Track record holder Pridecrest gets some class relief and looms large in the featured $6,600 conditioned trot on Friday, Dec. 8 at Cal Expo.
There will be eight races on tap under the Watch and Wager LLC banner with first post set for 6:45 p.m.
Pridecrest is an 11-year-old son of Angus Hall out of the Wesgate Crown mare Spilled Milk who is owned by Chris Schick, takes his lessons from Kathleen Plested and will once again have Mooney Svendsen giving directions.
The veteran sidewheeler comes into this assignment with 56 wins from his 232 lifetime trips to the post and just over $519,000 in his account.
Pridecrest established both a career mark and a track record here back in November of 2017 when he toured the oval in a snappy 1:53.2.
He will be making only his second start since April, and made a miscue while chasing home Mandeville and company in the Nov. 26 Open.
Peters Royalty scored a 17-1 upset last week in an Open III event and will get a lot more respect at the window this time around for owner/trainer Jose Castillo and pilot James Kennedy.
Completing the cast are Teachmehowtotory, Serene Hall, Dylan The Great, Louis and Daytona Dreamin.
Give Me This Dance flexing muscles
So far, Luke Plano and his four-year-old pacing mare Give Me This Dance have been perfect at the meet, capturing back-to-back Distaff Opens in impressive fashion.
Owned by Alan and Cheryl Sandbulte, Give Me This Dance has been putting her class and versatility on display here, getting the job done from off the pace on opening week and then going coast-to-coast in her most recent score.
“I just got here a few weeks before the meet started, but I already knew her pretty well from driving her here last meet and in Minnesota this summer,” noted Plano. “She’s a classy mare, but she does have her quirks and I was already familiar with them.
“When she was younger, she always preferred to come from behind, but now she’s very handy, although I still think she’s at her best sitting off the pace.”
Plano noted in last week’s Open he decided to make the decision whether to leave or not from her outside post at the last moment.
“When I saw the horses inside weren’t leaving real hard, it made the decision to go with her a lot easier and she did the rest.”
(Cal Expo)