Hundreds of racing advocates introduced new people to Canadian harness racing this past weekend during the third annual Bring A Friend National Challenge.

If you brought someone new to the races give yourself a pat on the back. Your willingness to showcase your connection to racing is what drives this event!

The initiative, coordinated by Standardbred Canada and hosted by eleven enthusiastic tracks across the country challenged members of the industry to introduce friends and family to the sport.

Through individual participation and the VIP on track experiences coordinated by the racetracks, the 2015 Bring a Friend weekend proved to be very successful.

This year’s four-day promotion kicked off at New Brunswick’s Fredericton Raceway on Thursday night with a full menu of offers for guests including rides in the starting gate car, winner’s circle presentations, behind-the-scenes tours, free programs, free $2 bets, a driver meet and greet, handicapping workshop and face painting and pony rides for the kids.

According to Sam Hodgin, one of the event organizers, “We had a great night, very good turn out, and lots of families.”

On Friday night, the Bring A Friend action shifted to Elora, Ontario and Grand River Raceway, where fans and their guests could enter draws for rides in the starting gate car, winners’ circle presentations, paddock tours and behind the scenes tours, and prize draws. There were also free $2 bets for the first 50 registered check-ins.

On Saturday night, Hanover Raceway, Hiawatha Horse Park, Kawartha Downs, Mohawk Racetrack and Northside Downs pulled out all the stops to offer a fantastic time at the races for fans and guests.

Hanover Raceway boasted their biggest crowd of the year for Bring A Friend night, which included close to 30 friends who visited Hanover for the first time and registered for special prizes, including a ride in the starting car as well as prize draws.

At Hiawatha Horse Park in Sarnia, Ontario, fans could enter a variety of draws for prizes, rides in the starting gate car, winner’s circle presentations, paddock tours and behind-the-scenes tours that took place throughout the night.

At Kawartha Downs, in Fraserville, Ontario, each newcomer and the friend who accompanied them were given a free program and Doug McPherson’s tip sheet along with a $2 betting voucher. Well over 100 of each were distributed. They were also eligible for draws for rides in the starting car, paddock tours, dinner for two in the Kawartha Downs’ dining room.

Mohawk Racetrack in Campbellville, Ontario, featured a meet and greet with some of Ontario’s top drivers trackside, including Jody Jamieson, Doug McNair, James MacDonald and Sylvain Filion, as well as free programs for the first 100 guests and free $2 bets. Racing fans and any of the hosts and guests for BAF night had a chance to drive a racehorse or a miniature horse in a double seated jogger.

Kaneisha De Leon, Events Coordinator for Woodbine Entertainment Group was very happy with the Mohawk turnout. "It was heart-warming to see the racing fans bring their friends and families out to the track to share their love of Standardbred Racing."

Northside Downs in North Sydney, Nova Scotia, kicked off their event with a meet and greet with some of the track’s top drivers, free programs for the first 20 guests and a free $2 bet for the first 30 guests. There were also draws throughout the card for rides in the starting gate car, behind the scenes tours and more.

Tracks that took part in the BAF promotion on Sunday were Century Downs, Clinton Raceway, Rideau Carleton and Truro Raceway.

Century Downs was a new participant to Bring A Friend this year as a part of their first season at the Rocky View, Alberta oval. They hosted a variety of promotions trackside for racing guests including a t-shirt toss after each race, draws for starting gate rides throughout the afternoon and a betting basics course on hand for those new to wagering.

Clinton Raceway gave out free programs and $2 bets for the first 50 guests, as well as draws throughout the day for winner’s circle presentations and behind the scenes tours.They also offered bounce back coupons for free programs and $2 bets.

Rideau Carleton Raceway in Ottawa, Ontario treated the first 100 guests to discounts on food, gave out tip sheets and offered draws throughout the night for rides in the starting gate car, and some great prizes.

Diane Daniels, coordinator of the event at Truro Raceway in Truro, was pleased with their track’s results. “We were very satisfied with the turnout...we had 20 people come out who had never attended the races before. Some of them enjoyed the fish & chips dinner; they were given free tip sheets and taught how to wager. All in all, it was a fun day!”

To view more photos from Bring A Friend weekend, click the following link: Bring A Friend National Challenge Photo Gallery.

BRING A FRIEND $200 PRIZE PACKAGE WINNER

Jennifer Clark, from Ponoka, Alberta, won the contest for the $200 prize package. For anyone who pre-registered for Bring A Friend, they were entered into a draw to win a $100 betting voucher or gift card for the racetrack of their choice, a $50 gift card for the Fan Club Swag Store and a $50 TrackIT credit.

Jennifer hosted her Mom and daughter, both first timers at Century Downs. “My Mom, Brenda was a groom for thoroughbreds many years ago. She got me into racehorses as a teenager. It's been quite a few years since she's been near a racetrack. Coming from a thoroughbred background she was impressed with the calmness of the Standardbred breed. Her last years with horse racing was when Stampede Park was active. She mentioned how nice Century Downs has turned out to be.”

Jennifer and her daughter Sadie drove over two hours to meet up with Brenda, who lives in Calgary. “We had a great day yesterday. Ended up with swag bags from Century Downs which included a T-shirt and coffee mug.”

Jennifer is a Standardbred owner / breeder. She grew up working with Thoroughbreds and only recently discovered how much she loved the Standardbred breed. Three years ago she got her first Standardbred and now she owns six.

Congratulations to Jennifer and thank you to everyone else who pre-registered!

BRING A FRIEND PHOTO CONTEST

The I Love Canadian Harness Racing Fan Club’s July Zoom theme is 'Friends at the Track' and ties in with The Bring A Friend promotion that took place this past weekend.

We’re looking for photos that showed you and your friends trackside during the Bring A Friend promotion. It could be a shot of your friend placing their first bet, cheering on a horse or taking part in the various activities hosted at the tracks. It can be a shot of anything that captured the exciting four-day event in Canadian harness racing.

Submit your entries by July 27 to [email protected]! A committee will select a handful of the best entries, which will be included in a poll on SC’s website. The club will also post the entries on its Facebook page. Readers will then have the chance to vote for the photo they like the best.

The monthly winner will receive a great Fan Club Swag Prize package ($50 value) and the six monthly winners will be eligible to win a Grand Prize, which will include a $50 gift card to the racetrack of their choice and an enlargement of their winning photo framed or plaque mounted.