At the time when we first booked our hotel in Yonkers, the Royal Regency was the only choice. Recently, two new hotels (the Hampton Inn and the Residence Inn) opened about 5 miles from the track. After speaking with both hotels, it was determined that the Hampton could best meet our needs.

PLEASE BE AWARE THAT OUR MEETINGS HAVE BEEN MOVED TO THE HAMPTON.

If you need a hotel reservation at the Hampton for the National banquet we have an $89 a night room rate at:

                                     Hampton Inn and Suites
                                   160 Corporate Drive South
                                         Yonkers, NY 10701

To make a reservation call Yleana Rodriguez at 914-595-3008 or email her at yrodriguez@colwenhotels.com.

Per the By-Laws, every chapter must submit one set of minutes from a 2009 meeting to the Secretary by 2-1-10. Non-compliance with this By-Law can lead to the dissolution of a Chapter.

It is again desired that a brief summary of the yearly events of the Chapters be submitted to the Secretary. The technical due date is February 13, two weeks before the meetings, but the Secretary would appreciate if you could aim for February 1.

The directors meeting will be held from 2:30 to 6:30 on Saturday, February 27 and the general membership meeting will be held from 10:30 to 2:30 on Sunday, February 28.

The Banquet will be held at Yonkers Raceway on Sunday the 28th. Cocktails will start at 5:30, with “post time” for dinner at 6:30. Roger Huston and Dave Little will be your co-hosts. Dinner tickets are $100; they, and congratulatory ads in the Journal, can be handled through Dave Little at 212 210 1691.

Please send dlittle@nypost.com and ushwa@paonline.com the names of your Directors for the Yonkers meetings. Soon. (Thanks!)

The United States Harness Writers Association is proud to announce its annual Night of Champions awards banquet will be held on Sunday, February 28 at Yonkers Raceway.

Be sure to make plans to be with us as USHWA honors the top horses in the nation, bestowing upon their connections the coveted DAN PATCH AWARDS (trophies co-sponsored by the U.S. Trotting Association). We will also honor the human champions of 2009, as well as other special individuals, including recently elected Living Hall of Famers Hal Jones and Dave Palone and Communicators Murray Brown and Jim Moran. Seating is limited so please make your reservations early.

We also encourage you to congratulate your favorite champion or honoree with an ad in the Night of Champions Awards Journal. This is the best opportunity to reach the participants and decision-makers in the industry. The span of our Journal has never been wider since it can now be viewed right here online.

Please don’t miss the chance to be a part of this lasting tribute to the contemporary stars of harness racing. Space is limited, so secure your ad spot now by filling out the enclosed form and returning it to the address listed. Your ad is a wonderful way to support the United States Harness Writers Association, the strongest active voice in the sport.

The cocktail hour starts at 5:30 p.m. with the dinner beginning an hour later. Tickets are $100 and tables of 10 or 11 are available.

For ad, ticket or hotel information please contact Dave Little at 212-210-1691 or E-Mail: ushwajournal@hotmail.com.

                         Click here to download ad order form with pricing

                            Click here to download a list of all Honorees

Fred Segal, president of the Florida Chapter of the United States Harness Writers Association, has announced the award winners for the 2009 season. They will be honored at the association’s annual Hall Of Fame Awards Dinner on Sunday, March 7, 2010 at Diamante’s Banquet Center in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.

Click here to see the complete story with pictures.

After two months of balloting came to a close on New Years Eve, 2010 will mark the first time a major award in harness racing was selected by the popular vote of the people who make it the great sporting event that it is; the fans.

The United States Harness Writers Association, in co-operation with the United States Trotting Association, is proud to announce the winners of its first Railbird Recognition Awards, who were selected solely by racing fan nominations and voting.  

The 2009 Horseperson of the Year as chosen by your votes is Fran Azur. 

Francis Azur is a businessman and horseman from Pennsylvania, but is a native of Newport, Vermont. He had an idea to help his hometown fair grow and enhance their racing program.

The Orleans County Fair in Barton, Vermont was given a donation of $20,000 and a “celebrity visit” to help do just that. He sent Barton a check for the amount which included $16,000 to help improve the purses at the fair and $4,000 for advertising and promotions of the visit.

The celebrities included of two of Azur’s Open Class pacers, Blueridge Western ($1,029,254, 1:49 2/5) and Noble Falcon ($640,485, 1:48 3/5), their trainer Kevin McDermott, and drivers Brian Sears and Tim Tetrick. They were all brought together by Azur, at his expense, for this special day.

As the race unfolded, the crowd was on their feet and they cheered from the time the horses hit the track until they crossed the wire. And besides shattering the track record, the real impact of the outing was the attention it brought to the venue in particular and to the sport in general. When the dust settled, it would be a match race for the ages that is destined to go down in harness racing lore. And there were three regional newspapers, a statewide radio station, and the regional CBS-TV affiliate covering the event for the media.

When asked about his idea for this day or racing Azur responded, “I just wanted to do something for this fair.” And this is just one line on a long list of things that Azur has done to give back to the community over the years. 

This was definitely a highlight of the racing season and it happened solely through the efforts of one man. And that feeling was shared by those in Barton, Vermont as well as racing fans across North America who named him Horseperson of the Year.

The 2009 Racing Moment of the Year as chosen by your votes is Muscle Hill’s Hambletonian.

Muscle Hill was clearly the horse to be reckoned with going into the 84th edition of the Hambletonian stake last August, but it was in that race where he showed the world he was truly one of the greatest trotters ever to set foot on a racetrack. 

Muscle Hill not only set a new stake record and tied a world record in winning the race in 1.50.1, he did it with such ease and domination one might wonder how fast he could have gone that day if asked. The buzz among the near 26,000 in attendance was that he did it so easily, it looked like a training mile. He was never seriously challenged. 

There was never a moment in doubt in the race as he grabbed the lead at the start before trotting to the wire by six open lengths in front of the second-place finisher in the $1.5 million classic. His connections knew what they had going in, but even they were in awe of the effort put forth that day. 

"I knew he was sitting on a big race and he didn't let me down," Sears said. "He had a great afternoon. This is very humbling; he does it easily. " 

Trainer Greg Peck commented: "When Brian Sears steps on the gas, this horse is like a sports car that goes into overdrive. You knew he was something but you couldn't dream that he would be this good. It's beyond belief.”

Of all the races Muscle Hill won during his undefeated campaign of 2009, the Hambletonian was the one most mentioned by the voters and it was noted with vivid recollections of the single best racing moment of 2009. 

Fran Azur and Muscle Hill are not the only two winners to be announced today. Everyone who voted was entered in a random drawing for a chance to win two tickets to the Night of Champions, USHWA’s presentation of the Dan Patch Awards to be held this year at Yonkers Raceway on February 28th. The person selected will also have the privilege of presenting the award themselves to Azur and the connections of Muscle Hill. 

The winner selected is Bill Krikorian of Lowell, Massachusetts. The first runner-up named was Kimberly Brooks of Brownington, Vermont. Brooks, as first runner-up, will do the honors in the event the winner cannot attend.

USHWA would like to thank the United States Trotting Association for partnering in this event and everyone who took part in the voting.  

The United States Harness Writers Association is proud to announce a trio of Tri-Staters will be honored with the 2009 President’s Award.

Yonkers Raceway vice-president and general manager Bob Galterio, Meadowlands Racetrack statistician Bob “Hollywood” Heyden, and leading drug expert in equine toxicology Dr. George Maylin were chosen by USHWA president Debbie Little for their outstanding contributions to the sport of harness racing.

“I am proud to honor these three men that have done so much good for our sport,” said Little. “Their integrity and dedication is without question and we should all be proud that they are fighting the good fight.”

Yonkers Raceway is arguably the top harness racino in North America. There is, however, no argument that much of the tremendous success of the world-class racing and gaming operations at the Hilltop Oval are directly attributed to Galterio.

Through Galterio's efforts and cooperation, Yonkers has played host to amateur drivers from around the globe in many competitions, including the 2008 World Cup Series and 2009 Italy - U.S. Friendship Competition. In October, 2009, Galterio was instrumental in the organization and execution of the first annual Yonkers Raceway Harvest Festival, showcasing New York State agricultural products and harness racing, including a dash comprised of drivers who were members of the state legislature.

Heyden has been the Meadowlands’ statistician since its opening in 1976 and is widely regarded for his dazzling and encyclopedic knowledge of the horses and records of racing.

He is a commentator on Meadowlands’ telecasts and a columnist, since 1985, for the Canadian Sportsman magazine.

During his career, Heyden has been a recipient of the Dan Patch Award from Harness Tracks of America (in 2003), has received the Clyde Hirt Memorial Media Award from Harness Horsemen’s International (2005), and wrote and hosted the Hervey Award winning salute to the late Stanley Dancer (2006).

For nearly four decades, Dr. Maylin has been a national and international leader in the fields of equine pharmacology, toxicology, exercise physiology, chemistry and immunochemistry. In 2003, working with Dr. Ken McKeever of Rutgers University in New Jersey, he developed an antibody-antigen reaction test for erythropoietin, or EPO, an illegal substance that has troubled horse racing, harness and thoroughbred, in recent years.

Author of some 70 scientific papers in his field, Maylin is widely regarded as a world leader in the field of drug detection and illegal medication. He obtained his doctor of veterinary medicine degree from the University of Guelph in Ontario in 1965 and masters of science and Ph.D. degrees from Cornell in 1968 and 1971.

Galterio, Heyden and Maylin will receive their awards at USHWA’s Night of Champions awards banquet on Sunday, Feb. 28, 2010 at Yonkers Raceway, just north of New York City. To obtain tickets, or for further information, please contact Dave Little at 212-210-1691.

HARRISBURG PA – Arlene and Jules Siegel, Pennsylvanians who are perennially near the top of the national standings as both owners and breeders, had an excellent year with their racetrack stock in 2009, thus earning selection as the Norman Woolworth Owners of the Year in voting among active members of the United States Harness Writers Association.

Leading the Siegels’ racing brigade was Broadway Schooner, a three-year-old trotting filly who figures in the thick for her division’s honors. A winner in 2009 of $869,341, Broadway Schooner won arguably the two most important races in her section this year, the $783,042 Hambletonian Oaks and the $600,000 Breeders Crown.

But Broadway Schooner was by no means the only racetrack star for the Siegels, who use Jim Campbell as their trainer. Three other performers took down more than $300,000: Western Moonlight ($329,089), winner of the Sweetheart Pace; New Jersey Sire Stakes champion Dial Or Nodial ($360,265); and Pennsylvania Sire Stakes star Fashion Feline ($321,273).

Many of the triumphs of their horses were especially sweet to the Siegels, as they had also bred the youngsters. Broadway Schooner was their first homebred to win a Breeders Crown; Pilgrims Taj followed soon after. Dial Or Nodial and Fashion Feline were also bred at their  Fashion Farms north of Philadelphia, which this year will stand Broadway Hall, Real Artist, Village Jolt, and newcomer Western Cyclone.

Arlene and Jules Siegel will be honored at the annual awards dinner of the Harness Writers, to be held on Sunday, February 28, 2010 at Yonkers Raceway, just north of New York City. To obtain tickets, or further information, please contact Dave Little at 212 210 1691.

Pictured L to R are Tim Tetrick, Kevin McDermott, Brian Sears, Francis Azur

HARRISBURG PA – Francis Azur, a horseman and resident in the western part of the state of Pennsylvania, gathered a few of his friends for a “road trip” on August 21 this past year.

The destination was the Orleans County Fair in Barton VT, Azur’s hometown fair. Already in Barton was a check for $16,000, a gift from Azur to Barton to help improve the purses at the fair. (He would also donate $4,000 for advertising and promotions, for a total of $20,000.)

Three of Azur’s road buddies were pacers Blueridge Western ($1,029,254, 1:49 2/5) and Noble Falcon ($640,485, 1:48 3/5), and their trainer Kevin McDermott. Azur’s other two friends were drivers Brian Sears and Tim Tetrick – between them having won the last three Driver of the Year contests, and having guided the winners of almost $30 million this season.

What happened next insured Francis Azur’s selection as the Lee Anne Pooler Unsung Hero of the Year in balloting among active members of the United States Harness Writers Association.

A giant crowd came to the fairgrounds, and were delighted all day. Tetrick and Sears were very generous with their time, going into the grandstand to sign autographs and probably convert many other people to harness racing’s cause. And the two pacers went a ding-dong exhibition mile – Noble Falcon prevailed in a photo in 1:56 2/5, but the actual winner didn’t matter as much as the overwhelming good feeling pervading the day, with the Vermont fans indeed knowing they were witnessing something special.

Kevin McDermott said, “I don’t think I ever had tears in my eyes at a race before this. They cheered when the horses stepped on the track, they cheered when they turned to go to the gate, they cheered at every quarter-mile marker. I was proud to be a part of this.” And recording every cheer and every great moment were three regional newspapers, a statewide radio station, and the regional CBS-TV affiliate.

Azur’s modest reaction? “I just wanted to do something for this fair.” Did he ever, in spades – a triumph of the harness racing season.

Francis Azur will be honored at the annual awards dinner of the Harness Writers, to be held on Sunday, February 28, 2010 at Yonkers Raceway, just north of New York City. To obtain tickets, or further information, please contact Dave Little at 212 210 1691.

HARRISBURG PA – Mike Gulotta, a noted horseman and philanthropist who is becoming the face of New Jersey racing as the sole “equine” member of new New Jersey governor Chris Christie’s transition team, has been elected the winner of the

W.R. Haughton Good Guy Award as voted by active members of the United States Harness Writers Association.

Gulotta is among the partners operating the state-of-the-art Deo Volente Farm in the Garden State, and his sponsored tours of the facility for children have helped expose a number of young faces to the exciting harness racing scene.

When one of Gulotta’s top horses, such as the iron-tough free-for-all Lis Mara, racks up a big check against top company, Gulotta makes sure (quietly) that a portion of those racetrack earnings go to a charitable enterprise. And when a Lis Mara appears in the winners circle, Mike is frequently right there, giving valuable insight and commentary to the gathered media.

Gulotta’s most challenging task is probably facing him right now, as he must represent the equine industry as a new New Jersey governor sets up shop in very difficult economic times. Gulotta is well-versed in the horsemen’s side of controversial topics, such as the slot machine standoff between Atlantic City and the state’s racetracks, and he speaks eloquently of a point often missed – the vast boost that the entire equine industry, through direct and indirect means, gives to the economy of New Jersey, which like most states presently needs all the help it can get. It’s safe to say that Mike Gulotta will be a fine “point man” to make racing’s voice heard loud and clear during this transition in New Jersey.

Gulotta will be honored at the annual harness writers’ awards banquet, to be held Sunday, February 28, 2010 at Yonkers Raceway, north of New York City. For tickets, or other information, please contact Dave Little at 212 210 1691.

HARRISBURG PA – Trainer Greg Peck and driver Brian Sears, the brains and hands behind the impressive campaign of three-year-old sensation Muscle Hill, have been elected Glen Garnsey Trainer of the Year and Driver of the Year in balloting among active members of the United States Harness Writers Association.

Peck, a native of Nova Scotia in Maritime Canada, will quite probably be the first trainer to guide an undefeated trotter to Harness Horse of the Year honors. The three-year-old Muscle Hill won all 12 of his starts, earned $2,456,041, and set a record of 1:50 1/5 in winning The Hambletonian, which joined the Breeders Crown, World Trotting Derby, Canadian Trotting Classic and Kentucky Futurity on the horse’s scorecard.

It could be that Peck’s “other job” gave him just the perspective to polish Muscle Hill to race at his best against the sport’s best and in front of its biggest crowds: president of Fine Line Inc., a media training firm which instructs executives how to communicate effectively with the public, often in difficult situations.

Peck turned the driving lines on Muscle Hill over to Brian Sears for virtually all of this season’s starts, and Sears did his usual masterful job, guiding the champion home first and then into the winner’s circle each time he raced him.

Winning, of course, is nothing new to Sears, who this season took his fifth straight “big meet” title at The Meadowlands, and tenth in a row overall. Besides winning with Muscle Hill on Breeders Crown night, Brian also guided Broadway Schooner and Fancy Filly to the Woodbine Victory Lane. Another big day was Hambletonian Day, where Muscle Hill, his first Hambo winner, contributed almost half of the $1,555,674.50 in purses taken down by the man in white and brown, which also included guiding Peter Haughton winner Holiday Road (trained by Peck).

Sears and Peck will be honored at the annual awards dinner of the Harness Writers, to be held on Sunday, February 28, 2010 at Yonkers Raceway, just north of New York City. To obtain tickets, or further information, please contact Dave Little at 212 210 1691.

HARRISBURG PA – Jordan Stratton and Adam Bowden, two young individuals fast making an impact at the topmost reaches of the sport of harness racing, have been honored with the Rising Star Award and the Lew Barasch Breakthrough Award, respectively, in voting by active members of the United States Harness Writes Association.

Stratton, the 22-year-old son of veteran horseman David Stratton who is often known by the nickname “The Kid,” will come close to 500 wins this season (a wicked December is not out of the question), with his purse totals reaching $6 million dollars. Yonkers and Monticello are his two main ports of driving call, so it is not surprising that Stratton has worked his way to the top ranks of the lucrative New York Sire Stakes circuit, with half-a-dozen NYSS winners.

His richest victory came behind Pancleefandarpels, a fast mare who won the $229,000 Blue Chip Matchmaker Finals at Yonkers. But it was two other Yonkers victories that were Stratton’s most memorable – wins in the Levy Series with King Cat Anvil N, a horse trained by his dad, whom he has called “the biggest and greatest influence on my life and my career.”

Bowden, 28, started out far from racing’s main street, graduating from the University of Southern Maine with a degree in biology. But Bowden then picked up valuable standardbred experience working in the Bluegrass of Kentucky, and eventually he and his father Chris purchased the old ACL Farm in Paris, Kentucky and renamed it Diamond Creek Farm.

Fully in charge of the farm, Bowden has led it into a position of prominence in just a few short years. Soon to grow from 181 acres to 438, Diamond Creek has purchased such outstanding broodmares as three-time Dan Patch winner Loyal Opposition, and Breeders Crown champions She’s A Great Lady and Restive Hanover. And as would befit such a collection of equine queens, Diamond Creek is also involved in the syndicates hosting several prominent stallions.

Stratton and Bowden will both be honored at the annual awards banquet of the Harness Writers, to be held Sunday, February 28, 2010, at Yonkers Raceway, north of New York City. Tickets for the event, and further information, are obtainable from Dave Little at 212 210 1691.

HARRISBURG PA – Gail Cunard, the acclaimed director of the well-respected Harness Racing Museum and Hall of Fame, has been selected as this year’s recipient of the Proximity Award, the second-highest honor in harness racing – behind only election into the Hall of Fame – in a vote conducted among active members of the United States Harness Writers Association.

A native of Liverpool, England – where she went to school with a young man named John Lennon – Cunard continues to make her mark on one of the most all-American of sports, through her planning, creativity, fundraising skills, and an indefinable quality that charms all sectors in the sport and makes them contributors to the important historical and preservational work that the Museum and Hall do.

Her stewardship has led to a host of popular and informative exhibits in the Hall: a collection from the history of Castleton Farms; the “3-D” race simulator, which gives fans an idea of what it is like to guide a horse during a race; and the recent gathering of memorabilia from the former “World Capital of Harness Raceway,” Roosevelt Raceway.

Two other popular exhibits, an extensive collection of harness-themed Currier and Ives prints and the collection of profiles of talented but unsung heroes of harness racing called “A Drive To Win,” have been adapted by Cunard and her staff to become traveling exhibits, serving as emissaries for the sport and the Hall at racetracks, art museums, and other appropriate gatherings.

Cunard is also responsible for overseeing all the events produced by the Museum during its showcase weekend annually held over the Fourth of July, which culminates in a dinner honoring the newest inductees into the Hall of Fame.

Gail Cunard will be honored at the writers’ annual awards banquet, to be held Sunday, February 28, 2010 at Yonkers Raceway, north of  New York City. Tickets for the event are obtainable from Dave Little at   212 210 1691.

As the racing season came to a close in Western New York this past weekend, the Upstate Chapter held its Night of Distinction Awards ceremony to honor all the best performers from the last twelve months. Eleven awards were doled out and due regard was cast upon their recipients.

Click here for a complete recap of the nights proceedings in word and pictures (courtesy of Paul White) and click this link to watch video of each award presentation.

HARRISBURG, PA – The trotting broodmare Yankee Blondie, dam of Horse of the Year contender Muscle Hill, and Must See, dam of likely Pacer of the Year Well Said, have been elected Broodmares of the Year as unanimous choices of a blue-ribbon panel of the United States Harness Writers Association.

Yankee Blondie, a daughter of American Winner-Yankee Bambi (a full sister to the memorable TV Yankee) bred by Yankeeland Farms and owned by fellow Marylanders Winbak Farm, had a so-so career on the racetrack, but has stamped herself in harness immortality by producing the Muscles Yankee colt Muscle Hill.

The “cheapest” $55,000 the TLP Stable and Jerry Silva ever spent on a yearling, Muscle Hill was 8-for-9 as a baby, and then this year, adding Southwind Farm and Muscle Hill Racing LLC as partners with an eye towards stud syndication, Muscle Hill was perfect in 12 starts, earning over $2.4 million and won virtually every major sophomore colt trotting stake, such as the Hambletonian (in a Hambo fastest-ever 1:50.1), Canadian Trotting Classic, Kentucky Futurity and Breeders Crown.

Muscle Hill, likely to become the first trotter to be unbeaten in his Horse of the Year season, will start his stud career next season at Southwind Farm.

Must See, a daughter of Artsplace out of the grand mare Grand Lady, who is still co-owned by breeders Fair Winds Farm, Inc. with Steve Jones, was no slouch on the track, winning almost $500,000. But she was outdone in 2009 by the iron-tough Well Said, who completed the rare North America Cup – Meadowlands Pace – Little Brown Jug “triple” among his 10 victories, which netted him just shy of $2 million.

Well Said’s exploits caught the eye of many people – he will stand at stud at Hanover in 2009, and his Rocknroll Hanover sister, Look And Listen, fetched a $300,000 bid at Harrisburg.

The connections of Yankee Blondie and Must See will be honored at the USHWA annual awards dinner, to be held Sunday, February 28 at Yonkers Raceway.

Over 240 people turned out at Kutshers Country Club in Monticello, NY on October 25th when the Monticello-Goshen Chapter of the U.S. Harness Writers Association held their 51st  Annual Awards Banquet. Tom Grossman was honored with the Excelsior Award and Billy Parker, Jr. received the organization’s  Lifetime Achievement Award. Ray Schnittker, Kelly Young, Dave Little and Terry Donnelly were also cited and Southbound Trucker was named “Horse of the Year”.

Click here for the entire story with many pictures (compliments of Geri Schwarz)

And as they turn for home, the score is Goshen 2, Hanover 2. 

Balloting for a spot on the final ballot of the prestigious Proximity Award was recently conducted among the directors of the United States Harness Writers Association (USHWA), and when the extremely tight vote came to a close, the Harness Racing Museum and Hall of Fame, along with its director Gail Cunard, had secured spots in the final runoff, along with two stalwarts from the sprawling Hanover Shoe Farms complex: president Jim Simpson and vice-president Russell Williams. 

(Normally, the top three vote-getters make the final ballot, but there was a tie for third, earning all of this quartet a spot on the last Proximity ballot.)

The Harness Racing Museum and Hall of Fame, as its name suggests, serves two functions: the Museum preserves and showcases the sport's past, along with the best features of its present, while the Hall immortalizes the premier people and horses that have left an indelible mark on the sport. It is generally regarded as one of the top sports Halls of Fame in North America.

Gail Cunard has spent over a dozen years as director of the large upstate New York building, using her vision and tireless work ethic to revamp old exhibits, put together new ones virtually from scratch, and being an ongoing, tireless cheerleader for the Museum and Hall. And she has expanded the Museum's "reach," sending out modified versions of Goshen exhibits to be seen by hundreds of thousands throughout many harness racing venues.

Jim Simpson is the son and brother of Hall of Fame horsemen, but he has emphatically made his own contributions to the sulky game. After years as a successful trainer/driver, he moved into the Hanover board room and became president and CEO in 1997, keeping Hanover at the top of the sport with astute "signings" of champion stallions and constant rejuvenation of the broodmare band.

Russell Williams, vice-president of Hanover and an important contributor to the farm's direction and success, has achieved much acclaim over the last few years for his purchase of unwanted, usually retired, harness horses and placing them with people who will provide care, allowing them to escape a grim fate -- for which he won the 2004 Standardbred Retirement Fund Humanity Award.

The foursome will be put before the membership of USHWA during balloting in November. The winner of the Proximity Award, rated second in harness prestige only behind election into the Hall of Fame, will be honored at the Harness Writers' annual banquet, to be held February 28, 2010 at Yonkers Raceway.

             Lia Eustachewich                         Jessica Schroeder

The United States Harness Writers Association have chosen Lia Eustachewich and Jessica Schroeder as 2009 USHWAns of the Year.

"It was too close to call" said the committee charged with picking the winner, so for the first time in the award’s 31-year history, it will go to more than one recipient. The award is given annually to a member of the organization who has given outstanding service to the Association -- and thus to harness racing.

Eustachewich and Schroeder, 22 and 25, respectively, are both active in the sport as well as integral parts of the Clyde Hirt Journalism Workshop.

"It would have been hard to have a workshop for the past two years without Lia and Jessica," said USHWA president and workshop co-chair Debbie Little. "Lia was working three part-time jobs and going to school and Jessica had to take time off work and fly or drive across the country."

Both Eustachewich and Schroeder are workshop graduates.

These young ladies were viewed by the committee as "the faces of tomorrow and a driving force that will take USHWA into the future."

Bloomfield, New Jersey resident Eustachewich had no concept of harness racing before attending the workshop in 2007, but fell in love with it immediately. She has covered the Yonkers Trot, Peter Haughton and New York Night of Champions, among other events, for several publications, including the New York Daily News, Philadelphia Inquirer and Harness Eye.

She is a 2009 graduate of New York’s Baruch College and is currently working as a sports web editor at the New York Daily News.

A third generation horsewoman, Schroeder is a licensed trainer who grew up working and racing at the county fairs in Wisconsin and Illinois.

She graduated in 2006 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and went to work in the marketing department at Thoroughbred Times magazine in Lexington and as a caretaker for the Pete Foley Stable.

She currently works for the U.S. Trotting Association as an assistant fair liaison.

Eustachewich and Schroeder will receive their awards at USHWA’s annual Night of Champions Awards banquet on Sunday, February 28 at Empire City at Yonkers Raceway. For further information on the banquet or to place an ad in the souvenir Journal please contact Dave Little at 212-210-1691.

Click here to get your copy of the latest news and information from USHWA

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Dave Palone, the dominant driving force at the Meadows for the last two decades, and Hal Jones, who revolutionized the game with artificial insemination, have been elected to Harness Racing’s Living Hall of Fame. Murray Brown, pedigree guru and publicist for Hanover Shoes Farms, and Jim Moran, the iron man announcer and publicist at New York’s Vernon Downs were elected to the Communicators Hall of Fame. All balloting was conducted by the United States Harness Writers Association (USHWA).

Palone, a native of western Pennsylvania, is well on his way to his 21st consecutive driving title at the Meadows. But his handling of Grand Circuit-type stock who invade his home track for stakes racing has also caught the eye of notable trainers, who do not hesitate to use Palone, not only at "home", but whenever and wherever Palone is on the road. A five-time recipient of Harness Tracks of America's Driver of the Year award, Palone could soon be second in North American lifetime victories, behind only the legendary Herve Filion.

The shrewd Jones became the "father" of artificial insemination almost by necessity: he was so busy managing Pickwick Farms in the 60s, he saw the means of impregnation by other than natural cover a timesaver. But artificial insemination has had other, far-reaching effects: the ability to breed a stallion to a larger number of mares and the strengthening of the speed and powerfulness of the modern standardbred horse. Jones was also associated with Blue Chip Farms, Hanover Shoe Farms, Lana Lobell Farm and his own Cameo Hills Farm in New York.

Brown, a native of Quebec, went stateside and quickly connected with Hanover, the largest standardbred farm in the world. Brown is in charge of selecting the yearlings that will be sold at the Standardbred Horse Sales Company venue in November, the largest standardbred sale in the world, of which he is also general manager. An expert on pedigrees, and most anything else about harness racing, Murray is also known as a "good guy" who shares his time freely with others. This will not be the first great honor bestowed upon Brown, as he was elected to the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 2003.

Moran started at Vernon Downs in 1962, and while he hasn't strayed too far from home over the ensuing 47 years, his ability as a track announcer and harness writer are certainly known far and wide. He has called many champions that have graced the upstate New York oval, from Bret Hanover to Niatross to Deweycheatumnhowe. Moran is also both an excellent written describer of a race, and a person who can make a subject come alive in a feature story.

This quartet will be honored twice in the next year. First at the annual USHWA awards banquet, at Empire City at Yonkers Raceway on Sunday, February 28, 2010, and then formal induction ceremonies take place at the Harness Racing Museum and Hall of Fame in Goshen, NY, on Sunday, July 4, 2010.

Here are some views from the inductions at the HOF in Goshen from July 4th.            Photos are courtesy of Barbara Bedell, Times Herald Record, Middletown, NY

Tom K. Crouch, Alan J. Leavitt, and Timothy J. Rooney were the 2009 inductees to the Harness Racing Hall of Fame.

Inductees to the Communicators Hall of Fame were John Berry and Leon Zimmerman, pictured here with emcee Roger Huston.  

Elbridge T. Gerry Jr., President of the Board of Trustees of the Harness Racing Hall of Fame pictured with Pinnacle Award winner Robert A. Tucker.

The family of Immortal honoree Lew D. Williams, the first black American Hall of Famer, accepted the award on his behalf.        

The United States Harness Writers Association is a group of more than 250 members committed to the chronicling of harness racing through the print and electronic media. It was founded in 1947 by New York City area sportswriters who were covering harness racing at Roosevelt Raceway. It remains the only media organization in harness racing with a membership of newspaper, magazine, radio and TV, ad agency, publicists and others involved in racing communications. With more than 250 members, most of them allied to one of 12 regional chapters, the association strives to bring about a closer relationship among the media, racetracks and horsemen to promote a centuries-old American-bred sport.

USHWA members, in annual voting, choose harness racing's most prestigious awards like the Living Hall of Fame and the Horse-of-the-Year. Its Proximity Achievement Award is one of the sports most cherished honors. It also recognizes top divisional winners and leading drivers and trainers at its annual awards dinner, which began in 1948.
 
The association is governed by a member board of directors, which represents the chapters and at large members (those living or working in regions where there is no chapter). Also serving are seven national officers and all past presidents.

USHWA works with the united States Trotting Association in the Horse of the Year balloting. USHWA also presents the John Hervey Awards for excellence in writing and broadcasting. Its members choose Hall of Famers, so the association also works closely with The Harness Racing Museum & Hall of Fame at Goshen, New York.

Many chapters hold annual awards or recognition dinners to salute the leading horses and drivers in their areas. Some chapters also raise money for local charities.

                                Contact USHWA at ushwa@paonline.com

                     Direct questions or comments to webmaster@ushwa.org