by Rusty Nash for HANA Harness
September 7, 2015 – It was a very long weekend for the 2015
HANA Harness Grand Circuit Handicapping Challenge presented by the Bellino
Stables, DRF Harness, Hambletonian Society, Meadowlands Racing and
Entertainment, Northfield Park, Tioga Downs, and Vernon Downs as the field of
handicappers had to work their way through five consecutive contest days at
four different venues.
The long weekend opened Thursday evening at Mohawk where two
of the HANA All-Star handicappers were a perfect three for three. Derick Giwner and Earl Paulson both maxed out
with a total of 82 points. The current
contest leader and the evenings third place finisher was Sally Hinckley at 41
points.
Friday evening saw another trio of races again from
Mohawk. This time we saw seven
handicappers tie for the nightly win.
Sally Hinckley, Anne Stepien, Josi Verlingieri, Bob Zanakis, Dennis O’Hara,
Gordon Waterstone and Mark Dezii all tabbed both Southwind Frank and Elegant
Serenity for a total of 29 points.
Saturday was the biggest day of the tour with nine events on
tap. There were seven heats from Mohawk
and then two from Yonkers. The night
started out quite interesting as four handicappers came up with the 9-1 winner
of the first race. They then saw their nice
juicy payout halved when the judges posted the deadheat sign with another
longshot. When the long evening was
over, part time amateur scribe Rusty Nash topped out at 409 points after
hitting the first six Mohawk races in a row.
When added to his Thursday and Friday total Rusty had the same 409
points! Bob Zanakis nosed out Josi
Verlingieri for the place spot by the score of 239 to 234. Longshot maven Ray Cotolo and the Canadian
Harness Racing Idol Garnet Barnsdale both had the highest priced winner of the
evening when they selected Revenge Shark to win the Messenger at Yonkers
Raceway.
Sunday saw the action shift to the mid-west and Balmoral Racetrack
where two stakes were contested. Big
scoring on nights with only two or three races requires each favorite to be
beaten. The handicappers finally had an
evening where both favorites went down to defeat. Unfortunately for everyone, no one had both
of them. Two of our power hitters still
connected with one longshot. Contest
leader Sally Hinckley nailed Barrycourt for a $20 price and a total of 29
points. Derick Giwner outscored Sally by
a dollar when he got Catch All home at $21.
That gave him 36 points on the night and another win in the daily
scoring.
The long weekend of racing came to a close on Monday, Labor
Day, at Tioga Downs. With only a single
race on the contest program. It was a
short field and it did not figure to make a big impact on the scoring. With no show wagering the favorite entry won
and the total points for the day was 7.
A few players took the day off and most of the rest picked up the 7
loose points that were available.
For the weekly honors, Rusty Nash finished on top with 426
points. Derick Giwner completed the
exacta with 326 points. Josi Verlingieri
completed the weekly trifecta with 312 points.
The top five in the overall Grand Circuit Tour remain the
same with only some slight shuffling of positions. Sally Hinckley remains on top with 2,858
points. She was able to maintain her
impressive 400 point lead. Mark McKelvie
swapped places with Anne Stepien taking the place position. Bob Zanakis just got by Gordon Waterstone to
take over fourth with Gordon completing the black type.
Standings as of
September 7, 2015 - Leg 36
|
|||||
Total Points
|
Points Earned
|
Overall
|
Position
|
||
Pos
|
Handicapper
|
Prior Week
|
This Week
|
Total Points
|
Last Week
|
1st
|
Sally Hinckley
|
2,605.30
|
253.00
|
2,858.30
|
1st
|
2nd
|
Mark McKelvie
|
2,202.50
|
251.90
|
2,454.40
|
3rd
|
3rd
|
Anne Stepien
|
2,268.50
|
140.90
|
2,409.40
|
2nd
|
4th
|
Bob Zanakis
|
1,931.10
|
279.50
|
2,210.60
|
5th
|
5th
|
Gordon Waterstone
|
1,951.90
|
196.30
|
2,148.20
|
4th
|
6th
|
Dennis O'Hara
|
1,825.00
|
211.80
|
2,036.80
|
6th
|
7th
|
Earl Paulson
|
1,811.30
|
181.20
|
1,992.50
|
7th
|
8th
|
Bryan Owen
|
1,642.20
|
162.70
|
1,804.90
|
8th
|
9th
|
Josi Verlingieri
|
1,486.30
|
312.30
|
1,798.60
|
10th
|
10th
|
Rusty Nash
|
1,363.10
|
426.40
|
1,789.50
|
13th
|
11th
|
Michael Carter
|
1,588.40
|
78.70
|
1,667.10
|
9th
|
12th
|
Garnet Barnsdale
|
1,341.90
|
283.60
|
1,625.50
|
14th
|
13th
|
Ray Garnett
|
1,419.30
|
192.40
|
1,611.70
|
11th
|
14th
|
Mark Dezii
|
1,419.00
|
164.70
|
1,583.70
|
12th
|
15th
|
Derick Giwner
|
1,230.30
|
326.70
|
1,557.00
|
16th
|
16th
|
Jay Hochstetler
|
1,321.60
|
158.30
|
1,479.90
|
15th
|
17th
|
Brandon Valvo
|
1,191.30
|
8.80
|
1,200.10
|
17th
|
18th
|
Ray Cotolo
|
857.40
|
206.90
|
1,064.30
|
18th
|
19th
|
Mark Deutsch
|
535.90
|
166.60
|
702.50
|
19th
|
Next week we have the Jim Ewart from Scioto Downs in addition to divisions of the Champlain and Simcoe
stakes from Mohawk. It should be an
easier week for the handicappers and the scorekeepers!
