impish
The daughter of The Intruder and Ilo Hanover - Nibble Hanover, Impish was trained and driven by Hall of Famer Frank Ervin. As a two-year-old, Impish won the 1961 Hanover Shoe Filly Stake in a world record time of 1:58.3. This was the fastest mile any two-year-old had ever trotted, regardless of sex. That year she secured three world records: a filly mark for age and gait on a half-mile track of 2:03.3; the Hanover Shoe Stake Two-Year-Old Filly Trot, 1st heat 1:58.3. The second heat went in 1:59.3. The combined two-heat time of 3:58.1 bettered the world record for all-age mares.
At three, Impish again set a world record. Teamed with stablemate Sprite Rodney and driven by master trainer-driver Frank Ervin, she broke the world record for team-to-pole with a stunning 1:59.2. Other major victories that year included the Breeders Filly Stake, the Lady Suffolk at Roosevelt Raceway and the Coaching Club Trotting Oaks at Goshen.
Impish was the dam of thirteen foals, including Pay Dirt 2,2:02.3 ($90,450), Canny Imp 2,2:04.2, Quick Trick 3,2:05f, Star's Chip 4,2:00.3f ($141,972) and Impish Legacy 3,1:56.3. Impish was bred and last owned by Walnut Hall Farm, Lexington, Kentucky. She died there in 1982 following the birth of her last foal, a Bonefish colt. She was 23.
Walnut Hall Farm, Lexington, KY
Published in the Harness Racing Museum's 2000 Souvenir Journal