Donato Hanover Diary - Saturday

Donato Hanover repelled a bold challenge from Pampered Princess, and won the 82nd Hambletonian in 1:53.2 on Saturday at the Meadowlands. USTA Photo.

If you know anything about silent movies, today’s Hambletonian played out as a four-reel matinee with Donato Hanover as Rudolph Valentino and Pampered Princess as Pola Negri. They spoke silently with their eyes and movements both in the outdoor paddock and in the race itself. Passing the three quarter pole, (the third reel) Adrian Chip was the bad guy who would have twirled his mustache if he’d had one. In the last flickering reel, poor Pampered Princess was tied to the proverbial railroad track, but thankfully the train she feared was already well ahead of her and on his way to history. Donato Hanover should have gone back and scooped Pampered Princess up in his arms and told her that he loved her for making it a horse race. Fade out.

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HAMBO DAY BLOG
Racing experts Tim Bojarksi, Jerry Connors, and Keith Gisser offered their insights into the major races on Saturday ’s card -- especially the world’s most important and prestigious trotting race. Click here

Attendance on Hambletonian Day, 2007, with temperatures in the 90s was 26,115 against 29,531 in 2006. Total handle was $7,981,435 against $8,096,024 in 2006, with $2,525,120 of that coming on track.

HAMBLETONIAN POLL
Which horse turned in the most impressive performance on Hambletonian Day?
CORLEONE KOSMOS
DONATO HANOVER
HANA HANOVER
MISTER BIG
SOUTHWIND LYNX
View Result