JAYWALKING. By Jay

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1 Weekend THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2019 DRF.COM/HARNESS DRF HARNESS HOME DRF BETS HARNESS PPS DIGITAL HARNESS EYE ENTRIES NEWSLETTER ARCHIVE >> READY. SET. BET. DOUBLE YOUR ACTION Bet $100, Get $100 Sign Up Bonus JOIN NOW >> Pool manipulation and a fair playing field Top Links & What s Inside Get Analysis Giwner: Behind the scenes at the Dan Patch Awards, Page 3 Zoccali: Customers come first in the pecking order, Page 4 Beckhams Z Tam using Meadowlands as Levy stepping-stone, Page 5 On The Backstretch: Profile of owner/amateur driver Joe Faraldo, Page 6 Handicapping: Best bets and video analysis, Page 8 Upcoming stakes schedule, Page 9 Industry Headlines, Page 10 Comments? Questions? Editor Derick Giwner DGiwner@drf.com JAYWALKING By Jay In days of yore when all wagers had to be made at the track, it was pretty easy to find out just who placed that heavy wager seconds before post time to knock a horse s odds down significantly. Mind you it was a bit more difficult to actually put in large wagers since tickets had to be punched individually, thus technically limiting last-second involvement. Perhaps some of those bell-punchers as we once called them would be envious of the simplicity of late-money activity in today s racing game and the way it can distort odds in dramatic fashion. I couldn t help and watch to some amazement as Bombay Hanover, a firsttime starter in 2019 from post 10 in The Meadowlands opener on Saturday, was torpedoed down to 3-10 odds. Yes, the gelding did deserve to be the betting favorite in a non-winners-oftwo field; that I ll concede. However, most who actually watch the races understand just how much the best a horse needs to be to overcome the outside draw. In the past such low odds were generally reserved for horses that won quite often and were still in cheaply enough to overpower their rivals. Bombay Hanover, a winner just one time in eight starts as a juvenile, hardly fit that description, yet for unknown reasons had his odds plummet. What needs to be examined in this and many other like circumstances across the racing scene is whether institutional wagering is gaining some sort of advantage in placing wagers in the seconds before a race goes off. It would seem farfetched to believe that Bombay Hanover suddenly found a large group of followers that sensed the 6-5 near-post time odds were just too generous to pass up. A more fitting explanation would be that large wagering came from a single source perhaps motivated in part by rebates. From my perspective what needs to be examined by our industry is whether some players have an unfair advantage in early or late pool manipulation. If we are actually searching to broaden the wagering dynamic across a greater population there has to be the equivalent level playing field for bettors as CONTINUED ON PAGE Ohio Sires Stakes 2 & 3-Year-Old Nominations due March 15, 2019 schedule & nomination forms available at Kimberly Rinker OSDF Administrator kim.rinker@racing.ohio.gov 2019 Daily Racing Form, LLC rd Ave, 12th Floor, NY, NY 10017

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3 Downbytheseaside, Huntsville and Fear The Derick Giwner CONTINUED from page 1 that s what owners and trainers are striving for. The point is that odds do have a way of impacting wagering and over-betting on particular horses has a way of propping up others in an unnatural fashion. It hardly seems that long ago that the late- Geoff Stein and myself ventured to Saratoga Harness to bet on the longshot Perette Hanover against would-be favorites Roses Are Red and Kris Messenger in a 3-year-old stakes event. In the late 70 s there was only on-track wagering and on this day Geoff put in his $100 win wager as the windows opened for the event. Voila, Perette Hanover, an obvious longshot, opens at 3-5 odds and Roses Are Red and Kris Messenger are double-digit prices initially. Needless to say, suddenly players that normally looked at the program to handicap and place wagers on what they perceived to be the best horses, were propelled into wondering just what was going on. Some 40 years later the circumstances have changed radically but a majority of the players only find out after the race went off that the odds had shifted and what they expected to be paid was significantly lower. There is nothing illegal about wagers being placed at the end of the cycle. At the same time, it is necessary for all betting outlets to be monitored effectively just to understand who and why some of these wagers are being placed. The betting public needs to have confidence in the system. We already know it s not a level playing field since some outlets are afforded rebates and others are not. All outlets should be monitored to find out if money is being put into pools and later removed. Perhaps instead of this endless drag to post if certain hubs were shut off a minute before post the truth or fiction about pool manipulation might emerge. Bombay Hanover didn t win, as we all know by now. He also didn t go postward with odds approaching his real chances of winning this race. Either way, his odds force perception of the race and its outcome to be questioned as to whether there are insiders pulling the strings. JAYWALKING: On the heels of last week s column, going into last Saturday s races at Yonkers it was hard to imagine a less inspiring card dictated by the lack of action by the race office. That Bit Of A Legend N ($3.80) and Somewhere In LA ($3.50) were odds-on winners was a direct result of that space simply ignoring what both did in their first races of the year and rewarding them with easier spots. In the case of Bit Of A Legend N, the handicaps were taken off the $44,000 Open and the draw shook out well for the $2.5 million winner as he drew post two and this week shot to the front in short order. As for Somewhere In LA, that had to be where the Yonkers Racing Secretary and Director of Racing were when assignments were given out for Saturday s card. How else does one explain that the thirdplace finisher in the Open Handicap from just seven days earlier was permitted to drop in class the following week? If a computer was putting together the races at Yonkers it probably would have crashed before permitting any horse that earned $273,430 in 2018 the luxury of dropping two classes into non-winners of $30,000 in last five races, period. Yet that s exactly what happened in this circumstance. No effort to even handicap Somewhere In LA with just an added condition that forced a horse with higher lifetime earnings to start from post eight. Clearly more creativity needs to be brought into the equation. Situations such as this are easily avoidable and truly matter if the goal is a competitive product with far fewer odds-on winners. EDITOR S EYE By Derick Behind the scenes of the Dan Patch Awards Even after retirement, Foiled Again provided another memorable moment as he shocked the crowd during the Dan Patch Awards in Orlando on February 24. That s right, in case you haven t heard, the 15-year-old richest Standardbred in history walked into the hotel ballroom and stood nearly motionless as over 300 people looked on, took pictures and pet the champion. Of course, Foiled Again didn t get lost on his way to his stall and simply wander into the hotel. There was great planning involved behind the scenes by Gordon Waterstone at USHWA and members of the team behind the all-time great. Each year the members of USHWA spend months working on the Dan Patch Awards. From choosing a great location and negotiating the best rate more than a half-year prior to the event, to making sure the night runs smoothly and all attendees come away happy, the amount of work that goes into the awards night is immense and goes mostly unheralded. While we do it every year, for some reason the lack of recognition really hit me about six hours prior to this year s banquet when I was among 20 or 30 other USHWAN s helping to set up the room. Members of the organization put together and place goodie bags, get the auction items set up, make sure the hospitality suite is stocked, and so much more. While I ve heard complaints in the past about the awards night in general (everyone seems to like this location) and at times listen to people complain about the voting, let s try to remember that the members of USHWA are unpaid volunteers. Many give hours, days and maybe months of their time each year to ensure that the organization runs smoothly and remains afloat financially. It just seemed right to thank everyone who put together the wonderful night at the Rosen Shingle Creek and everyone that will continue to work hard at making the 2019 awards night a success. There are too many names to list and I certainly don t want to leave anyone out. You know who you are. Dan Patch Notes: Trainer Nancy Johansson told me that trotting mare Manchego has filled out nicely for her 4-year-old season. The Graduate series, Armbro Flight and Hambletonian Maturity are all on her radar in the first part of the stakes season. When asking about how the $1.2 million allotted for the New Jersey Sire Stakes program would be distributed I found out that it must all be handed out in the calendar year. That could make for some lucrative purses in 2019 and beyond with the subsidy in place for five years. Additionally, if there was ever a year to breed in NJ this is it. Assuming the state doesn t have a change of heart, you are guaranteed two years of the increased purses. As long as I m handing out praise, it was nice to see so many horsemen and women who weren t getting awards still in attendance. We all get something from this industry and it is vitally important that we support these big events. Advertise your stallion with THURSDAY, JUNE 8, 2017 Weekend DRF HARNESS HOME DRF BETS HARNESS PPS DIGITAL HARNESS EYE ENTRIES NEWSLETTER ARCHIVE Meadowlands (FRI) Mohawk (FRI) Hawthorne (SAT) Meadowlands (SAT) Mohawk (SAT) Scioto (SAT) Featured Tracks Get FREE Analysis PPS Sophomores gather for North America Cup Huntsville, Downbytheseaside & Fear The Dragon lead elims By Derick Giwner The fastest and richest 3-year-old pacers of 2017 will all gather at Mohawk Racetrack on Saturday (6/10) night to vie for one of 10 spots on the starting gate in the C$1,000,000 North America Cup Final the following week. Three C$50,000 eliminations led by Multiple placement discounts For more information or to place an ad, contact Derick Giwner at dgiwner@drf.com or Get Analysis Top Links & What s Inside Antonacci excited about his Goodtimes prospects READ MORE Dan Patch Awards heading back to Orlando in 2018 READ MORE Jay Bergman: Final times need perspective, Page 4 Darin Zoccali: Brower & Prewitt appeal to bettors, Page 5 Obrigado makes his 2017 debut in Scioto s $200K Charlie Hill, Page 5 Ducharme trio looks to make noise in Vernon s EBC eliminations, Page 6 Ryan Macedonio: Harness Racing needs FUN!, Page 6 Hambletonian trail heats up + Tioga hosts Graduate, Page 7 Weekend stakes schedule Dragon featuring a total of 25 horses should provide some early season clarity in the race for supremacy among the sophomore elite. While the point can be argued, the road to the winner s circle in the Final still goes through Huntsville. The Dan Patch 2-yearold champion from 2016 drew post two in the second elimination (race 8) with regular driver Tim Tetrick slated to drive. Trained by Ray Schnittker, Huntsville opened up his year with a 10 length Pennsylvania Sire Stakes win at The Meadows in the slop that opened some eyes, but was soundly defeated in his next PASS start at Pocono by Fear The Dragon. That loss had some secondguessing the possible dominance of the son of Somebeachsomewhere-Wild West Show for a brief moment. All doubters were put back in line in his third start of 2017 when he left hard from post seven at Harrah s Philadelphia and marched down the road despite hot fractions (26 3/5, 54 2/5 & 1:21 4/5) to demolish his PASS foes on that afternoon by more than seven lengths in a career best-equaling 1:49. He was very good the other night, said Schnittker on th Huntsville was the 2016 Dan Patch award winner as top 2-year-old pacing colt. you for speed, but I thought he looked really good. While the trainer feels his horse is ready for the test at hand, he stopped short of making any bold predictions. I think he is ready to peak. He s had three starts now, but I guess we ll find out for sure up in Canada, said Schnittker. Huntsville is joined in his elimination by newcomer to the Grand Circuit scene Beckhams Z Tam, an Indiana bred who has won each of his four s DRF Harness Weekend 3 February 28, 2019

4 Customers come first in the pecking order of the industry at the track By Darin Zoccali AtTheTrack7 The customer is always right is a phrase that has become cliché in our society. I ll be honest, I actually think the phrase does a disservice to business. I think it denigrates the value of customer service representatives and other employees to feel that they are in a position where regardless of what is said or done, the customer is always right. Even those businesses who preach this mantra, don t really believe it. If they did, customers would never be asked to leave or be banned from a certain establishment. I do believe the customer is always first and the customer is always valid. There has been a lot of discussion in harness racing social media in which people have attempted to rank the contributors and players within the industry by level of importance. Beyond the bettors, included in this discussion are the horses themselves, drivers, trainers, owners and breeders. In this discussion this is where I say, the customer is always first. In no industry is it believed that the owner, developer, customer service representative, or any other position comes before the customer. This isn t viewed as taboo. It isn t a hot topic. It s not even something that is up for debate. Yet for some reason in harness racing, it is debated quite a bit. In fact, some people take it quite personally. For the life of me, I don t understand why. It isn t a slight to the horses, owners or breeders when people take the position that the bettor is the most important group of people in harness racing. The bettors are racing s customers. They have to come first. If a car company develops a new model vehicle that nobody buys, who is more important, the developer of the model or the customer? If a fashion designer puts out a new line of clothing that nobody likes, who is more important, the designer or the customer? If a contractor builds a block of new houses that nobody wants to live in, who is more important, the contractor or the customer? So why is it that the debate exists in harness racing? I have been witness to arguments where breeders state, if we don t breed the horses, there is no industry. I have seen owners say, if there are no owners, there is no industry. Of course, all of this is true. If there was nobody that wanted to build a fuel system, the car industry wouldn t exist. If no one wanted to stitch or sew, the clothing industry wouldn t exist. If there were no plumbers, homes couldn t be built. They are all important parts of their respective industry. However, in every instance, it is the customer who is the most important factor. The customer drives the supply of products with their demand, not the other way around. There isn t a single person in the harness racing industry that should feel devalued by this notion. In fact, they should feel an obligation to work collectively to do what is best for their customers, the bettors. There are countless examples of this simply not being the case. 1) Takeout rates are exorbitant and stymie any potential for the bettor (the customer) to see a profit over the long term. 2) Too many instances of no-try events with horses. We can sit here and pretend that this isn t true, and every horse is positioned in every race, giving 100% to win. We have seen far too many examples of this not being the case. Whether it be the horse s first race back, the horse having a more lucrative race forthcoming, or any other reason. If your response to this is caveat emptor, then you are devaluing the customer even more. 3) Pricing of data in the form of past performances or being able to access information on horses, trainers, drivers online. 4) Jackpot bets that capture the money of their customers, holding it for days, weeks, months and distributing it to a select few, or sometimes one person. I can write a book filled with these examples, but you get the point. No other business operates like this. If they did, they would be out of business. Casinos treat their customers better. Sure, it s tough to beat the house, but in a casino, players are not betting into a 20-percent rake. They are also given perks like comped meals and rooms and you don t have to be a six-figure player to receive that kind of treatment. The Sports betting industry treats their customers better. Their pricing on games is 400% cheaper than that of racing. They also provide perks like the casino industry. For a long time racing had a monopoly on gaming. Maybe because of that monopoly the industry got into some bad habits and became complacent. It is feasible to think that the pricing structure didn t matter because there simply was no alternative. The problem is, now there is. Over a long history of bad practices, harness racing has devalued its bettors and still to this day, there are those who don t understand that the bettor is the most important person in this game. In harness racing, it is up to all of the cogs of the industry, from the breeders all the way to the mutuel tellers, to put forth the best product possible. But the customer decides if that product is worth their time and money. While the industry may be a business or a career for those involved, it is not for the customer. The customer is spending their hard-earned dollars on the business. If the customer walks away, the business doesn t exist. The customer holds the keys, they always have and they always will. Entries & Results DRF Harness has entries and results for all U.S. tracks and live odds for all North American tracks DRF.COM/HARNESS DRF Harness Weekend 4 February 28, 2019

5 Beckhams Z Tam using Meadowlands as a Levy stepping-stone Beckhams Z Tam won the 2017 Breeders Crown but didn t have a big year as a 4-year-old in Dean Gillette By Jay Bergman Veteran trainer Bruce Saunders sends out a trio of 1:50 or better performers on Saturday night at The Meadowlands. Heading the group is Levy-bound Beckhams Z Tam, who landed the outside post in the eight-horse $25,000 Preferred Handicap feature. They sent him to me because they wanted to race in the Levy, Saunders said of Beckhams Z Tam, the 2017 Breeders Crown champion at Hoosier Park in the sophomore pacing division. I was happy with the way he qualified and satisfied with last week s race. He s going to have to race four or five weeks in a row in the Levy so I thought I d give him a start at The Meadowlands. A 5-year-old son of Always A Virgin, Beckhams Z Tam had a good year as a 4-year-old but likely didn t live up to expectations garnered from the Breeders Crown victory. I didn t have him last year so I can t say specifically what happened to him, Saunders said. It s a tough transition from 3 to 4. While Beckhams Z Tam drew outside, there s no reason to believe he can t go with the other seven in Saturday s field. He s a quality horse, said Saunders. He can come home as fast as a horse can. While the Levy is just two weeks away, Beckhams Z Tam, a 15-time winner lifetime with in excess of $708K in the bank, could use the Meadowlands start as a springboard to success. Saunders noted that the horse has historically done well over the half-mile track while admitting to some degree that his first start of the year at Yonkers wasn t among his finest. He definitely stalled some on the turns, said Saunders, who witnessed Beckhams Z Tam lose by a diminishing nose to Somewhere In L A last Saturday at Yonkers. Heavenly Sound got even less help from the draw for Saunders, starting from post number 10 in race 11, a non-winners of $5,000 event. He s a very nice horse, said Saunders. I was happy with his first race back but that s a tough place to start from. Heavenly Sound showed some ability as a sophomore and Saunders lamented that racing luck weighed heavily on the New York Sire Stakes competitor. There could have been a lot more money on his card, said Saunders. He had a good chance in the New York Sire Stakes final but going into the first turn Springsteen went sideways DRF Harness Weekend 5 February 28, 2019 and took half of the field out. Heavenly Sound wound up fourth in the $225,000 race. A son of the Saunders-trained 2010 Horse of the Year Rock N Roll Heaven, Heavenly Sound could find more opportunity this year according to Saunders. We ve put him in the Graduate and I think he ll be fine against other 4-year-olds, Saunders said. Saunders considers the extremely fast Talent Soup his most likely chance at victory on Saturday. The 5-year-old is on the comeback trail and makes his second 2019 start at the basement level. Beaten by 27 lengths in a qualifier on February 8 at The Meadowlands, Talent Soup finished seventh in his first start back last Saturday night. That qualifier was my fault. I was probably two weeks away and expected the race to go in 1:56, said Saunders explaining the effort. It was very windy that day and the (1):52 and change mile was more like a (1):49 mile. Talent Soup was a Meadowlands Pace finalist in 2017 but drew poorly and was a non-factor. He got sick last year and we gave him the necessary time off, said Saunders of last year s 13-race season. Talent Soup drew post six with Eric Abbatiello in the bike for The Meadowlands nightcap. Saunders has 16 horses in training of which seven are 2-year-olds. At this point in time it s more about who you don t like with the 2-year-olds, said Saunders. I like all of them. Perhaps of greater interest to the racing public is the 3-year-old return of Mangogh, a son of American Ideal that captured the Governor s Cup elimination last year at The Meadowlands but finished fourth in the final. I turned him out for three and a half weeks before bringing him back in, said Saunders, who confided that he never turned out champion Rock N Roll Heaven between that one s freshman and sophomore season. I m getting him ready to be back by May, said Saunders. Obviously the stretch in June and July with the Somebeachsomewhere, North America Cup, Hempt and Meadowlands Pace is where you want to be at your best. Mangogh took a 1:50 3/5 mark as a juvenile. I definitely think he s a top 10 colt, Saunders said.

6 Did you ever want to know more than just the statistics of your favorite trainers and drivers? Derick Giwner took to the backstretch to ask them some more unorthodox questions. owner/amateur Driver joe faraldo What kind of car do you drive? I have two cars. One is a 1970 Mercedes 280 SL. It s a classic. The other one is a 2018 Volvo XC90. Favorite dinner meal? Snack? Anything and everything on the menu at Don Peppe. I don t have a favorite snack. What is your favorite track to race at? Yonkers. How often is harness racing on your mind? On a daily basis probably four hours per day. What is the longest time you ve sat in traffic trying to get to or come home from a track? That s easy, 13 hours coming home from Monticello to Kew Gardens in that flash snow storm we had back in November (2018). Who is your best friend in the industry? John Manzi. You like to travel. What is your favorite place to visit? Mexico because I don t like the cold during the winter. They have excellent weather all year round on the west coast. What is your favorite sport? Team? Baseball - New York Mets. Also the Brooklyn Dodgers. My mother used to take me to Ebbets Field years ago. What is one thing about you most fans/bettors don t know? My true passion for this sport and the pro bono work that I do every day for anyone that picks up the phone and asks me questions about racing. Another thing that people might not know and many don t believe is that I don t get paid to be the SOA (Standardbred Owners Association of NY) President. I ve been a volunteer for about 40 years. What is one word that describes harness racing for you? Passion. Do you have a driving style? Yes, poor. Towards the end of last year it got better. If you weren t a part-time driver and full-time attorney, what would you be doing? I wanted to be an airplane pilot. I actually have a degree in chemistry and came up just short of getting a masters. In Derick Giwner Joe Faraldo has 146 career wins in 1,577 races throughout his amateur driving career. undergraduate school I took a ton of Chemistry classes. What is the best advice you ve ever gotten about harness racing? My uncle, the doctor, who had 38-head of horses at one time, told me that the best thing that could happen is if your first horse is not a good one. I tell that to a lot of people because sometimes people come in at the entry level, they get a good horse and they think that it is easy. One thing this game will teach you is humility. One guy told me years ago, if you stay in the business long enough a good horse will find you; not the opposite. What was your best moment in harness racing? Maybe my first amateur drive when Larry Rolla gave me a horse called Viking Dart at Goshen. Which is the best horse you ve ever owned? Night s Jazz. He won about $480,000 and maybe $300,000 of it was with me driving. He was a good horse. I ve had some good ones. One day I even beat Billy O Donnell at Yonkers. I was driving a horse called Yankee Bravado and coming around the last turn at Yonkers he was on the inside and I was on the outside. I beat him right at the wire. After the race he said to me, you must ve had a really good horse. If you had the power to change one thing in the sport, what would it be? Make people work harder at making the sport more popular. By that I mean, I don t find a lot of work ethic in this game. I don t find people really killing themselves. Unfortunately every time we try to do something, and maybe this doesn t fit into the question, we always run into the racetrack operators saying maybe or no. It makes it very difficult. You try to do so many things and you get shot down. Sometimes you don t have the power to make the changes even if you are willing to do the work and spend the money. Like we want to spend the money to bank the turns at Yonkers and get a slanted starting gate, and pay for it. Not only do I have directors like Jordan Stratton willing to work to implement these things and do all of the grunt work, then I have to run into somebody telling me no. CONTINUED ON PAGE 7 DRF Harness Weekend 6 February 28, 2019

7 CONTINUED from page 6 Along those lines, do you foresee any changes at Yonkers Raceway following the change of ownership to MGM? I m hopeful. The last thing I asked about was the slanted starting gate. We did the research and I asked (Bob) Galterio if I could take the two gates that we have when we were closed (late December), get the gates down from Saratoga before they open in February and use them in January while our two gates are in Ohio getting adjusted. We agreed to pay for everything, shipping and the cost of getting them adjusted. Galterio told me no because they would rather MGM get the credit when it gets done. The answer is nothing happened. But I m hopeful that Bobby is correct and that MGM will do it or allow us to pay to do it. How did you get into harness racing? My cousin Joe was a trainer/driver at Roosevelt Raceway and my uncle had 38-head horses running under the name of Anroc stables. I would go to the barn and help my cousin Joe. What is the most frustrating thing about harness racing? Again, lack of work ethic to do the things that need to get done. Also the business model that racetracks utilize in not putting in the effort to do things like off-track betting ADWs and instead giving it out to a third party and getting only a small piece back. Again, they don t want to do the work. These racetracks all missed an opportunity and they hurt this game by not doing it right. When you give control of your product to a third party and bank only a couple of pennies because it means you don t have to do anything, you are giving control of your product away and you don t know what position that is going to put you in economically. Every time these racetracks take a couple of extra pennies from the ADWs, even if it is split with the horsemen, it is a bad business decision. When the ADWs started, the parent organization, if it was the USTA that had the power to do it, should ve established one central ADW economies of cost and whatever the handle was at Yonkers, that portion would go to Yonkers, Meadowlands would get its share, but it all comes out of one central hub so you consolidate your costs. They didn t do that. Before you know it, the people you went into business with, whether it is sports betting or something else, they are going to make money on something else and there goes your product. This industry needs to learn to keep control of its product and work at it, not just farm it off to outside sources for a couple of cents. Can you see a harness world where all tracks, horsemen and commissions work together like in MLB, NFL, etc.? Yeah, I could see a world like that, but it is going to be a long road to get to it. Everybody has their own selfish interests and they don t want to sit down to work things out, but that would be the right way to do it. Would I put it in the hands of a Czar to control everything? Absolutely not. That will never do, because the Czar makes mistakes and you end up suffering. You can end up with a strong Czar who favors one part of the industry or thinks it is really good to farm out your product to make a couple of pennies and makes decisions like that. Then you would be very sad you had a Czar. So, could and should everyone work together? You bet your life they should. Then at least they can sit down and blame themselves for the mistakes they made collectively instead of saying the racetrack operators or the horsemen or the breeders screwed it up. Mike Lizzi Joe Faraldo drove Tough Get Going to victory in the $15,000 North American Amateur Drivers Association final in December. that the hockey stadium or whatever they want to build there is having some difficulties. That may go down the tubes. So I hold out hopes for Belmont or a new mile racetrack in Orange County or I d be very happy to stay where I am, but I do think a bigger track would help us more and provide more options. Did your amateur driving career go the way you expected when you started? I never envisioned it as a career. It s not a career. It is a way to keep people invested in the sport, to buy horses, to employ trainers who employ drivers. It keeps us in the game. An owner s basic role is to pay bills. When you drive as an amateur and drive poorly, you have more of a reason to stay in the game. A lot of these amateur drivers, myself, Joe Pennachio, Dean Spriggs, Steve Olford, Dave Offenberg, Joe Lee, these guys buy horses and that is important for the game. If we couldn t do amateur driving, we probably wouldn t have the same desire to stay in the game and pay bills. What do you think are the prospects of harness racing for the future? I heard a guy say once that for 150 years we ve been trying to kill the sport and we haven t, so it must have some inherent value. So I see it continuing, perhaps on a smaller scale. Unless somebody puts in some effort and comes up with some creative things, I see it on a reduced level. Some racetracks may be forced out of business and some may have to curtail their schedules or not overlap race dates and things like that, but I see it continuing. How do you think the infusion of money into the Meadowlands purse account will affect Yonkers and the horse population? It is another competitor. Because of money and proximity our competitors have basically been Pocono and Chester. Now The Meadowlands will add $40,000 and eventually $80,000 to its two days of racing and that will help. Anything that helps the game, I support, even if it means extra competition. We just have to roll up our sleeves and work a little harder to get the horse population to support Yonkers Raceway. Follow What are the odds that the Yonkers Raceway meet is eventually conducted outside of Yonkers? I would say it is a 50/50 shot. I keep talking about Belmont. I ve seen DRF Harness Weekend 7 February 28, 2019

8 Eugene Oldford, 86, dies By Ken Weingartner, USTA Eugene D. Gene Oldford, 86, whose career in harness racing as a breeder, owner, and administrator led to his induction into the Michigan Harness Horsemen s Association Hall of Fame in 2013 as well as numerous other accolades, passed away peacefully on Feb. 25, 2019, at Blue Water Hospice Home in Michigan. Mr. Oldford was a longtime member of the MHHA board of directors, past president of Harness Horsemen International, and member of the U.S. Trotting Association. He received the 2014 HHI Person of the Year Award as well as multiple honors from MHHA including Board Member of the Year, Owner of the Year, and an Appreciation Award. Among his favorite horses was Godiva Hall, a multiple-stakes-winner and world-record-setting female trotter, in the mid-2000s. Other top horses included pacers Billmar Scooter and Park Avenue. His current group of horses included stakes-winners Two AM and Chin Chin Hall, a 3-year-old trotter who is eligible to this summer s Hambletonian. His son Stephen is a U.S. Trotting Association director and amateur driving champion. Eugene D. Oldford was born to parents Stephen and Clara (Hallett) Oldford on July 28, 1932, in Detroit. He graduated from Croswell- Lexington High School in 1950 and attended St. Clair County Jr. College and the University of Michigan. He served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War and was stationed in Panama. Mr. Oldford, along with his brother Bill, acquired Huron Tool and Manufacturing, now Huron Inc., in Lexington, from their father Stephen in The company was sold to US Industries in He founded Oldford and Associates, an automotive manufacturer s representative sales firm, in 1973 where he continued to work until his unexpected death. He was also co-founder of Black River Manufacturing, Port Huron, along with partners Jarold Hawks and Isaac Lang Jr. Always active in his community, Mr. Oldford served in various leadership roles on the Worth Township Board, Boy Scouts of America, Jaycees, Croswell-Lexington Little League, Masonic Lodge and Trinity Episcopal Church. Over the years, he gave generously to his community establishing the Stephen and Clara Oldford Scholarship fund to assist students attending St. Clair County Community College. Mr. Oldford is survived by his three children, Stephen (Gale), Susan Zappa and Laurie. He was blessed with five loving grandchildren, Michelle (Manny) Chavez, Troy (Kelly), Kara, Joey Zappa and Vincent; and three great-grandchildren; Alex Chavez, Bensen Chavez, and Brooklyn. He is also survived by special friend, Nancy Edmonson; brother, William; sister-in-law, Jill Meyers; niece, Kathy (Gwen) Johansen; and nephews, Will (Ann Marie) and Douglas (Amy) Gough. He was preceded in death by Sandra S., Barbara L. Edwards and Joseph R. Zappa. Mr. Oldford was a loving and generous man who made friends wherever he went. He deeply loved his family and friends and lived a very active and full life. Please join the family to celebrate Gene s life. A visitation will take place on Friday (March 1) at the Pomeroy Funeral Home in Lexington from 2-9 p.m. On Saturday (March 2), a funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. in Trinity Episcopal Church, Lexington, with visitation in the church beginning at 10 a.m. until the time of the service. Memorials contributions may be made to Trinity Episcopal Church, Project Blessing, Blue Water Hospice, The Harness Racing Museum and Hall of Fame or New Vocations Racehorse Adoption Program. RACE 6 (6) PAPPY GO GO just missed versus a better group last week and should be able to take care of business on the class drop tonight. -Derick Giwner RACE 8 (6) BETTOR MEMORIES has looked good in his two return starts, including last week s no-chance effort where he came home with plenty; Nifty Norman trainee seems to have a big chance tonight. -Matt Rose RACE 10 (1) SHAMBALLA finished willingly in a good comeback mile versus a much better field last week. As long as he is kept in striking position, this race should be his for the taking. -Giwner RACE 6 (1) MANOFMANYIMAGES drops to a likely spot considering he won a couple of levels higher as recently as six starts back. -Garnet Barnsdale Friday, MARCH 1 Saturday, MARCH 2 full card analysis / past performances Meadowlands (FRI) Analysis Meadowlands (SAT) Analysis Mohawk Park (FRI) Analysis Mohawk Park (SAT) Analysis Yonkers (FRI) Analysis Yonkers (SAT) DHP PPs harness eye PPs trackmaster PPs Analysis FREE PPS Derick Giwner & Matt Rose discuss the Friday F&M Open at Yonkers & Saturday Preferred at The Meadowlands. DRF Harness Weekend 8 February 28, 2019

9 2019 UPCOMING HARNESS STAKES SCHEDULE DATE TRACK FEATURE RACES PURSE (Est. unless G) 03/25/2019 Yonkers Petticoat Final - 3 & 4YO F&M 50,000 (Added) 03/26/2019 Yonkers Sagamore Final - 3 & 4YO 50,000 (Added) 04/01/2019 Dover DSBF Final (3YO C&F Trot) 100,000 04/03/2019 Dover DSBF Final (3YO C&F Pace) 100,000 04/20/2019 Yonkers George Morton Levy - FFA Pace 200,000 (Added) Blue Chip Matchmaker (Added) 04/23/2019 Yonkers SOA Bonus Trot 55,000 (Added) 05/04/2019 Meadowlands AJ Cutler Memorial - FFA 200,000 Graduate Leg - 4YO Pace 75,000 Pocono Van Rose Memorial - Open Pace 30,000 Freehold Dexter Cup - 3YO Open Trot 130,000 Lady Suffolk - 3YO Filly Trot 75,000 05/06/2019 Miami Valley Miami Valley Distaff - Mare Trot 100,000 Chip Noble Memorial - Mare Pace 100,000 05/11/2019 Yonkers Reynolds - 3YO C&F Pace 60,000/65,000 05/18/2019 Rosecroft Maryland Sire Stakes Finals - 3YO (4 races) 67,000 Meadowlands Graduate Leg - 4YO Open Trot 75,000 Mohawk Ontario SBOA Finals - 3YO F Pace & Trot 120,000 05/19/2019 Flamboro Confederation Cup - 4YO Open Pace 180,000 05/20/2019 Mohawk Miss Versatility - Mare Trot 40,000 05/24/2019 The Meadows Currier & Ives - 3YO Open Trot (divs) 110,000 05/25/2019 Yonkers Art Rooney - 3YO Open Pace 300,000G Lismore - 3YO Filly Pace 100,000G 05/26/2019 Solvalla Elitloppet 1,000,000G Philly Betsy Ross - Open Mares 150,000 Maxie Lee - Open Trot 150,000 Commodore Barry - Invitational 150,000 05/27/2019 Vernon Empire Breeders Classic Final - 3YOF Filly Trot 250,000 Empire Breeders Classic Final - 3YOF Colt Trot 250,000 05/31/2019 Meadowlands NJ Sire Stakes Finals - 3YO (4 races) 75,000/125,000 Western Fair Camluck Classic - Open Invitational 150,000G 06/01/2019 The Meadows Currier & Ives - 3YO Filly Trot (divs) 75,000 Mohawk Somebeachsomewhere - 3YO Open (divs) 180,000 Graduate - 4YO Pace/Trot 75,000 06/08/2019 Northfield Battle of Lake Erie - Invitational Pace 200,000 06/09/2019 Tioga Graduate - 4YO Pace/Trot 75,000 06/15/2019 Mohawk North America Cup - 3YO Open Pace 1,000,000G Fan Hanover - 3YO Filly Pace 425,000 Roses R Red - Mare Pace 370,000 Armbro Flight - Mare Trot 250,000 Goodtimes - 3YO Trot 260,000 Gold Cup - Open Pace 100,000 06/21/2019 Meadowlands Graduate - 4YO Open Trot 75,000 DRF Harness Weekend 9 February 28, 2019

10 NEWS FROM AROUND THE HARNESS INDUSTRY Camluck Classic scheduled for May 31 The Camluck Classic is now less than three months away at The Raceway at Western Fair District and officials at the London oval have released some of the details for the track s Signature event. The Camluck Classic is a $150,000 Invitational Pace which headlines the Closing Night program. The event will move back to its traditional Friday night time slot on May 31st after switching to a Saturday night last year. The powerful undercard will include the Ontario Sires Stakes for three-year-old filly pacers, a quartet of City Of London Series finals as well as several Preferred races. Rockin Ron captured the inaugural Camluck Classic in 2018 in a track-record time of 1:50.1 for driver Louis Philippe Roy and trainer Ron Burke. The $1.6 million winner is expected back to defend his title while local stars such as Jimmy Freight and Sintra are also on management s radar. -edited release (Western Fair) SBOANJ announces breeder incentives for 2019 The Standardbred Breeders and Owners Association of New Jersey will again offer a resident mare rebate as well as pacing stallion incentive program in SBOANJ membership is required to qualify for all programs. The resident mare rebate is $500 to owners of mares bred in A mare does not have to be bred to a New Jersey stallion, but must reside in New Jersey for 150 days up to and including foaling. Proof of foaling in New Jersey via U.S. Trotting Association registration is required. The mare rebate program will be capped at $100,000. The pacing stallion incentive program will rebate 15 percent of the advertised stud fee, up to $1,500, to the breeder of record as per the breeding contract. Stallions must breed at least 5 mares to be eligible for the rebate. Private treaties will receive a $250 rebate. The pacing stallion rebate program will be capped at $150,000. Programs may be increased if additional state funding becomes available. Please call the SBOANJ office at with any questions. -release (SBOANJ) Pocono stable gate opens March 1 Spring is just around the corner, and the Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono is getting the stable area ready for our valued horsemen, with the gates officially opening for the 54th season on Friday, March 1, 2019 at 7:30 a.m. All horsemen must have a valid Pennsylvania Horse Racing Commission license, which must be presented upon entry at all times. In addition, per Paddock Judge/Stall Superintendent Luann Sensenbach, all paperwork must be on file with the stall office, and may be faxed to For stall rental, call Applications for racing privileges may be submitted here. Applications must be submitted for horses nominated to the Late and Early Closing events before entering to race. If a trainer has not raced at the Downs prior, the entry may not be accepted if a racing application is not on file. The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono stable area features an excellent training track; tack shop and farriers; two veterinary clinics; laundry facilities; and a secure area with a guard on the premises 24 hours a day. The first Qualifiers of the season are Tuesday, March 5th; Thursday, March 7th; and Wednesday, March 13th. Racing opens for the season at the 5/8 mile track on Saturday, March 16th, and continues in March on Tuesdays, Saturdays, and Sundays, with no racing on Sunday, March 17th. In April, the track moves to the regular schedule of Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and Saturday. Saturday and Sunday post is 7:00pm, and Monday and Tuesday is 4:00pm. -edited release (Pocono) DRF Harness Weekend 10 February 28, 2019 MGM reveals new logo for Northfield Park During a pep rally for employees of Hard Rock Rocksino Northfield Park, MGM Resorts International executives shared the future name, logo and other details around exciting changes to take place at the property following the acquisition s close in April. With a name symbolic of MGM Resorts legacy as an entertainment and hospitality leader, MGM Northfield Park will be integrated into the company s portfolio of best-in-class gaming and entertainment destinations. MGM Resorts is proud to work alongside the 950 dedicated employees during this transition. MGM Northfield Park is situated in a great location within a vibrant community and offers wonderful amenities - from dining and entertainment venues to gaming, harness racing and retail options said Chris Kelley, President, MGM Northfield Park. -edited release (Northfield) Scott Warren named Meadowlands Racing Secretary Scott Warren has been named Racing Secretary at The Meadowlands beginning March 1, succeeding Peter Koch who departs to pursue another opportunity. Mr. Warren hails from Berlin, Maryland where he began working in the Racing Office at Ocean Downs as a teen. This venture led to a 17-year stint on the Maryland Standardbred circuit; first as a Race Office Assistant followed by track announcer at the aforementioned establishment prior to taking over as Racing Secretary at Rosecroft Raceway. He relocated his skill sets to Vernon Downs to serve as the Racing Secretary in 2011 and was eventually named Director of Racing handling many racing related responsibilities including calling the races since the 2015 season. During his new assignment with Meadowlands Racing and Entertainment, Warren will continue serving as the race secretary at Vernon Downs. READ MORE By-law changes part of USHWA s national meeting The United States Harness Writers Association, the leading organization of harness racing s chroniclers, held its annual meetings at the Rosen Shingle Creek Resort in Orlando, Fla., for the second consecutive year this past Saturday and Sunday. The writers meetings were held in conjunction with the group s annual Dan Patch Awards banquet, which on Sunday evening celebrated the best and brightest of the sport during the 2018 racing campaign. READ MORE Mandatory Hi-5 payout scheduled for Sunday at Pompano Assuming no single winner hits the Jackpot Hi-5 on Thursday night (2/28) at Pompano Park, there will be north of a $155,000 carryover awaiting bettors on Sunday evening in the final race on the program. The 20-cent minimum wager will be offered in race 12 on Sunday, with the track also including a $30,000 guaranteed Pick 4 in races 5 to 8. Both wagers offer an industry low takeout of 12 percent. Live racing begins at 7:20 p.m. 82 nominated to 2019 North America Cup Woodbine Entertainment today announced that 82 3-year-old pacers have been nominated to the 36th edition of the C$1 million Pepsi North America Cup. The Pepsi North America Cup is Canada s richest harness race and this year s edition is scheduled for Saturday, June 15 at Woodbine Mohawk Park. The eliminations for the final will take place a week prior on Saturday, June 8. READ MORE