2018 - A Step in the Right Direction

2018 proved to be a year of stepping stones, moving me closer to my goals in the harness racing industry. I was able to enjoy many different opportunities, learn from pros in the industry, and travel across North America.  I'm thankful for all the things I got the chance to do.

Right off the bat in 2018 on January 2nd I got the chance to be the guest on the the race pre-game show at Western Fair Raceway with track announcer Sugar Doyle. I was asked to provide my selections on the broadcast where I hopefully helped out some of the bettors! The night only got better because Sugar asked me to announce the 8th race, and of course I jumped all over that opportunity. What a way to start the year!

Next stop was Pompano Park on March break to get away from the cold Ontario weather. Just like our first visit, we were treated amazingly by the track announcer, and Director of Racing, Gabe Prewitt, and hall of famer John Berry. We visited the track the first night to take in some racing and a visit to the announcers booth to catch a few races with announcer Gabe Prewitt. I was invited Sunday night to announce the 2nd race. I was nervous and excited at the same time because this was going to be the first 5/8 track that I ever announced at. I was nervous because on a Sunday night there are a lot of "eyes" on the 5/8 Pompano Park oval. In the end I think I did pretty well, though next time I will for sure use binoculars!

My self announcing at Pompano Park Florida!

Mid May we took the trip to Flamboro Downs on a Thursday night so I could call two races that evening. I'm thankful Track announcer Gary Guy once again let me call two races on the card, like he did the year before. Flamboro has always been so welcoming to me when I ask for an opportunity to announce. Gary has always been very good to me, letting me announce at Flamboro and Grand River, and giving me advice after my race calls to help me become a better announcer. I have some great mentors for sure!

Late May was another step in the right direction as I joined the team of Dresden Raceway as the on-track host talking to the crowd between races and holding interviews with drivers after the races. I also provided weekly selections in the front of the program with thoughts on every race, hopefully helping out the betters, I also took on the role of managing the new twitter account and helping out on the Facebook page. I'm thankful General Manger Greg Blanchard brought me on as a part of this team. I was treated so well my first season by the rest of the staff. I especially want to thank Lucille Laprise for sharing the mic with me while she's busy with the promotions, and track announcer Gary Patterson for giving me plenty of time to talk between races and giving me an opportunity to call some races. I enjoyed getting to meet so many new racing fans and hearing their stories of how they got interested in the sport. There are a lot of regulars that attend the races every Sunday afternoon at Dresden, and it has become a tradition for so many over the years. I really hope I can be apart of the Dresden Raceway team once again for the 2019 racing season so I can help make new memories for the fans!

Myself in action at Dresden Raceway.

As last we kicked off the season in August at my home track Leamington Raceway, which is always very exciting for me. Leamington remains the highest wagering of the small tracks in South Western Ontario, with the large Sunday afternoon cards. The great thing about this racetrack is the amazing family environment that it has become. It has grown to be so successful because of the amazing team of people both up front and behind scenes.  Everyone's hard work has definitely paid off at this racetrack. I always look forward to a Sunday afternoon at Leamington because everyone is so friendly from the horse people in the backstrech,to the weekly patrons and new fans to horse racing. Everyone is very supportive and encouraging in my role. Something that I look forward to is my live Facebook pre-game show talking through my selections that day. I enjoy incorporating technology and social media into the sport. As in previous years I was able to talk on the microphone before each race going through my selections for that race, hopefully helping out some of the fans. I also talk about promotions and events going on that certain day, and of course interviews with the winning drivers, those are always a lot of fun to do. I look forward to the 2019 racing season at Leamington Raceway, which kicks off the first Sunday of August and ends the last Sunday of October.

Myself at work at Leamington Raceway

In August I was surprised with an award of a free youth membership to the Canadian chapter of the United States Writers association (USHWA), presented by OHHA President Brian Tropea. It was such an honour and I was very excited about this free youth membership to be part of an amazing organization that I will continue to be a member of. Past President Melissa Kieth has done a great job keeping in contact with me and managing this organization for the past few years. We know we're still in good hands with Garnet Barnsdale arriving as the new President. My duties started with participating in the yearly tele-conference call to discuss nominations for the this year's Dan Patch Awards. How cool is that? After the meeting I was asked to write a 300 word bio on one of the nominees. I really look forward to my future role with this association and hope to be a member for a long time.

Presented By Brian Tropea 

Later in September my Dad and I took off to Delaware Ohio for the most prestigious harness race ever, the "Little Brown Jug". Jugette day on the Wednesday was by far the best as we were in the backstrech tent right along the rail, being able to take in some top notch racing. We were thrilled to be invited to ride in the Mike Woebkenberg starting gate, which was an amazing experience to see how Mike and his wife work together and run the gate. It was an experience I will never forget. To make a perfect day even better, later in the day I was lucky enough to meet the most famous harness racing driver ever John Campbell! John is not only an amazing driver but also, a gentlemen too and was very down to earth. The Jug race was very good and I was very happy to see the Canadian horse Courtly Choice win!

Free shirt from the ride!

Myself with John Campbell!

After the Leamington Raceway season wrapped up, I was invited back to the pregame show with track announcer Sugar Doyle at Western Fair Raceway in London. He also let me call a race and promoted my race picks on display on the TV. It worked out perfectly that night because we had four of our own horses in to race that night, so we all had our work cut out for us! I believe I had 6 winners out of 11 races for my selections that night. I have always had good luck being a guest handicapper in London. I'm very thankful for all the opportunities Sugar has given me in London. I hope to announce in London once again in the future.

Myself with Sugar Doyle

To cap off an another amazing year I was nominated for horse fan of the year for the Post Time With Mike & Mike Awards. I was very excited when I found out I was nominated for a 2nd year in a row so I want to thank whoever took the time to nominate me for horse fan of the year. I was very happy with the outcome of the results, as runner up for the award out of 6 people up for it. I also want to thank the 248 people that took the time to vote for me for this award. I was very excited to be announced as the runner up live during the annual awards show. You can catch their weekly podcast every Thursday morning begining at 10:30 to hear them discuss important & exciting harness racing topics. Here is the link to listen to their show www.posttimewithmikeandmike.com. 

2018 was an amazing year bringing my tally for race calls to 21. Now I am taking time to set my future goals for 2019. Probably my biggest goal for the future is to call my first full race card at a racetrack. I would love it to be at one of the tracks I currently work at since I know a lot of the people and horses there. I believe I am ready for the challenge! Lastly I aspire to announce at a bigger track in 2019, for example a track like Woodbine Mohawk Park. Announcing at that track has been a dream I have had for a long time. Wish me luck!

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