It is Tuesday after the weekend of Adrenaline and there is time to reflect. It is a weird day because the workload has lessened dramatically. For the past couple of months there was so much to do it feels like we had been going at it 24/7.
Adrenaline felt like a prized yearling...an untested product with high expectations. Adrenaline, like a yearling turning two, took months of preparation. The development period of Adrenaline and training process of a young two-year-old, keep you positive but you never know if they will turn out to be the success you want no matter how hard you work or how diligent you have been in taking care of every detail.
I have never been a trainer but I have observed many trainers as they work through the months of preparation in developing their stake horses for those few opportunities in the season that define success or failure. I can feel for the pressure of being the trainer of the favourite for the big stake race who has done everything in his/her power to prepare the mighty horse for the race. The stress of potential injury or illness to the horse as you close in on the race must keep the trainers up at night or the potential let down from your horse not performing to the expected level.
I have felt that stress especially over the past couple of months as we prepared Adrenaline for its unveiling last weekend. Adrenaline was the first of its kind and the expectations were high. We reviewed every detail time and time again; we coordinated with so many people and companies that were required for Adrenaline, it seemed impossible to keep up.
As we approached the launch of Adrenaline, like the trainer of the big horse, we feared that something could go wrong and we would not be successful.
Well, just like a quarter crack on the prized horse, Adrenaline suffered a little injury called rain. Not enough to shut us down but enough to keep us from being our best.
We began Thursday afternoon with a monsoon that passed through Sarnia with some areas reporting tornados. Fortunately it subsided and we were able to put on a pretty good show for the races Thursday night. The handle matched the previous Thursday handle so considering the weather, a pretty good start. Friday had us waking to clouds and reports of thunderstorms all day. We waited nervously hoping the weather would change for the races but it never got nice and rain threatened all night.
We all did what was possible to encourage good weather Saturday but alas, we woke to clouds, periods of rain, possible thunderstorms and a cold 15 degrees for the high. This killed our Saturday crowd during the day but we were presented with decent weather in the evening for a great night of racing. However the day was lost when we had hoped to attract our largest crowds.
Then we thought our family day had to bring a better fate with regards to rain…after all who would rain on all the fun for those kids. Well this year nothing could stop good old Mother Nature and she dumped rain on us most of the day hampering crowds again.
Well like the big horse when you suffer a little injury or illness, you can only go back and review all the things you did right or things that could be improved and plan the future accordingly.
Adrenaline was not able to hit on all cylinders this year but it did show the kind of potential that the great young horse does. The festival events came off well and the public enjoyed the time they could around the rain.
The goal of Adrenaline was to attract a younger crowd, which was achieved and a significant number of people were at the races for the first time. We are waiting for the survey results to come in but just from interaction from the crowd it was easy to tell we had achieved our goal.
You will see much more about Adrenaline in the coming weeks as we finalize the reports.
Of course like the horse trainer, being the Festival Manager is just a small part of a fantastic operation and I want to thank the whole team who worked so hard to make the Adrenaline events a success and to make the people who attended feel great about our sport. I am sure we will see many of them returning to Hiawatha in the future.
I also want to applaud all the people who are trainers or grooms in this wonderful sport. For these people it is not a job it is a passion. I have never met a group of people more dedicated to their jobs and the well being of the horses they care for.
Until the next time join the crusade!