Breeders Crown Night Wraps Up

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With over $5.6 million in purses and 12 championship titles up for grabs, harness racing’s brightest stars invaded Pocono Downs on Saturday night in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania for the 30th edition of the Breeders Crown.

Heavy favourite Father Patrick kicked off the Breeders Crown championships with a seemingly effortless 1:54 victory in the $500,000 Two-Year-Old Colt Trot.

Father Patrick and driver Yannick Gingras established the lead from post two over eventual breaker Expressive Action (Ron Pierce) and Credit Fashion (Brian Sears) through a :26.4 opening quarter. Don Dorado (Tim Tetrick) also broke stride early in the race.

Father Patrick was rated through middle splits of :57 and 1:26 with Muscle Network (Jody Jamieson) advancing first over, but leveling off around the final turn, and Southwind Spirit (Matt Kakaley) rallying wide.

Without facing any major challenges in the stretch, Father Patrick cruised home for the one and a quarter length victory. Nuncio (John Campbell) closed up the inside to grab runner-up honours over Credit Fashion. Southwind Spirit was fourth.

Fresh off a 1:52.1 world record victory in his Breeders Crown elimination last weekend, Father Patrick was sent postward as the 1-9 bettors' choice and paid $2.10 across the board.

Father Patrick is conditioned by Jimmy Takter, who earned his 16th Breeders Crown trophy and surpassed Bob McIntosh as the all-time win leader. He is also the top money-earning trainer in Breeders Crown history.

"He's been a fantastic horse," said Takter after the race. "Everything he's done has been fantastic. He's one in a million. He's definitely the horse I've been waiting for; I've been waiting for this kind of dominating colt. He's just a wonderful creature.

"I think he's just better than everybody. He's more complete. There's a couple of horses that have high speed, but you have to put everything in the package."

The son of 2003 Breeders Crown champion Cantab Hall and Gala Dream is owned by Father Patrick Stable, consisting of Canadians John Fielding, Marvin Katz, Al Libfeld, and Sam Goldband. Takter's wife Christina, Brixton Medical AB and breeder Brittany Farms also share ownership.

The divisional standout is flawless in 10 stakes starts with his only blemish coming in an early season two-year-old race where he finished second by just a head. Father Patrick has amassed $752,395 in earnings with other major wins in the Peter Haughton Memorial, William Wellwood Memorial Trot, Champlain Stakes and Bluegrass Series.

Uffizi Hanover and driver David Miller rallied home off cover to win the following $500,000 Two-Year-Old Filly Pace and provide Takter and the Toronto-based Katz, Libfeld and Goldband ownership group with back-to-back Breeders Crown victories on the card.

Favourite Precocious Beauty (Doug McNair) blasted off the gate from post eight with Allstar Rating (Yannick Gingras) stretching her out through a scorching :25.3 opening quarter. Precocious Beauty eventually touched down on the front end just past the quarter pole and proceeded to the half in :55. Meanwhile, Act Now (Ron Pierce) was flushed first over from third as Uffizi Hanover moved underway from mid-pack.

Act Now applied heavy pressure to Precocious Beauty as they raced by three-quarters in 1:23 and the leader eventually caved with rivals swarming her on both sides. Uffizi Hanover rallied wide to prevail in 1:52.1 over Beach Body (Brian Sears) with Southwind Silence (Matt Kakaley) finishing third.

Uffizi Hanover, a fourth-place finisher in her elimination won by Allstar Rating, paid $10.20 to win as the 4-1 third choice in the wagering.

"She got a good trip," noted Miller following the victory. "She got a second over trip; she had cover coming off the last turn and fired home.

"I liked her chances a lot. She was good last week, but there was a little bit of a ruffle there and Jimmy took care of that and it was all systems go."

The daughter of 2008 Breeders Crown winner Well Said and Up Front Dragonfly was bred by Hanover Shoe Farms Inc. of Hanover, Pennsylvania. She earned just her second career win to go along with five seconds in 11 starts and boosted her bankroll to $361,390.

"Fantastic job! I want to say a special thanks, of course, to Jimmy Takter and David Miller," said Katz in the winner's circle. "Jimmy did a great job bringing this filly along, but I want to say a special thanks to JJ, Jimmy's son. He drove her all summer for us and let her develop. He really deserves a lot of the credit for this and I want to say thank you to JJ for that."

Perhaps inspired by bugler James Witherite playing the "Hockey Night In Canada" theme as part of a call to post, Jimmy Takter scored a natural hat-trick when Shake It Cerry captured the $500,000 Two-Year-Old Filly Trot Final.

On paper, the race was a match-up between Cooler Schooner and Shake It Cerry. Those two fillies took the majority of the money after handily winning their respective elims last week. As the wings of the gate folded, Shake It Cerry out-sprinted Cooler Schooner, forcing her driver John Campbell to sit in the pocket. Ron Pierce had Shake It Cerry comfortably on the lead when Campbell eased Cooler Schooner from the pocket around the first bend, where she eventually went off stride leaving the lead uncontested.

After that moment, Pierce and Shake It Cerry were never seriously threatened. A :27.1 opening quarter followed by a relatively pedestrian :58 half without any form of movement from the back. Tim Tetrick right-lined Scream And Shout from fourth around the five-eighths marker, but never reached the leader's wheel. Confident through a 1:26 third station and with Struck By Lindy sitting the pocket, Pierce was virtually motionless down the lane and Shake It Cerry still tripped the timer in 1:53.4, a Breeders Crown stakes record.

Struck By Lindy was second with NYSS champ Market Rally (John Cummings Jr.) finishing third.

"I knew I was going to get everything my way after that [break by Cooler Schooner]," said Pierce, "I just had everything my own way up there."

The record for most wins by a trainer in one night? Three. Bob McIntosh in 1993, Jimmy Takter in 2012 and 2013.

"She's been a tough trooper all year," said Takter. "She had a bloop up in Canada; she didn't get along with the track, but she came from a [1]:51 mile here. Maybe she was not really up to the game, but she bounced back good in Lexington, raced good in her elimination and was even better today."

Takter trains Shake It Cerry, who is a daughter of 2006 Breeders Crown champion Donato Hanover out of Solveig. The Merrie Annabelle champion is now five-for-eight in her career with her lifetime earnings nearly doubled with the Breeders Crown victory to more than $506,000 for ownership group Solveigs Racing Partners of East Windsor, New Jersey.

Takter trained Solveig as well as top trotting fillies Pampered Princess and Passionate Glide. Comparing them all, Takter called Shake It Cerry "maybe the strongest two-year-old filly I've ever trained."

Market Share and Mister Herbie engaged in a thrilling stretch duel to the wire with the former nipping the latter in the following $600,000 Open Trot.

With Wishing Stone (Yannick Gingras) making a break off the gate, favourite Intimidate (Ron Pierce) hustled to command over inside starters Market Share and Tim Tetrick while a parked out Mister Herbie (Jody Jamieson) found a spot along the pylons in third through a :26.4 opening panel.

Intimidate continued to lead the field past the half in :54.3 while Mister Herbie was flushed first over by Arch Madness (Trond Smedshammer).

Mister Herbie surged to command at the 1:22.1 third quarter mark, but Market Share shifted out, then dove to the pylons and battled down the stretch, eventually prevailing in a photo finish. The winning time was 1:51 flat. Arch Madness finished three and a half lengths back in third.

"It definitely changed things [when Wishing Stone made a break]," said Tetrick. "When I looked over and I saw Ronnie leaving hard -- which kind of surprised me -- I thought I better get out and get behind him. If Wishing Stone didn't run, he'd have been in that spot. But it worked out and I got to edge out around the last turn there and follow the horse that was second. I fought him all last year with [2012 Breeders Crown champion] Chapter Seven and he's still tough to beat. He's a great horse."

Market Share paid $6 to win as the 2-1 second choice.

Following a $1.98 million sophomore campaign in which he finished third in his Breeders Crown debut, the four-year-old trotter earned his fourth win in 11 starts and lifted his seasonal earnings to $733,501.

"He's been the victim of bad post positions and not really getting his trip," said winning trainer Linda Toscano. "With the rail, it's not necessarily where we wanted to start from, but it worked out perfectly tonight; he likes to be close and he likes a target.

"He was so incredibly huge when he first came back [at four] and he was sharp, but I think we forgot how deep this field is. This is a great group of trotters and it just goes to show you what can happen when you bring them all back at four."

The son of Revenue S and Classical Flirt is now 19-for-36 lifetime with a bankroll of $2.75 million.

Toscano said the plan is for Market Share to return as a five-year-old, but the decision will be assessed at the end of the year.

Market Share is owned by Richard Gutnick of Pennsylvania and New Jersey's T L P Stable and William Augustine. He was bred by Hayley Moore of Kentucky.

After the year she's had it's hard to believe that I Luv The Nitelife was not the post-time betting favourite in the $500,000 Three-Year-Old Filly Pace Final. For those that didn't support her at the windows, the filly put in a powerful 'shame-on-you' performance.

To be fair, her rival Shebestingin -- the post-time favourite -- didn't have it easy. Aunt Caroline (Scott Zeron) cleared to the lead at the start of the race with Shebestingin (David Miller) three-wide into that first turn. I Luv The Nitelife (Tim Tetrick) was parked and pressuring Aunt Caroline through the opening :25.4 split.

Tetrick and 'Nitelife' were able to clear, and they let Miller and Shebestingin go and clear at the three-eighths marker. That lead felt immediate pressure from Somwherovrarainbow (Montrell Teague) through the :54.3 half.

Teague was able to make it to the leader's bridle down the backstretch, with I Luv The Nitelife waiting in the pocket. As the leaders clicked off the 1:21.4 third split, Somwherovrarainbow started to fold and that gave Tetrick room to angle to the outside.

In the stretch, I Luv The Nitelife powered past the stung Shebestingin for an easy four-length score in 1:50. Authorize (Ron Pierce) closed well from the back for second with Aunt Caroline staying for third.

"It's been a long time between races," remarked trainer Chris Ryder after the win. "It's been a month, it felt like an eternity. She's a great horse and great horses do great things."

The time off between starts was due to the fact that I Luv The Nitelife wasn't eligible to anything in Lexington. She is eligible to the American National at Balmoral, and that's where she goes next. And yes, she will race at four.

Ryder trains I Luv The Nitelife (Rocknroll Hanover - Lisjune) for Richard Young of Boca Raton and Joanne Young of Coconut Creek, Florida. She passes the million-dollar mark in seasonal earnings with her 13th win in 14 starts at three.

With Ron Pierce in the bike for his second Breeders Crown victory of the night, Luck Be Withyou converted off a perfect pocket trip to win the $500,000 Two-Year-Old Colt Pace over a track downgraded to 'sloppy' due to rain showers in the area.

Outside post nine starter Sometimes Said (John Campbell) blasted off the gate to establish the early lead over elimination winners Luck Be Withyou and Somestarsomewhere (Yannick Gingras). But Pierce had his colt on the move early and took over the top spot at the :27-second first quarter mark with Somestarsomewhere hot on his heels and rolling by in front of the grandstand.

Favourite Somestarsomewhere reached the half in :55.1 and continued to lead the way to the third quarter station in 1:22.4. Meanwhile, So Surreal (Tim Tetrick) made his move rallying three-wide from the backfield, but broke stride while moving up first over around the final turn.

As Somestarsomewhere entered the stretch, Pierce pulled Luck Be Withyou from the two-hole while Sometime Said closed up the inside lane. With the wire approaching, Luck Be Withyou surged by to win in 1:52 flat by a neck. Sometimes Said finished second and Somestarsomewhere was third.

Luck Be Withyou paid $5.80 to win as the 2-1 second choice. He is now five-for-11 during his debut year with earnings climbing to $363,402.

“I really liked the way [the race] developed, a lot of early action," said trainer Chris Oakes. "We ended up getting a great two-hole trip behind the other elimination winner and the horse got the job done. I was very happy with the end result.”

The son of 2000 Breeders Crown champion Western Ideal and Trim Hanover is trained by Oakes while racing in the U.S. for developer Bill Cass and owner John Craig of North York, Ont. He was bred by Kentucky's Brittany Farms.

“The horse is a really good horse. It wasn’t too much on my end, really, most of the credit goes right here," said Oakes, pointing to Cass, who was elated in the winner’s circle.

“I feel great,” said Cass. “We bought a great horse and he ended up being what we thought he was. I was pretty confident. I was a little worried with the weather, but it turned out OK. Weather doesn’t bother this horse. He’s been a great horse since we broke him.”

“My colt gave forth a great effort,” said John Campbell, the driver of runner-up Sometimes Said. “He always tries hard and has been super all year long. The other horse just beat us, and my horse was as game as they come.”

Since winning the 2012 Breeders Crown at Woodbine Racetrack, Maven has been one of the most consistent trotters in North America. She showed just how good she is by grinding out a tough first-over trip over another Breeders Crown winner to claim back-to-back Breeders Crown titles in Saturday's $250,000 Open Mares Trot.

Driver Yannick Gingras was content to settle into fourth as Cedar Dove (Ron Pierce) was gunning for the lead from the outside. Dorsay (Corey Callahan) procured the pocket with Unefoisdansmavie (Matt Kakaley) in third through the :27 opener. Gingras floated Maven up into the outer flow and stalked the leader through a :56.4 half and 1:24.1 third split. With relentless intent, Maven powered by the pacesetter in the stretch to secure the 1:52.3 victory.

Cedar Dove was second best with Dorsay staying for show. Canadian hopeful Bax Of Life made a break while tracking cover second over on the backstretch.

Owned by Bill Donovan of Fort Lauderdale, Florida and meticulously managed by trainer Jonas Czernyson, Maven (Glidemaster - M Stewart) has 10 wins in 13 starts this year and will undoubtedly be picking up more hardware come year-end awards time.

Shelliscape rallied home from off the pace to capture the $300,000 Open Mares Pace, putting an end to her stablemate's Breeders Crown crusade.

Two-time defending champion Anndrovette (Tim Tetrick) made a quarter-pole move and swept from third to first over early leaver Feeling You (Tyler Buter) after a :26.3 opening panel.

The favourite led the field to the half in :54.1 before Rocklamation (Yannick Gingras) was flushed first over from fourth and edged by. Clearing to command, Rocklamation hit the third quarter station in 1:21.2 with Shelliscape and David Miller left looming first over.

Down the stretch, Shelliscape came charging home to steal the spotlight in a 1:50 clocking, prevailing by a head over Rocklamation. Anndrovette tried to re-rally at the inside, but had to settle for third in this year's event.

Shelliscape was recently acquired by trainer P.J. Fraley and owner Bamond Racing LLC of Brick, New Jersey.

Bred by Midland Acres Inc. of Bloomingburg, Ohio, the four-year-old daughter of 1997 Breeders Crown champion Artsicape and Shell I Scoot is a 12-time career winner and has banked $859,105 in purses. She's won four of her 16 starts this year.

The 4-1 fourth choice paid $10.20 to win.

Unbeaten going in, undefeated coming out. She's 15-for-15, and she did it without any apparent stress. Bee A Magician and driver Brian Sears were the easiest of winners in the $500,000 Three-Year-Old Filly Trot Final.

Going off at 1-9, Sears was unhurried with Bee A Magician as Frau Blucher (Ron Pierce) wanted the early lead and got it. Ma Chere Hall (Corey Callahan) settled into second and Bee A Magician floated up on the outside through a :27 opener before finding the front in front of the grandstand.

With Bouncing Bax (Howard Parker) starting the outer flow at the three-eighths marker, Callahan pulled Ma Chere Hall to start his bid for the front before his filly rolled off stride. That forced Bouncing Bax first-up through the :55.2 half over the off goings.

Parker pressed the pace with his filly and made it to Sears' helmet, but no further. The third station flashed up in 1:24 and Sears sat motionless around the final turn. With a slight shake of the lines, Bee A Magician was gone. There was no additional urging, nothing to cause Bee A Magician to feel pressured and she still pulled away with the greatest of ease to a four and a half length 1:52.4 score over Frau Blucher and Southwind Cocoa (Tetrick).

"You really don't feel like you're going that much with her," said Sears in the winner's circle, noting that the half-mile time was a bit faster than he wanted to go. "She does get over the ground so easily, you don't realize how fast she's going."

Owned by Melvin Hartman of Ottawa, Ont., Herb Liverman of Miami Beach and David McDuffee of Delray Beach, Florida, Bee A Magician is perfect in 15 sophomore starts. A daughter of top Canadian trotting stallion Kadabra from the Balanced Image mare Beehive, Bee A Magician is trained by Richard 'Nifty' Norman.

"That's amazing, but you never expect that," said Norman when asked about the unbeaten streak, stating that it's her attitude that makes her so dominant.

"She's just wants it more than anyone else."

Plans for Bee A Magician include a start in the Moni Maker at The Meadowlands next month and a return to the races at age four. At that point, Norman confessed he may have to finally race her against the boys.

"I might have to! There's not that many races for four-year-old mares."

With the win, Bee A Magician surpassed $2 million in career earnings and is one of the leading candidates for Horse of the Year honours both in Canada and the United States.

When asked by 'Hollywood' Bob Heyden how the track was holding up, Sears stated that the Pocono surface is sloppy, but the footing is still good.

They were all gunning for him, but divisional heavyweight Captaintreacherous fought off the competition in another exciting stretch drive to capture his Breeders Crown trophy in the highly anticipated $500,000 Three-Year-Old Colt Pace.

Leaving from the inside post position, the popular elimination winner Captaintreacheous and driver Tim Tetrick established the lead before giving way to post seven starter Sunfire Blue Chip (Yannick Gingras) through a :26.1 opening quarter. But 'The Captain' moved back out for the retake as the colts rolled in front of the grandstand for the first time.

Captaintreacherous fronted the field through middle splits of :55.2 and 1:22.1 while Sunshine Beach (John Campbell) advanced first over with the other elimination winner, Lucan Hanover (David Miller), following his cover.

Sunshine Beach, the only horse to defeat Captaintreacherous this year, continued to apply pressure into the stretch, but 'The Captain' persevered once again. Captaintreacherous prevailed by a neck in 1:49.2 over Sunshine Beach while Lucan Hanover made it onto the scene late, finishing half a length behind in third. Captaintreacherous paid $2.80 to win.

Captaintreacherous has earned half of his 12 victories this year by a measured neck.

"I'd love to win by five [lengths], but he just doesn't do that," said Tetrick after driving his third Breeders Crown winner of the night. "I put a lot of confidence in him. He let's them get to him, but it's really hard to get by him, that's for sure."

The son of 2008 Breeders Crown Somebeachsomewhere and Worldly Treasure boasts a seasonal bankroll of $1.88 million with other major victories in the North America Cup, Hempt Memorial, Meadowlands Pace, Cane Pace, Bluegrass Series and Tattersalls Pace. His only loss was a second-place finish by a nose to Sunshine Beach in the Battle Of Brandywine this summer at Pocono.

"Sunshine Beach is a great horse, it's just too bad he found Captaintreacherous' year," said Tetrick. "There's a reason why he beat him, he's a great horse too, but today mine got the best of him."

Captaintreacherous is trained by Tony Alagna for Captaintreacherous Racing, which includes Canadian co-owners Douglas Millard and multiple 'Crown' winner Marvin Katz.

The sophomore colt could face older competition later this year, earning an invitation to the TVG Free-For-All Series.

"We'll have to see how he ends up the year, but it's a big step for three-year-olds to try to go against four, five and six-year-olds," noted Tetrick. "But if there is a horse that can do it, I think he could do it."

When asked how 'The Captain' stacks up against undefeated trotting filly Bee A Magician as another leading candidate for Horse of the Year honours, Tetrick made his case.

"'Captain' all the way," he said. "He deserves it; he's fought tooth and nail all year against tough company. It's a good group of three-year-olds and he beat them every time. When he did get beat, people knew where he was at."

The 20-time winner has now banked almost $2.8 million in his stellar career.

The John Cashman Jr. Memorial Trophy goes to Spider Blue Chip, the winner of the $500,000 Three-Year-Old Colt Trot.

Earlier in the day, the complexion of the race changed with the scratch of morning line choice Royalty For Life. That scratch shifted all horses inside one post, allowing Spider Blue Chip to leave out early for position from post four, but was joined to his outside by Kentucky Futurity champ Creatine (Mike LaChance) and Smilin Eli (Tim Tetrick). Creatine made it down to the pylons first, with Spider Blue Chip on his back and Smilin Eli still grinding for the lead in a :27.2 opening quarter.

Once Tetrick was able to settle his charge on the front, Pierce was right-lining Spider Blue Chip to the outside and he trotted right on by to the lead. Elimination winner All Laid Out (David Miller) was the first-over challenger through a :56.3 half. The field was strung out, but bunched up toward the third fraction of 1:24.3, but All Laid Out couldn't make it past the pacesetter.

In the stretch, Pierce asked Spider Blue Chip for more trot and he responded to repel pocket-sitter Smilin Eli, but was nearly picked off by Creatine. Lachance angled that trotter to the passing lane, loaded with trot, and he just fell a neck short in a time of 1:53.3.

The win provided owners David McDuffee of Delray Beach, Florida and Mel Hartman of Ottawa, Ont. a sweep of the sophomore trot titles, as those two also own filly champ Bee A Magician.

"That's a hell of a night," remarked Hartman, who also finished second with Struck By Lindy in the two-year-old filly trot. "It's a dream come true, I'm just wondering how I'm going to repeat it!"

Hartman continued to say that he was more confident with Spider Blue Chip once he made the front.

"He doesn't want to lose, he's just a gutsy, gutsy horse and he's made us proud."

The win was the third on the night for driver Ron Pierce, and the first win in the Breeders Crown series for Chuck Sylvester since 1998 when he won in this division with Muscles Yankee.

"Tonight he roughed it, went to the front, cut it out and won. He's just so consistent," said Sylvester.

Given that the son of Andover Hall is a gelding, Sylvester noted that Spider Blue Chip -- now 10-for-18 on the season with more than $1-million in purses -- will likely return to the races at age four.

Harness racing's richest pacer Foiled Again closed out the championship card with a hard-fought victory in the $500,000 Open Pace making him the oldest horse at age nine to win a Breeders Crown.

With the victory, Foiled Again's career bankroll climbed to $5,658,335, surpassing trotters Moni Maker and Varenne on the earnings list and leaving him chasing French trotter Ready Cash ($5.71 million) for the all-time record.

When the wings of the gate folded, there was a heated battle for the lead with Bolt The Duer (Mark MacDonald) touching down on the front over Golden Receiver (Corey Callahan) through a :25.3 first quarter. But a parked and pressing Pet Rock (David Miller) rolled on to take over with Foiled Again and driver Yannick Gingras next in line to challenge on the outside.

Foiled Again worked his way to the lead during the second panel, clearing to command at the half in :53.4 and leaving Modern Legend (John Campbell) first over.

Foiled Again raced to three-quarters in 1:21.4 with Modern Legend moving up alongside ready for a stretch battle. Meanwhile, second over Warrawee Needy (Jody Jamieson) went wide with Foiled Again's stablemate Clear Vision (Brett Miller) following him into the three-path.

Foiled Again maintained the lead into the stretch and held on to win by a nose in 1:49.2 over Pet Rock, who closed up the pylons. Modern Legend finished right there in third. The favourite paid $3.80 to win.

"He's definitely the man," said Gingras of Foiled Again. "He was fighting them all off. There were horses everywhere. I knew Jody was three-deep coming off the last turn and his horse has a good kick too so I couldn't really see on the outside until right at the wire. I was doing my best to get him to go. If there was somebody on the outside, that's all I had. But again he got it done tonight and I really, really love this horse. He's been a pleasure to drive and he's definitely one of the greatest."

"When he was moving back to the front I still had confidence that David was going to have to let him go because they had already gone a big half," said winning trainer Ron Burke, who had a record 15 Breeders Crown starters on the card. "And then from the top of the lane on, I started thinking maybe Clear Vision was our better shot, but I was keeping an eye on him and he just keeps digging and he wouldn't let them by. He saved the night."

The Dragon Again-In A Safe Place gelding is owned by Burke Racing Stable LLC of Fredericktown, Pennsylvania, Weaver Bruscemi LLC of Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, and JJK Stables LLC of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. He was bred by Barbara Matthews of Aiken, South Carolina.

After two close seconds and a third-place finish last year in the Breeders Crown, Foiled Again finally earned his trophy. The win was his ninth in 25 seasonal starts and 74th lifetime. The nine-year-old's seasonal earnings climbed to $1.02 million, making him the oldest horse to have a million-dollar season.

"He's been unbelievable," added Burke. "I can't say enough about him and what he's done for our family and for our whole stable."

Foiled Again is expected to race in the American Nationals before heading to The Meadowlands.

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