Saratoga Springs, NY— Sam "the Man" King is a happy man. And why shouldn't he be, after all, he just scored a harness racing driving victory at Saratoga Raceway copping a $6,000 CKG Billings Trot with Windsun Missile in a 1:57 clocking. And what made this victory extremely gratifying for the 20 year old was because it was his first lifetime driving victory.
When the gate sprung King set sails for the front-end but he ran into a buzz saw in the presence of Muzzys Muscles and driver "Smokin Joe" Faraldo, and it wasn't until the two passed the first stanza in a stiff :28.1 that Faraldo yielded command.
Once on top King led his competition by the halfway point in :58. But up the backside Muzzys Muscle began to trot away and at the three quarters he had three lengths on the field, a margin he held all the way to the wire.
Royal Surprise , who benefited from a two-hole trip couldn't close the gap in the lane and finished second for Brett "the Kid" Beckwith . Third place went to Someway Same Hall, driven by Tony" Shifty" Ciuffetelli.
It was the winners fourth seasonal triumph by the 6-year-old Kadabra gelding. He is owned by Thomas Mc Tygue and trained by Michelle Crawford.
by John Manzi, for the Billings Series