Mystical Banker Back in Business (07/20/10)

Posted Tuesday, July 20, 2010

                                                                              By Mike Paradise

   It’s been over two long years since the Illinois bred trotter Mystical Banker captured the $80,500 Horse and Groom Championship with a lifetime best mile of 1:55.1 for trainer Nick Giberson and Wednesday night the now six-year-old gelding makes his first start since that impressive victory at The Meadowlands.

  Mystical Banker has been sidelined with a re-occurring leg injury since Mid-March of 2008 and it’s taken plenty of R & R—along with rehab pulling Amish buggies—for Nick to get the son of Valley Victor back to the races for Holland, Michigan owner L & L Devisser.

  When Mystical Banker goes postward in Sunday’s eighth race conditioned trot with driver Jamaica Patton, it will be his first start in Illinois since 2007 when as a three-year-old he won 8 of 15 starts, including Balmoral’s $50,500 Cardinal Final, and put almost $100,000 card his card.

  We’ll let his conditioner tell you what has transpired since the last time we saw Mystical Banker compete in our state.

  “In his four-year-old season we took him out east where he won a leg of the Horse and Groom series and then the final at The Meadowlands,” said Nick. “We gave him a couple of weeks rest after he won the Horse and Groom and right after we started to train him back he had a stall injury.

 “He was rolling around and put his leg through a water bucket. It was just what of those things that just happen. So he needed some time off. We did that but he then re-injured himself. He had about six months off and then he injured himself yet again, so we ended up giving him another year off,” continued Giberson.
    
 “After Mystical Banker got healed up we gave him another six months off and then we sent him to Indiana to Victory Hill Farms where for six months he was pulling Amish buggies down the roads there to kind of strengthen him up. It was a good rehabilitation for him.
  
  “So as you can see we gave him all the time he needed.”

  Nick qualified Mystical Banker on July 3 at Springfield with a 1:59 mile, the last half in 58 flat.

  “He did qualify very good and very strong,” said Nick. “He’s a nice horse and we’re going to take it easy with him and bring him back very slowly. Knock on wood he’s been very sound since I trained him back. Hopefully he can hold together.”

  Southland Festival of Racing Next: Balmoral’s summer stakes agenda is in full bloom. On Saturday are the eliminations for the July 24 pacing finals of the $66,000 Mini Me for ICF 2-year-old colts and geldings, the 60,000 Loyal Opposition for state-bred freshman fillies, and the $54,000 Incredible Finale for Illinois bred sophomore males.

  On Sunday—if needed—eliminations will be raced for the $54,000 Ann Vonian for ICF second season pacing fillies (also on Saturday, July 31), and for three-year-old state-bred trotters of both sexes. The $44,500 Kadabra for colts and geldings and the $43,000 Fox Valley Evita for distaffers championships will be held a week from Sunday on August 1.

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