Diane Hennessy of Falun, Alta., is the photographer behind the lens of this cheeky photo of four Standardbred yearlings hanging out in the paddock at Rod Hennessy Stables. The photo is featured as the March shot in Standardbred Canada’s Heart of Harness Racing calendar.
Hennessy captured this photo last spring when her brother and sister-in-law were visiting the farm to check out the new foals. “Kevin and Shawna were out visiting the farm, just to get a look at our new babies last spring. Meanwhile, in another paddock, the ever-inquisitive yearlings lined up to say hi and I just happened to take a series of photos.
“In this one, our JK Royal Flush homebred filly, JK Jelly Bean, made that wonderful face,” said Hennessy. “When I saw the photo, I was immediately reminded of my childhood family pictures where my mom would line up her five kids to take a good photo and there was always one of us who would make a face and ruin it for her. Now of course those happen to be the best pictures to look back on.”
Since retiring from the Royal Bank of Canada in 2015, Diane has been spending quality time with her 91-year-old mother and enjoying life at the farm as the wife of one of the most renowned trainers in the west, Rod Hennessy.
“In the 80's our bank [RBC] used to go to the races at Northlands for group events. It was always a lot of fun but I didn't know much about it until I met Rod, 13 years ago. He took me to the races for the first time at Evergreen Park in Grande Prairie. Since then it has been an amazing journey into the horse racing world.”
Before meeting Rod, Diane only ever admired the horses, but since then she has become a huge supporter of the industry and immersed herself in many different aspects of the sport. From cheering on the sidelines to helping out in the breeding shed, Diane doesn’t shy away from any assignment she is given.
“I cheer from the sidelines and try to promote the sport as much as I can. I am the owner of a few race horses, as well as having been a breeder. One of the most wonderful things in the sport is watching your homebreds grow and make it to the races, and when they race well or win, boy does it feel great!”
One of the events that Hennessy enjoys most, but unfortunately missed out on last year, is attending the yearling sales.
“I wish I could buy all of them which is why I am not allowed to bid, but I do dig my elbow many times into Rod's side which unfortunately doesn't work well. Going to the Harrisburg Sale once was an absolute delight, especially coming home with my favourite horse, Cheddar Jack.”
After a long year of ups and downs in the harness racing industry due to the COVID-19 restrictions and lockdowns, Diane is looking forward to the return of racing for good.
“It seems an eternity since I've been able to watch live racing and see all the wonderful people I've come to know in the racing industry. I think that the lack of human contact is the most difficult part of this pandemic, aside from the financial concerns. I can't wait to see people smiling and happy and just enjoying being out and about and cheering on our amazing sport!”