I consider myself to be a realist, and that’s probably why I’ve used this column more and more over the past few years, to complain, and/or call out our industry leaders if you will, about the decline in interest in our sport, and what’s being done about it.
To name just a few, I’ve written about the importance of putting people back into the seats at our racetracks; keeping open or re-opening our backstretches; speeding up the time between races; holding tracks accountable; creating four-year-old stakes events to help with horse population, and so on.
More and more I also get positive feedback on these columns from more of you, and it’s greatly appreciated. It seems like there’s a ground-swell of people reaching out and telling me that they’re sick and tired of seeing empty grandstands and stagnant purses, and that they’re worried about our future and want to do something tangible about it.
This kind of feedback inspires me to want to do more, and it reminds me that the will of the typical horseperson is much stronger than that of Joe Blow off the street.
At the same time, however, I don’t want it lost on people that there are many positive things going on out there as well, and that the will of some people in our industry is making them take action.
I was reminded of this when I was recently asked, by my son, who works in the Industry Development Department at Standardbred Canada, to test drive their new Virtual Reality Racebike Simulator, that will be available to the general public at the SC Exhibit in the Agricultural Building at the CNE for 17 days later this summer.
The idea for the VR Racebike came from our friends at the Bill Galvin Racing Alliance (BGRA). I’m someone that has schooled horses off of the gate in real life, dozens of times, and I’m telling you that these simulators are very cool, and give an experience not unlike the real thing. For customers and potential new customers, this experience is truly spectacular.
The people at the BGRA have been exposing people to this for a few years now, while also exposing kids to our horses through an annual open house at the breeding farm of Tom and Elizabeth Rankin, as well as through their Youth Literary Derby, which concludes each year with a big group night at Mohawk Park.
The SC exhibit at this year’s CNE in Toronto, will expose our sport to thousands of people in the general public, through the VR Simulator, pretend horse races for kids - who will compete in the miniature colours of James MacDonald, Doug McNair and Louis-Philippe Roy - kids’ activity books, racing videos and more.
People like Kaitlyn Wesley, in the Maritimes, and Natasha Steacy and Lindsey Kerr, in Ontario, have been promoting mini-pony racing for kids, with races now having taken place at seven or eight different tracks in Canada this year already.
COSA and the Ontario Standardbred Adoption Society (OSAS) are once again working with Woodbine on their ‘Drive A Racehorse’ program, where members of the public can sit behind a horse in a double-seated jog cart on Saturday nights at Mohawk all summer.
These are just four or five examples of positive things going on out there, where our industry is trying to promote itself, and I know that there are several more as well.
It’s not all doom-and-gloom, but like I said, I’m a realist, and although these are positives, we need more - a lot more.
I put together a piece in this very issue (see pg. 48) on Hambletonian #100 and the Canadian successes in the history of the race, and for research I used Dean Hoffman’s book, America’s Trotting Classic. On page 7 of that book, Harry Reno (the man who came up with the idea for The Hambletonian more than a century ago) said: “The point is that we must try new things for the advancement of our sport…”
That was 102 years ago! 102 years ago, Harry Reno, who didn’t even own horses, but was just a fan of the sport, knew that we must try new things for the advancement of our sport! So he invented a race called The Hambletonian - and it worked!
Harry was a realist too, and he realized that the status quo was just no good.
Harry wasn’t even up against legalized sports wagering, brick-and-mortar casinos, online casinos, animal rights activists, and many other threats we face today, but he was proactive nonetheless.
Thank you Harry Reno.
Thank you also to the people behind the BGRA efforts, the SC exhibit at the CNE, miniature pony racing, the Drive A Racehorse program and anyone else who loves our sport and is trying to do something positive to promote it.
These efforts need to continue however, and eventually it has to come from all of our racetracks, and others who have the power to make real change in how we do things.
Our handles are down. Our attendance is down. Our participation numbers are down. That’s the reality. Let’s do something tangible to change that.
I was speaking with my good friend Ronnie Waples the other day, after I dropped off some swag to him, to be used as door prizes on a bus trip that he and his wife had organized, for the second year in a row, bringing more than 50 people from their community to Clinton Raceway for a day. With help from their friend Ian Fleming and his team, the day has proven a big success. Ronnie says that it sells out quickly, and just takes a little effort.
After we discussed our mutual displeasure, or even sadness, in regard to the direction things like on-track attendance in our sport have been heading, we shook hands and parted ways. Before leaving though, we promised each other that neither of us would ever give up, when it comes to fighting for the sport that we love.
Ronnie and I need you to promise us both the same.
Dan Fisher
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