The cat’s out of the bag: BarnCat Trivia is launching as a weekly event presented year-round starting Wednesday, Feb. 2 at 7 p.m. EST.

BarnCat Trivia is a live interactive trivia gameshow for harness racing enthusiasts. It will be presented online one night each week, year-round. The show is offered on Wednesdays in February. The schedule switches to Sundays for the rest of the year starting February 27.

BarnCat Trivia is free to play on February 2 and during Free Play Days (the first Sunday of each month). A subscription of $10/month provides access to all weekly games.

 The concept was trialed for four shows at the start of the pandemic in 2020 as a response to the shutdown of racing across North America. 

“Racing participants and fans were starved for content,” said creator Kelly Spencer. “We slapped the program together very quickly to fill that void for fans. The feedback we collected from players indicated there was an appetite for more. We’ve refined the show and given it a permanent timeslot so fans can really sink their teeth into it week after week.”

 In this new permanent rendition of BarnCat Trivia, each gameshow is 60 minutes and features 40 multiple-choice questions presented in four rounds. The trivia is 100 per cent harness racing content, with new questions presented each week. Players log into the game portal to watch the show and compete against fellow harness racing fans. Scores are tallied and presented to players in real time. Prizes are awarded randomly throughout each game and to the highest scorers.

An online show corresponds with each game featuring a host and interviews with special guests, including James MacDonald (February 2) and Randy Waples (February 9). The show and the game are presented together so players can access the whole experience from just one device.

 A preview of the debut show on February 2 is available below. 

BarnCat Trivia is executive-produced by True Nature Communications Inc., which is owned by Spencer, who also hosts and produces the show. Rachel Oenema is a co-producer.

 The CoolCats Program is a feature of BarnCat Trivia, which invites players to submit messages, photos and trivia questions to be used during the shows while providing support for the Ontario Standardbred Adoption Society and the Standardbred Transition Alliance.

For additional information about how to play BarnCat Trivia, click here or email [email protected] with any questions.

BarnCat Trivia is supported by the Central Ontario Standardbred Association, Standardbred Canada's TrackIT, Harness Racing Update, TheStable.ca and the Hambletonian Society. 

SC members can get 50 per cent off the first month’s subscription.  Visit  barncattrivia.com/sc50 then hit the SUBSCRIBE NOW button and apply the coupon code SC50 at checkout.

(With files from True Nature Communications)