The United States Harness Writers Association (USHWA), the group of the industry’s communicators who are the primary voters on Hall of Fame and year-end honours, is announcing a special Dan Patch Virtual Awards Show, to be held on Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021, from 5 to 6 p.m.
The Dan Patch Awards Show can be watched live on USHWA’s Facebook page, as well as through the Meadowlands simulcast signal, on the track’s website and through the RTN broadcast network. The next day, it will be archived and available on the USTA’s YouTube channel.
The Dan Patch Awards would normally be given at the writers’ annual Dan Patch Banquet in association with their national meetings, but there will be no banquet this year due to health/travel concerns and the USHWA meetings will be held electronically.
The 12 divisional winners in the Racehorse categories — along with Trotter of the Year, Pacer of the Year and the prestigious E.R. Harriman Harness Horse of the Year — will be announced on the awards show, along with the Norman Woolworth Owner, Driver and Breeder of the Year, and the Trotting and Pacing Broodmares of the year.
Nancy Takter, nominated as the Glen Garnsey Trainer of the Year by every chapter of USHWA and its at-large membership, was thus automatically declared the winner of that award. In addition, the Fair Island Farm Caretaker of the Year will be featured.
Media releases on all the winners, both human and equine, will be distributed after the show is completed. No winners in any of these categories will be released before the Awards Show.
(USHWA)