The second day of action for the Indiana Sired Fair Circuit (ISFC) was held Tuesday, July 20 at the Shelby County Fairgrounds. A total of nine races were on tap, kicking off with two-year-old trotters followed by three-year-old pacers.
Shelby County Fairgrounds completed a two-day session of the Indiana Sired Fair Circuit Tuesday, July 20. Photo by Tammy Knox
The quickest mile of the day was recorded in the final heat as Vel Mr Nice Guy and Kevin Lambright covered the half-mile oval in 1:58.4. The duo sat patiently near the back of the pack as Frontier Metis and Carson Conrad earned the first spot on top with DD’s Big Joe and Joey Putnam taking over at the quarter in :28.2. From there, DD’s Big Joe continued to lead the way through fractions of :59.0 and 1:30.1 with Vel Mr Nice Guy being sent to the outside down the backstretch for the second time to challenge.
Around the final turn, Vel Mr Nice Guy was equal with the leaders and moved down the lane in :28.0 for the win, one and one-quarter lengths ahead of DD’s Big Joe. Frontier Metis finished third.
Vel Mr Nice Guy is owned by King Racing Stable and trained by Larry King. The Straight Shooting sophomore earned his third win of the year and his seventh overall. He now has in excess of $32,000 for his connections.
Turning in a big mile for the two-year-olds was ABC Tucky and Matthew Avenatti, who scored the quickest time in both the filly and colt and gelding ranks. The Pinetucky daughter was on top by 10 at the quarter and never looked back, scoring the victory in 2:04.3, seven and one-quarter lengths ahead of the rest of the field. Honorable Lady and Doug Rideout finished second over CS Massive Gem and Floyd Raber for third.
ABC Tucky has only finished worse than third once in seven starts this year. The mile marked a new career best for the filly, who is also owned and trained by Avenatti of Chrisman, Ill. Darrell Swartzentruber bred the freshman.
The ISFC moves to the Elkhart County Fairgrounds in Goshen on its next stop. Racing is set for Saturday, July 24, Monday, July 26 and Tuesday, July 27.