6/ MARCH/APRIL 2014 THE RIDER
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Goal is one voice to talk for people who race horses
By Dave Briggs Now that eight Ontario harness
racetracks have come together to form a Standardbred Alliance, the province is moving forward to establish one group to represent all the people who race the horses. Hall of Fame driver Bill O’Donnell
of Acton said Wednesday morning a facilitator from the Guelph-based Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food is supposed to sit down soon with representatives from various horseper- son groups to try to hammer out the framework by March 31. O’Donnell, a former president of
the Ontario Harness Horse Association, has been the president of the rival Cen- tral Ontario Standardbred Association since its inception in 2009. The stan- dardbred association came into exis- tence that year to represent horsepeople that race at Mohawk Racetrack in Campbellville and Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto after contract negotiations broke down between the harness associ- ation and the operator of those tracks, the Woodbine Entertainment Group. Prior to the standardbred associa-
tion’s arrival, the harness association had represented most of the horsepeople
in the province since its inception in 1962.
The two groups share similar inter-
ests but have a different philosophy. O’Donnell said the harness association traditionally has advocated increasing the number of race dates to provide its members with the most opportunities rather than attempt to line up with cus- tomer demand for live horse racing. “So, we do have some differences
of opinion, but there’s a middle ground, maybe,” O’Donnell said. “When you get the government involved and they’re giving you money now, it’s a little dif- ferent than it was not only in terms of transparency, but because you have your hat in your hand all the time.” Since the province has moved to a
system where it essentially determines race dates for the Standardbred Alliance tracks, O’Donnell said what’s mostly at issue is having one group to deliver ben- efits to horsepeople in the province. “We’re just duplicating every-
thing,” O’Donnell said of the current sit- uation. “We’re trying to get one benefit package for all three (racing) breeds. That’s easy to say, but how do you police that?” Given the transient and informal
nature of working with horses, the lack of proper employment records some- times makes it difficult to determine which people are legitimately entitled to benefits. “If you have 100 people signed up,
there’s 90 legitimate and 10 sucking off the system,” O’Donnell said. Eliminating that problem and get-
ting the two harness groups together under one roof won’t be easy, O’Don- nell said, but it is necessary for helping the industry evolve. “Maybe it’s going to be a short
meeting. I don’t know,” O’Donnell said. It’s just another part of a huge
makeover of the industry currently underway. The government’s five-year, $400-million funding model kicks in April 1. “There’s a lot to be done, yet, not
just on that side, but everywhere I think,” O’Donnell said.
Dave Briggs is the president of the Canadian chapter of the United States Harness Writers Association. He can be reached
by
cury.com/ email
at
dbriggs1969@ymail.com Reprinted from
www.guelphmer-
Mathew sat, hidden by the darkness. He watched as Isabel came out of the door and jumped as she tripped. He looked up and down this woman who was so much more than he was, and he wondered if William had told her. He wondered if he should have told her. She was going into a differ- ent world tonight, and they all knew what she did not. They all knew the secrets of her past, the undying ques- tion, the reason William hated to go to town. They all knew the story she was never told. Mathew sighed. She would find out tonight. He watched as the carriage drove on. He watched as William entered the house. He watched Ben and Charlie come out of the darkness and return to the barn. They were told not to be there for her, and he could understand why. It was like seeing an old life when Isabel looked like the future. Her future. And deep down, Mathew knew that was how it was meant to be.
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