BY MATT HAMMOND
Examiner Sports Editor
Hank LeVan, far right, drives Andre L to a win in the a sixth race at the Logan County Fair on Tuesday, July 9. LeVan, a Woodstock resident, picked up four wins this week at the local fair. (EXAMINER PHOTO | MATT HAMMOND)
The final night of harness racing at the 2024 Logan County Fair brought a new track trotting record.
In the third race, a three-year-old colt trot, Drew Neill drove Smooth Talkin to a win in a time of 1:59 3/5.
The previous trot record was 2:00, which was set in 2017 and tied in 2018.
Smooth Talkin is owned and trained by Rosy Weaver of Beach City.
Hank LeVan of Wood- stock picked up his third and fourth driving victories of the week to entertain the local race fans.
LeVan drove Andre L, a horse he trains and is owned by LeVan Stables of Woodstock, J Stickley of Urbana and J Wildermuth of Lewistown, to a win in the sixth race. The winning time for the two-year-old colt pace was 2:04 4/5. It was the first lifetime win for Andre L.
LeVan also picked up a win while driving Grover Hill in the seventh race, a three-year-old colt trot. The winning time was 2:03.
Another highlight of the evening was the Ken Harvey Memorial Trot, a Signature Series trot for horses four years-old and up in the ninth race.
The win went to Republic Return in a time of 2:00 3/5. Neill was the winning driver.
Neill had a big night with four wins. He also drove to victories with Silverton in the first race and with Quintuplet in the fifth race.
This year’s fair marked the local return of harness racing. It was the first time in four years that harness racing took place at the Logan County Fair.
