Skaters, bicyclists to perform at Monmouth Park
X-Games Demonstration set for Sunday as
part of Family Day
By jack oakley
Staff Writer

In an effort to draw the attention of the younger fan, Monmouth Park has inaugurated a series designed to get the younger generation to the track.

On Sunday there will be the Summer X-games Demonstration, presented by Mountain Dew. Sunday is the usual Family Day at Monmouth Park, and X-games enthusiasts will have their day.

Professional inline skaters and freestyle bicyclists will demonstrate their high-flying techniques on a 40-foot inverted skating ramp.

The demonstrations will be held from noon until 3:30 p.m.

There will also be drawings for VIP seats at the upcoming X-games in Philadelphia.

And on Sunday, clowns, face painters and pony rides will be available to the kiddies from noon until 4 p.m., sponsored by McDonald’s.

There will also be horse racing, with the $100,000 Long Branch Breeders’ Cup Stakes the featured attraction.

The race is a prelude to the Haskell, with trainers seeing just what they have in regards to the million-dollar race slated for Aug. 5.

The Long Branch’s distance is a mile and one-sixteenth and is for 3-year-olds.

Last year’s winner was Thistyranthasclass, owned by John Bowers of Roseland Farm Stable in Colts Neck.

The Jersey-bred went off at 10-1 and beat favored Graeme Hall.

Bowers has extensive real estate holdings in Red Bank.

This year trainer John Tammaro has Thistyranthasclass pointed for the Grade III Salvator Mile, which will be run on Haskell Day.

Thistyranthasclass just won a $41,000 allowance race for Tammaro and Bowers last week. The favorite won by over four lengths.

Apprentice jockey Julian Pimentel has been using his 7-pound apprentice weight advantage to gain the lead in the battle for apprentice jockey honors.

He won three races on Saturday and came back to win with Silks in a $36,000 claiming race on Sunday.

Leading jockey Joe Bravo also came up with a triple on the Saturday program to maintain a slim edge against Eibar Coa and Chuck Lopez.

Trainers Todd Pletcher and Linda Rice took turns winning the two stakes races on Saturday, and each had the second-place finish as the other’s horse won.

One of the Haskell hopefuls, Hero’s Tribute, didn’t act like much of a hero in Belmont’s slop on Sunday and finished up the track to E Dubai.

Jerry Bailey, in his only ride of the day, piloted E Dubai to victory.

At present, the Haskell is not in the winner’s plans.

This Saturday’s program will feature the Inside Information Stakes and the Bet Twice Stakes.

The Inside Information will be for fillies and mares at a mile on the turf and carries a $75,000 purse. The Bet Twice goes for $50,000 and will find 3-year-olds and up also running a mile on the turf.