Happy New Year! I spent NYE at Western Fair Raceway with a packed house of racing fans and party-goers. Despite the blistering snow and –18 lows, several braved the elements to watch the last 14 dashes of the year from the grandstand (which is either an illustration of fan devotion or the warming power of the festive drink, or a bit of both).
Congrats to Brad Forward, who scored three wins to bring his 2008 tally to 582, easily securing his reign as the top Canadian dash winning driver of last year.
Time now to set those New Year resolutions. Experts claim that 75 percent of us will break our resolutions by January 4. (Indeed, the well-intentioned 2008 mini-fitness-trampoline has been keeping important boxes off my basement floor for 11.75 months now).
Nonetheless, let’s have a go at it.
My 2009 racing resolutions are:
1. Less complaining:
Yes, times aren’t great on many fronts in the racing industry. But regardless of the ratio of dark vs. light, complaint alone remedies nothing. And, the effects of complaining aren’t benign — they have a definite ripple effect. I consider myself a lightweight industry complainer as is, but endeavor to curb the behaviour entirely. The purple people say, “Your thoughts create your world and your words indicate your thoughts.” (Granted, the purple people are a little creepy, but I think the basic message is still relevant.)
2. And then there were 10
I resolve to introduce at least 10 of my friends and acquaintances to harness racing in 2009 and ensure they are sufficiently wowed and infected by the racing bug.
Feel free to add your own racing resolutions for the New Year. Enjoy the first day of ’09!
Number 1 racing resolution
Number 1 racing resolution for myself:
I will train more seriously this year. As an ex-lazy race bummer, I promise and cross my heart!
FOCUS, FOCUS, FOCUS.
Let's get back at these resolutions a year from now, shall we? ;-)
I agree with "Mr. Karper"
I agree with "Mr. Karper" ... You certainly do more than your share of promoting this sport Kelly, (THANK YOU), and I challenge all "horsemen" to do exactly what you propose.
Even if one out of every five people involved in this sport took the initiative this year, and followed that model, there would be thousands of people exposed to this sport that otherwise wouldn't even have it register on their radar.
Not just the owners either, we need "everyone", to bring a friend to the track, grooms, trainers, drivers etc.
Everyone involved, wants to see this sport, not just hang on by the skin of its teeth, but actually prosper and thrive. We should all welcome and relish this resolution.
If you demand a living from this sport, then you owe it to yourself, and this industry, to put forth a minimum effort to see that it continues for the next generation !
Make this the year of "The New Fans of Harness Racing" year.
I have created a Facebook group called New Fans of Harness Racing 2009 ...join and lets see how many "new fans" we can get out to the track.
Myself and "Two New" fans/friends are going to Truro Raceway tomorrow afternoon (Jan 04 2009)... see you at the track!
P.S. Oh ya, "less complaining"? ... That should be a no brainer.
Great Blog Kelly. I did my
Great Blog Kelly. I did my ten last year and I'm aiming for 20 this year.Next time I have a horse racing at Woodbine,my son who lives in downtown Toronto is inviting everybody he knows (well,at least some).
You are right..let's all be positive and promote the good things about harness racing.That is now on my resolution list.
My resolution is to do
My resolution is to do whatever I can in my power to see more Kelly Spencers involved in promoting our game.
Great resolutions!
Great resolutions! Hopefully everyone will agree and stick to them. Positive thinking is the only way to move forward.