Upfront Hannahsboy, co-owned by Amherst car dealer Ed Mullinax, is one of two 2-1 favorites in tonight’s two-division Cleveland Classic at Northfield Park.
With 14 horses entered, the Classic was split in two, with the first event (10th race) going off at 9:45. Post time for the second leg of the Classic (No. 13) is 10:50. Each half carries a purse of $88,760.
Upfront Hannahsboy, which Mullinax owns with Ron Jackson of Powell, is the top choice in the 10th race after a record-setting victory at the North America Cup last Saturday at Mohawk Raceway outside of Toronto. Upfront Hannahsboy won in a career-best 1:49.2, beating runner-up Space Walk by six lengths. Unfortunately, his victory was in the Cup’s $98,000 consolation race. Upfront Hannahsboy barely missed qualifying for the $1.5 million final when a rival in a preliminary heat forced him to the outside, and an eventual fourth-place finish.
Upfront Hannasboy’s time was 2/5 of a second faster than the previous record in a North America Cup consolation. Had driver Tim Tetrick and trainer Jim Arledge gotten UH to the finale, the son of Dragon Again might have given unbeaten Somebeachsomewhere a challenge. Somebeachsomewhere won the Cup final with a 1:49 time.
Daley Deposit Only should be Upfront Hannahsboy’s No. 1 competition. DDO is 7-2 on the morning line. He’s co-owned by Richard Lombardo of Solon.
Blueridge Western is the early-line favorite in the second division. He’s the richest horse in the field, thanks to a win in the $215,000 Berry’s Creek Final at the Meadowlands this year. Goddess’ Justin was given 5-2 early odds.
First post time for Northfield’s 16-race card tonight is 6:45 p.m. The card is supported by Ohio Sires Stakes races worth $200,000.

Double-duty Amanda

Amanda Bower’s story almost sounds like a pilot for a television program. By day, she’s a button-down businesswoman. But by night she becomes the belle of the racetrack.
OK, night by night. We’re talking about Thistledown here, where racing is, per Ohio law, done only in the afternoons.
So Bower frequently has to leave the nearby Garland Company and bop over to the North Randall oval to ride a horse. Bower had done it 11 times before June 6, the day she hit the winner’s circle for the first time.
Bower rode Yelp, a Tony Rini-owned and trained horse, to victory in the eighth race. She began riding last season after starting her career with show horses.
Bower begins each day at the track by exercising horses from 6:30-8 a.m. before heading to Garland, where she is the executive assistant to the company’s board of directors. She spends many lunch hours at Thistledown when she’s required to watch movies (stewards reviews of races).
Bower’s job with Garland is 9-6. She skips out of work just on days when she has to ride. Her weekends, not surprisingly, are spent primarily at the track.

Thistledown thoughts

Type A Personality looks to be one of the horses to run in the $100,000 Cleveland Gold Cup on June 28. Type A Personality, owned by Betty Alexander of Hunting Valley, and trained by Eric Green, won the $50,000 Green Carpet Handicap at River Downs.
• Pay The Man was the 8-5 early favorite for today’s $50,000 J. William Petro Handicap for fillies and mares. The Petro is the ninth race, with a post time of 3:53.
• Another female jockey won her first race at Thistledown this month. Kirsten Swan, 18, won aboard Im for Lexi in the fourth race last Saturday. Swan is the daughter of retired jockey Rhonda Swan and a stepdaughter of jockey Scott Spieth. She will be a senior at Chagrin Falls High School this fall.
• Kevin Radke, a Solon native, rode his 1,000th winner on June 7. Radke, who first won at Thistledown in 1998, directed Biddynthechief to a wire-to-wire victory at Emerald Downs in Auburn, Wash.
Contact Steve Byrne at 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com.

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