Bythemissal wins Little Brown Jug

' Bythemissal captured Thursday’s (Sept. 22) $541,550 Little Brown Jug final for 3-year-old pacers at the Delaware County Fairgrounds, and in the process fulfilled a childhood dream for driver Chris Page and a prediction from trainer Ron Burke.

Page, a native of Mount Vernon, Ohio, attended his first Little Brown Jug at the age of 10 in 1994 and fell in love with harness racing. He has not missed the event since then, as either a fan or driver.

Chris Page guided Bythemissal to victory by three-quarters of a length over Fourever Boy in 1:51.1 in the 77th edition of the Jug. USTA/Mark Hall photo.

He was overjoyed his streak continued Thursday by guiding Bythemissal to victory by three-quarters of a length over Fourever Boy in 1:51.1 in the 77th edition of the Jug, presented by the Ohio Harness Horsemen’s Association. Night Hawk finished third.

“Winning the Little Brown Jug has been my dream ever since I was a little tyke,” Page said. “I feel like somebody ought to pinch me, like I’m going to wake up sometime. This (race) is what really pulled me in and made me want to drive horses and fall in love with it.”

On Thursday morning, Burke spoke at the OHHA’s Speaker Series and told the crowd he expected a winning performance from Bythemissal.

“I may eat my words, but I believe in this horse,” Burke said. “I think he’s better than these other horses. So, if he races his race today, I think he will win. I’ve become very confident in this horse because he makes you be confident.” '

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Chris Page guided Bythemissal to victory by three-quarters of a length over Fourever Boy in 1:51.1 in the 77th edition of the Jug. USTA/Mark Hall photo.

 

The opposite for a Standardbred racing fanatic like me.