Looking Back to Incredible Finale (07/29/10)

Posted Thursday July 29, 2010

                                                                      By Mike Paradise

  This is another in a weekly feature exclusively on www.harnessillinois.com. Every week I’ll post a least one “Looking Back feature. Mostly they’ll be of the great horses who have competed in our state through the years. At times they’ll be pictures from the winner’s circle, special celebrations, and in some cases old memorable race track scenes. Some of these photos haven’t been printed or posted in decades . . . others have never been printed at all.
  
  Just by right clicking your computer mouse, going to “Save Picture As”, you can make your own jpeg copy of any Looking Back photo posted. You can e-mail them and share with a friend or maybe start your own computer file of “Looking Back” memories.

                                              Looking Back

                       

                                                        INCREDIBLE FINALE
 
  Among the six state-bred stake championships on this Saturday’s Chicago Southland Festival of Racing program at Balmoral Park is the $56.000 Incredible Finale Final for 3-year-old pacing colts and geldings. It honors one of the great Illinois bred horses who followed a star-studded calling on the race track with an illustrious career as a sire for Fox Valley Standardbreds.

  A son of Shadow Wave out of the Meadows Skipper dam Queen Margie, Incredible Finale retired after his five-year-old season in 1988 as the Prairie State’s first million dollar pacer, banking $1,165,508 in four campaigns as a racehorse for the Tom Harmer Stable and owners George Steinbrenner and Charles Day.

  Incredible Finale is shown here winning at Sportsman’s Park in 1985 in his freshman year when he posted victories in 11 of 18 starts, including such major stakes as the Orange and Blue and Cardinal at Sportsman’s and the Springfield championship and earned over $220,000. As a three-year-old he found the winner’s circle 15 more times when he became the first ICF pacer to capture Maywood Park’s Windy City Pace Final and added $707,444 on his card.

  Purchased by Fox Valley Standardbreds in September of 1988, he became one of the top stallions in our state with over 700 sons and daughters bettering 2:00 and 234 of them pacing in 1:55 or faster. Incredible Finale has had four of his offspring’s pace under 1:50 with Mini Me ($1,281,649) in 1:49 and Incredible Tillie ($916, 024) in 1:49.2.

  Incredible Finale was inducted into the IHHA’S Illinois Hall of Fame in 1991.

  To view Archived Notes and Quotes click here.   

             County Fair Report

CHAMPAIGN COUNTY FAIR AT URBANA

 Tuesday Afternoon, July 27

FIRST: NW 1 Race or NW $3,500 Lifetime, Pace, Purse $1,200:
Winner (Driver)    Time (Track Fast)
Epona (Ronnie Gillespie)   2:03.3
Trainer: Neil Wood. Owner: Neil Wood Stables

SECOND: NW 1 Race or NW $3,500 Lifetime, Pace, Purse $1,200:
M A Sarah (Ronnie Gillespie)  2:11.1
Trainer: Neil Wood. Owner: Neil Wood Stables.

THIRD: Topline, 3-Year-Olds and Up, Pace, Purse $2,500:
NJ’s Super Charger (Ronnie Gillespie) 2:01.3
Trainer: John Fletcher. Owner: Stevanna Turner.

FOURTH: Free For All Pace, Purse $1,200:
Arizona Tales (Robert Smolin)  2:00.3
Trainer: Alex Adam. Owners: Alex Adam and John Webb.

Tuesday Night, July 27

FIRST: Illini Three-Year-Old Pace, Purse $2,637:
Winner (Driver)    Time
His Eminence (Marcus Miller)  2:04.2
Trainer: Erv Miller. Owner: Tanah Merah Farms.

SECOND: Topline, Three-Year-Olds and Up, Trot, Purse $2,500:
King La Conch (Clay Simpson)  2:06
Trainer: Clay Simpson. Owners: Anthony and Clay Simpson.

THIRD: Illini Three-Year-Old Trot, Purse $2,212:
Fox Valley Flare (John Roberts)  2:09
Trainer: John Roberts. Owner: Fox Valley Standardbreds.

FOURTH: Illini Two-Year-Old Trot, Purse$2,946:
Saint George (George Conley)  2:15.1
Trainer: George Conley. Owner: George Conley.

FIFTH: ICF Four-Year-Olds and Up, Pace, Purse $3,500:
Special Promises (Marcus Miller)  2:02.4
Trainer: Brent Plotner. Owners: Brent Plotner, Cecil Mullins and Sharon Mullins.

SIXTH: ICF Four-Year-Olds and Up, Pace, Purse $3,500:
Blue Strike (Ronnie Gillespie)  2:01
Trainer: Marcus Turner. Owner: Ronnie Gillespie.

COLES COUNTY FAIR AT CHARLESTON

  Tuesday, July 27 Results

FIRST: Illini 2-Year-Old Trot, 1st Div, Purse $1,673:
Winner (Driver)    Time (Track Fast)
My Funky Farkle (Dale Bartley)  2:08.3
Trainer: James Murphy. Owners: James and Donna Murphy.

SECOND: Illini 2-Year-Old Trot, 2nd Div, Purse $1,673:
Sycamore Survivor (Vince Espinosa)  2:09.3
Trainer: Vince Espinosa. Owners: David and William Stendeback.

THIRD: Illini 3-Year-Old Trot, Purse $2,112:
Legend Girl (Michael Pryor)   2:08.2
Trainer: Ray Hanna. Owner: Charles Trenkle.

FOURTH: Open Pace, 1st Div, Purse $900:
That Noble Magic (Bob Allums Jr.)  2:00.3
Trainer: Bob Allums Jr. Owner: James Payne.

FIFTH: Open Pace, 2nd Div, Purse $900:
Captain Rat (William Ralston)  1:59.3
Trainer: William Ralston. Owner: William Ralston.

SIXTH: NW $5,000 Lifetime, Pace, 1st Div, Purse $750:
Gypsy Kick (Farry Birch)   2:03.4
Owner: Darry Birch. Trainer: Darry and Rose Birch.

SEVENTH: NW $5,000 Lifetime, Pace, 2nd Div, Purse $750:
Airy Heir (Bob Allums Jr.)   2:03.2
Owner: Jim Musick. Trainer: Lance Wilson and Judith Schmid.

EIGHTH: Amateur Pace, Purse $500:
Sugar Bunny (Mariyah Mulvey)  2:02.3
Trainer: Jared Finn. Owner: Jared Finn.

EDWARDS COUNTY FAIR AT ALBION

  Tuesday, July 27 Results

FIRST: ECS 2-Year-Old Filly Pace, Purse $1,900:
Winner (Driver)    Time (Track Fast)
Tickle Me Blue (Marcus Turner)  2:08.4
Trainer: Roshun Trigg. Owner: Ronald Knupp.

SECOND: ECS 2-Year-Old Colt Pace, Purse $1,900:
Fox Valley Pesto (Brian Cotton)  2:01.4
Trainer: Brian Cotton. Owners: Philip Cotton, Sherry Cotton, Brian Cotton and Charles Lee.

THIRD: ECS 2-Year-Old Filly Trot, Purse $1,900:
Tickle Me Grace (Marcus Turner)  2:07.2
Trainer: Roshun Trigg. Owner: Ronald Knupp.

FOURTH: ECS 2-Year-Old Colt Trot, Purse $1,900:
Trop Mister (Jared Finn)   2:05.1
Trainer: J D Finn. Owners: J D Finn and Orville Finn Jr.

FIFTH: NW $2,500 Lifetime, Trot, Purse $1,000:
Lucky Lizzy (Randall Finn)   2:06.3
Trainer: Randall Finn. Owner: Ricky Clay.

SIXTH: NW $2,500 Lifetime, Trot, Purse $1,000:
Well Chilled (Thomas Davis)   2:04
Trainer: Thomas Davis. Owner: Thomas Davis.

SEVENTH: NW $1,500 Lifetime, Pace, Purse $1,000:
Tee Brown (Randall Finn)   2:07
Trainer: Randall Finn. Owners: Bobby Finn and Victor Houser.

EIGHTH: NW $1,500 Lifetime, Pace, Purse $1,000:
Fox Valley Vanita (Curtis Bradford)  2:09.1
Trainer: Curtis Rice. Owner: Curtis Rice.

FULTON COUNTY FAIR AT LEWISTOWN

  Tuesday, July 27 Results

FIRST: NICA 2-Year-Old Filly Pace, 1st Div, Purse $1,239:
Winner (Driver)    Time (Track Good)
AR Sissy (Graham Ross Jr.)   2:06.3
Trainer: Graham Ross Jr. Owners: Ron Phillips, John Carver and Jesse Ferge.

SECOND: NICA 2-Year-Old Filly Pace, 2nd Div, Purse $1,239:
Ky Credible (Freddie Patton Jr.)  2:06.2
Trainer: Freddie Patton Jr. Owners: Ron Phillips, John Carver and Jesse Ferge

THIRD: NICA 2-Year-Old Colt Pace, Purse $2,087:
Unsending Love (Jerome Daniels)  2:07.3
Trainer: Freddie Patton Jr. Owner: John Carver.

FOURTH: NICA 2-Year-Old Colt Trot, Purse $1,811:
No Mind Reader (Graham Ross Jr.)  2:04.2 
Trainer: Graham Ross Jr. Owners: Ron and Deloris Phillips, John Carver and Graham Jr.

FIFTH: NICA 3-Year-Old Filly Pace, Purse $1,784:
Andi’s Sister (Nick Prather)   2:03.2
Trainer: Gerry Wilson. Owner: Gary Bunch.

SIXTH: NICA 3-Year-Old Colt Pace, Purse $2,515:
Picnic Place (Mike Brink)   2:03.2
Trainer: Kenneth Stringer. Owners: Ben and Madeline Stringer.

SEVENTH: NICA 3-Year-Old Filly Trot, Purse $2,513:
LT Purple Knight (Orval Bronkhorst) 2:07.4
Trainer: Orval Bronkhorst. Owner: Orval Bronkhorst

EIGHTH: Free For All Pace, Purse $1,000:
Little More Ram (Kyle Jones)  2:02.4
Trainer: Kyle Jones. Owner: Guy Calvert.