Ethel M. Schneider's Mac Sorley and Thomas Chadderdon's Little Man Fred both trotted their way to World Records.
Seven-year-old Mac Sorley broke the record for aged horses on a greater-than-one-mile track with a 1:532 clocking in the closing day feature. The old record was Noblette's Finale's clocking of 1:543. The Peter Snyder trainee won the $15,000 Open Handicap by 14 lengths.
Little Man Fred trotted a mile in 1:561 on October 14th to break the record for four-year-old geldings on a greater-than-one-mile track. Trained by Dan O'Mara, Little Man Fred came back one week later to tie his own mark. The Call Me Manfred gelding topped himself on October 26th, trotting a 1:552 while stepping up to open company. Little Man Fred's win streak was abruptly halted on October 30th when he was left in Mac Sorley's wake.
Virginia racing fans got a rare treat when trainer Joe Holloway and driver John Campbell teamed up to win a $6,000 Condition Pace with promising two-year-old Louie Louie Too on October 23rd. Owned by L&L DeVisser, Milton and Martha Frank, and McDonald Racing Stable, Louie Louie Too was brought to New Kent to learn how to race and to prep for the Governor's Cup. The Jenna's Beach Boy colt paced a :254 final quarter to win going away against older horses in 1:512.
None of the aforementioned Standardbreds was able to garner Horse of the Meet honors, as Roger Hammer's Cafeuccino earned the award with three dominant efforts. The six-year-old mare's combined margin of victory for the three Filly and Mare Open Handicap wins was 14 and a quarter lengths. Cafeuccino was consistent, pacing miles of 1:522, 1:521, and 1:524. The On The Road Again mare won $17,500 at the meet, pushing her career earnings past $490,000.
Hammer also enjoyed great success with J T Western, who paced a mile of 1:511 on October 20th, the meet's fastest. J T Western won two of three starts at the one-turn mile, with his only defeat coming at the hands of Louie Louie Too.
The final star of Open Handicaps was G.F. Trotto & F. Trotto, Jr.'s Exton. Exton won two of three starts at Colonial after going three for three to garner Horse of the Meet honors at Oak Ridge. Trained by Greg Trotto, Exton established a new lifetime mark of 1:52 in his final race at the one-turn mile on October 28th. Exton earned $14,950 in his Colonial campaign.
