Beecher City Horses Score Victories

Freddie Patton Jr. guides Kandi's Fortune through her warm-up paces Monday evening at Knoxville.

By KURT BECKER

KNOXVILLE, IL -- A pair of Beecher City horses scored victories Monday evening before a sizable crowd at the Knox County Fair, where Northern Illinois Colt Association harness racing was the featured attraction on opening night of fair week. 

Loyzhonkeytonkhero, owned by Jackson Loy, captured the NICA Stakes for two-year-old trotting colts and geldings, shortly before Kandi's Fortune prevailed in the NICA Stakes for three-year-old pacing fillies for owners Brian and Kandi Herzog. The former won for the first time in five career starts and covered the one-mile distance in 2:12, while the latter triumphed in 2:03.3 and won for the third time in her last four outings. Mike Rogers and Freddie Patton Jr. were the respective trainer-drivers. 

In other action, owner-trainer-driver Jill Brown of Charleston captured the nightcap, winning the O.L. "Buck" Weaver Memorial for trotters with Lous Flashy Dancer in 2:01.3. Co-owned by Flacco Family Farms of Alexis, Lous Flashy Dancer led all the way to win for the 20th time in her career, as the four-year-old mare surpassed $70,000 in lifetime winnings. 

Located southeast of Galesburg on I-74, the Knox County Fair began hosting agricultural competitions in 1839 and received its charter from the State of Illinois in 1851. The fair continues through Saturday.