Standardbreds in Slovenia – who'd have thunk it?
What did you think of the results of the recent Slovenian Trotting Derby?
What? You missed it? You got busy grilling burgers outside that day and it slipped your mind?
What? You didn't even know that they raced trotters in Slovenia?
What? You don't really know where in the heck Slovenia is?
Relax, I suppose that the Slovenian Trotting Derby doesn't have quite the same impact on your harness racing calendar as the North America Cup or Hambletonian, but they do indeed race trotters in Slovenia.
And for your information, Slovenia is a tiny European nation tucked down on the Adriatic Sea with Italy to its west, Austria to the north, and Crotia to the south and east. It was part of the former Yugoslavia.
Trotting isn't huge in Slovenia, but with a population of only two million people in the entire country, you wouldn't expect it to be. But there are a dozen different trotting "clubs" that organize racing on nine different tracks. They race about 200 days each year.
There are 150 licensed drivers in Slovenia and a like number of owners. (Many drivers are surely also owners.) There are 120 breeders.
The capital of Slovenia is Ljubljana and it's located smack dab in the center of the country.
Oh, yeah, you're probably dying to know the results of the 2008 Slovenian Trotting Derby, aren't you?\
Well, it was won by Made For Me, a four-year-old Swedish-bred son of Super Arnie out of the Smokin Yankee mare Smokin Lady.
Second was the Dutch-bred Wine And Blues, a horse sired by a French stallion from a mare by Spotlite Lobell (Speedy Somolli). Third was Walkie Talkie, a son of Incredible Crafts. (Incredible Crafts is a grandson of Nevele Pride and the dam of Walkie Talkie is by Nevele Impulse, a son of Nevele Pride).
It was truly an international race as there were horses bred in Austria, Hungary, Germany, France, and the Czech Republic. The first three finishers were owned in the Czech Republic. There were 14 horses in the field going a distance of 2,800 metres or about 1.7 miles.
The purse was minimal and the time wasn't impressive. What is impressive to me, however, is that harness racing exists in this tiny enclave and that it's said to be growing in popularity. While I haven't been to Slovenia, the photos I've seen show the racing to be much like North American racing with modern sulkies and drivers equipped with silks and helmets that look quite professional. The best horses are still imported from other nations, but it takes time to build a strong breed within a country.
Harness racing turns up in the darnedest places.
Dean Hoffman, one of North America's most prolific harness racing journalists and member of the U.S. Harness Racing Hall of Fame, offers SC website readers his weekly look at international standardbred racing through his eyes.