One of the biggest stories in the world of harness racing this week was the snow storms that laid a heavy blanket of the white stuff over most of the northeastern United States. There were track cancellations aplenty, and Winbak Farm has released pictures of the effect the storms have had on its Chesapeake City, Maryland location
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"From Friday to Saturday (February 5 to 6) we had our first storm that dumped about two and a half feet," Leigh Nichol, Winbak's public relations and marketing representative, told Trot Insider. "A State of Emergency was issued in Maryland and Delaware. Only employees who lived on the farm were able to work and were pretty much on call 24/7."
Nichol told Trot Insider that there was a break in the falling of the snow, but another blizzard was quickly bearing down on the sprawling facility.
"On Tuesday (February 9) everything was clear. Then, Tuesday night, the snow started again with another storm, dumping snow and blizzard-like conditions all day Wednesday equalling up to a foot and a half (of snow). This time it was worse because the wind was pushing the snow everywhere, closing roads even this morning. It was a state of emergency in both states again. And once again those who lived on the farm were on call 24/7.
"Our maintenance crew stayed at the farm non-stop throughout the week, taking shift to plow and push snow out of the way. Those of us who did not live on the farm returned to work this morning."
In terms of the horses, they stayed level headed throughout the weather and made the most out of it.
"The horses pretty much used their shelter," Nichol explained. "We had only a handful of babies born this week, and now the horses are out exploring but only in herds -- you don't see a stray horse here and there.
"Things are pretty serene right now, and managers are spending the day scanning the fields and barns for damages, checking the horses for comfort."
