The Yonkers Trot is the third race of the Triple Crown of Harness Racing for trotters. What makes harness racing different from other forms of horseracing is that the horses race at a different gate. Trotters will run the entire race at a trot. This is a gate in which a front foot and the opposite back foot will hit the ground at the same time. For example, the right front foot and left back foot will hit the ground at the same time and the left front foot and right back foot will hit the ground at the same time. Most other forms of horseracing, like Thoroughbred racing, are performed at a gallop. Another difference that makes harness racing different is that the horses pull carts called sulkies, and they have a driver sitting in the sulkies instead of a jockey on their backs.
The history of the Yonkers Trot began in 1955 when the race was first held at Yonkers Raceway in Yonkers New York. Even though the race has always been held at Yonkers Raceway, the race has been known be a different name. When the race was first created, it was known as the Yonkers Futurity. The race has also been run at two different lengths. From the inception of the race in 1955 until 1963, the race was a mile and one sixteenth. In 1963, the race was shortened to its distance of exactly one mile in length. The Yonkers Trot has always been held at Yonkers Raceway, except for the years of 2004 and 2005 when the races were held at Freehold Raceway and Hawthorne Racecourse while Yonkers Raceway was undergoing renovations. The first year that the race returned to Yonkers was one that will never be forgotten. This is because the great trotter Glidemaster won the Yonkers Trot on his way to becoming one of the few trotters to ever will all three races of the Trotting Triple Crown.
In the long history of the Yonkers Trot, there have only been eight Standardbreds to win the Triple Crown of Harness Racing for trotters. The eight horses include the 1955 Triple Crown winner Scott Frost, 1963 winner Speedy Scot, 1964 winner Ayres, 1968 winner Nevele Pride, 1969 winner Lindy’s Pride, 1972 winner Super Bowl, 2004 winner Windsong’s Legacy and the 2006 winner Glidemaster. Only time will tell if there will be a Triple Crown winner in 2008.
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