Bangor Raceway marks successful opening day

BANGOR – Opening day at Bangor Raceway was a combination of a big crowd, good weather and eventually, some fast miles. Things were tentative in the first few races as American and Canadian drivers sized up the driving competition and the condition of the Bangor track.

Mike Cushing of Farmington took the first victory on opening day trotting Jasabelle first under the finish line in 2:05.1. On the back side of the daily double, Kim Ireland paced Winfall Rambo, Canadian Pat Eastwood’s 5-year-old Chameleon gelding, to a 2:04.4 win, producing a respectable $72.20 double for the lucky bettors who figured it out.

Halfway through the racing program trainer/driver Valerie Grondin, in first seasonal Bangor driving competition, paced Immortal Beloved to a quick win in 2:01.2. Dirk Duncan of Presque Isle, picked up the speed gauntlet and paced the John Davidson owned, Shouldofbeennobles, around the Bangor oval twice, winning in 2:01.3.

But in the next race, it was Heath Campbell, a top Canadian driver who has been adopted by Maine racing fans, who seriously challenged the condition of the track’s racing surface as he paced Mark’s Fancy to the magic mark of 2:00 flat. The 6-year-old Tyler’s Mark gelding is owned by Elijah Fournier of Mexico and Sunday’s win was his seventh seasonal in nine starts, setting a new seasonal mark in his first Bangor start.

In the ninth, Steve Mahar, another of Canada’s premiere harness drivers, played follow the leader with his fellow Canadian, Campbell. But Mahar found a faster groove with Star Track and clocked the fastest time of the day, pacing Star Track to a 1:59.4 win, Bangor’s first sub-2:00 minute mile this season.

Harness racing returns to Bangor Raceway Sunday at 1:30 p.m.