Dave Briggs, writing for Canadian Sportsman magazine, and Mike Tanner, writing for Hoof Beats, were named the winners in the 51st annual John Hervey Awards for excellence in harness racing journalism, the U.S. Harness Writers Association announced Friday.

Mark Hall of Hoof Beats and Dave Landry of Canadian Sportsman were the winners in the 13th annual George Smallsreed Awards for excellence in harness racing photography.

Television station WQED, located in Pittsburgh, won the 29th edition of the John Hervey Award for excellence in broadcasting for a feature on Dave Palone becoming the winningest driver in North American harness racing history.

Briggs won the feature writing category for his story titled “Nobody’s Token,” which recounted trainer Linda Toscano’s historic Hambletonian Stakes win and appeared in the Aug. 23 issue of Canadian Sportsman. Briggs has been awarded a record five Hervey honours.

Lauren Lee, writing for Canadian Sportsman, and John Berry, writing for Hoof Beats, received honourable mention in the feature category.

Lee’s story, “Fashioning a Legacy,” about Fashion Farms appeared in the Sept. 13 issue of Canadian Sportsman. Berry’s story, “Double Longshot,” about the relationship between teenager Kelby Barranco, who suffers from microcephaly and cerebral palsy, and trotting mare Emmas Pearl, who overcame long odds to make it to the races, appeared in the May issue of Hoof Beats.

Tanner, writing in the April issue of Hoof Beats, won for his column “Lucky Larry,” a personalized account of race announcer Larry Lederman’s coping with an inoperable brain tumor.

Lee, writing for Canadian Sportsman, again received honourable mention for her story “Seventh Wonder” about Chapter Seven’s Breeders Crown win, which appeared in the Nov. 15 issue of the magazine.

The writing categories were judged by a panel consisting of multiple Eclipse Award-winning writer Tom Keyser, Dorf Feature Service newsroom assistant/writer Lou Monaco and Philadelphia Inquirer Sports Editor John Quinn.

Hall won the race photography category for a photo from the sulky of Dave Palone in the bike, which appeared on the cover of the July issue of Hoof Beats. Hall has won four Smallsreed awards.

Joseph Kyle received honourable mention for a race photograph of My MVP and driver Mike Lachance on their way to victory in the Kentucky Futurity, which appeared in the Oct. 10 issue of The Horseman and Fair World magazine.

Landry won the feature photography category for a photo of Hambletonian winning driver Tim Tetrick gazing at his three-month-old daughter Trysta Lilly sitting in the Hambletonian trophy. The photo appeared in the Aug. 23 issue of Canadian Sportsman.

Hall received honourable mention for a barn scene at Lebanon Raceway, which appeared in the December 2011 issue of Hoof Beats.

The photography categories were judged by a panel consisting of multiple Eclipse Award-winning photographer Barbara Livingston, former harness racing groom and longtime newspaper/magazine photographer Phil McAuliffe and photographer/college instructor Jerry Millevoi.

In the broadcast category, WQED’s feature on Dave Palone was produced by Mike Lee. It originally aired on Nov. 1 on WQED-TV and the news magazine show “Pittsburgh 360.”

Woodbine Entertainment Group received honourable mention for a piece on trainer Linda Toscano leading up to the Breeders Crown. The story, which aired Oct. 27 as part of a Breeders Crown special on The Score, was produced by Charlene Newland for the show’s producer Greg Lanzo.

The broadcast category was judged by multiple Emmy Award-winning producer Bruce Casella, who has covered standardbred and thoroughbred racing throughout his career.

Hervey Award winners will be honoured on Sunday (March 3) at a luncheon during the Harness Congress VI weekend, to be held at the Westin Beach Resort and Spa in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Further information about the Congress and related events, including the Dan Patch Awards banquet, is available at www.ushwa.org.

(USHWA)