www.harnessracingtoday.com
I have owned Standardbred racehorses for quite some time when my first horse raced at Monticello Raceway many years ago I was immediately hooked on harness racing it’s the greatest sport in the world to be involved in Monticello Raceway happens to be my favorite racetrack this is where I started and will continue to race as long as their doors are open it always feels more personal you actually know most of the people you see there it’s like a family gathering.
I don’t get to the track as often as I like these days with my schedule and the fact that the bigger racetracks have changed the conditions of which horses are allowed to race at there tracks now that casino slots have come there, now owners of the smaller stables with lower priced horses or “Cheaper Stock” as there known have been replaced with higher priced horses “Better Stock” leaving a lot of owners to race their horses only at the smaller racetracks that don’t have those restrictions.
Back when I started there was no online racing anyone involved in the sport actually went to the track if they wanted to watch or wager on their horses, with today’s economy and most of the smaller tracks being quite a distance from the big city’s together with all your expenses including gas, tolls, wear and tear on your vehicle it’s just not that appealing to actually go to the racetrack anymore for the average person, thankfully we now have great online racing sites like twinspires which in my opinion is hands down the best around, its free to join the live video is crystal clear in high definition in addition you get a $100 sign up bonus when you wager. Other sites make you wager a minimum of $200 per month just to get live video and up to $1,000 a month to get the video in high definition. It’s great to know you can still be in the harness racing business and watch and wager on your horse right from your home or office thanks to TV and online racing.
Let’s hope most owners with a few of the lower class horses won’t leave the sport, and instead of blaming TV and online racing for dwindling attendance lets thank them for given these owners and new owners a chance to get into the sport and watch their horses race even if there’s no racetrack anywhere near them.
One thing I know for sure it’s nice watching your horse race online then not watching your horse race at all and it sure beats not being involved in the sport. I still love harness racing and always will, thanks to TV and online racing we still have the opportunity to watch our horses race and the average person still has a chance to get involved and experience the greatest sport of all Harness Racing.
(Chris Marconi, Harnessracingtoday.com)
