The End Has Come

 The time has come to say goodbye as Standardbred Press Releases has reached the end of the line.  Truth is that blogging is old technology, and this old timer is not about to learn tools required to provide you with the information you seek in a timely manner.  

But who are we kidding, this blog has been on life support for a while as illness has kept me from posting press releases with any regularity; it is clearly time to shut down and let the next generation pick up the gauntlet and continue to promote the sport.

It was fun while it lasted.  I'll see you at the track.

Special Monday program at Cal Expo

 By Mark Ratzky, publicity – Cal Expo Harness

 

Princessofthedawn, who has rattled off three straight wins at this meet in impressive fashion, looks to keep it rolling in Monday night’s $13,500 Funicello/Holt Final for the pacing fillies and mares.

 

Watch and Wager will present a 14-race card Monday with first post set for 4:55 p.m. and the program will also feature the second leg of the Alan Horowitz and an Open II Pace.

 

Princessofthedawn is a 3-year-old daughter of Mystician who is owned by Rick Cisco and Tamara Wainscott, takes her lessons from Cisco and will once again have Rene Goulet in the sulk.

 

They will be leaving from the seven post in the field of eight.

 

The bay miss was winless in 10 starts when she came down from Canada for this meet, but has done nothing but win in a trio of appearances here. She started the hat trick with a track-and-attack graduation on November 25, then used coast-to-coast tactics in her December 9 score.

 

Sent off the 6-5 choice in last week’s Funicello/Holt Prep, she was unhurried early for Goulet, was out to make her move on the final bend and finished up in :27 4/5 to seal the deal by a length and three-quarters.

 

Taking her on Monday are Sassy Libby, Ain’t She Special, Cenalta Flash, Say It All Sport, Bluebird Affection, In A Daze and Bekkums Fancy Star

 

Daryl Thiessen making himself right at home

 

Daryl Thiessen is one of the new additions to the driver’s room here and so far, so good according to the 32-year-old Manitoba native. 

 

Daryl spent almost 10 years as a rodeo professional before finding himself attracted to the trotters and pacers and switching from the saddle to the sulky four years ago in Ontario. 

 

The last year and a half have been a testing one for Thiessen, beginning with a serious accident in May of last year at Century Downs in Alberta that took him out of action for two months.

 

He’s also had three different surgeries in the last year which have forced him to stop and go when it comes to competing.

 

“I drove in Florida last year and spent this summer in New Jersey, and I was looking for a mile track with a lighter schedule,” Daryl explained. “Cal Expo checked both those boxes.”

 

“I was actually here for two and a half months in 2018 working as a groom. I’ve known Ryan Grundy since we were kids, I grew up pretty close to Kelly Crump and I’ve become good friends with Kathie Plested.”

 

Thiessen, who has had his picture taken after 6 of his first 41 drives at the meet, plans to stay through the end of this session in April. “I was a little rusty when I first got here, but everything seems to be coming together now,” he related.

 

DEBBIE LITTLE SELECTED AS USHWA'S MEMBER OF THE YEAR

Debbie Little, the president of the New York City chapter of the U.S. Harness Writers Association and a columnist for Harness Racing Update, has been named USHWA’s Member of the Year by a committee of former winners of the award.

Little has been an USHWA director for more than two decades and was a national officer for 10 years, including two years as president. She serves on multiple committees for the organization, most notably for the annual Dan Patch Awards banquet and as co-chair of the Clyde Hirt Journalism Workshop.

“I am pleased the committee chose Debbie,” USHWA President Barry Lefkowitz said. “She has done a great job, particularly with the Clyde Hirt Workshop and the Dan Patch Awards banquet, and I’m glad she is being recognized for her hard work.”

Little assists with the planning of the Dan Patch Awards banquet and is responsible for organizing the live production of the awards show as well as preparing the event’s scripts.

As a longtime advisor with the annual four-day Clyde Hirt Journalism Workshop, she has overseen nearly every logistical aspect of the program, which introduces college students to harness racing by giving aspiring media members the opportunity to cover the Hambletonian at The Meadowlands. This includes arranging student assignments with media outlets, setting up mentoring with editors and other industry professionals, and coordinating travel and meals.

In addition to those responsibilities, Little also coordinates production of the artwork of honorees displayed in the Communicators Hall of Fame, not to mention helping at the races every year at Goshen Historic Track in New York and the Orleans County Fair in Vermont. Little’s husband, Dave, is the announcer at both venues.

Born Deborah Ann DeBiase, she was introduced to harness racing at an early age when she and her father would watch New York City Off-Track Betting’s “Racing from Yonkers” show. The Yonkers native saw her first harness race – not surprisingly – at Yonkers Raceway, when her parents took her to the Westchester County Fair.

Her first job in the industry was in the Publicity Department at Yonkers in 1987, sending out entries and results. She would later do the same job at The Meadowlands. In 1993, Little was hired as a handicapper, harness writer and racing clerk at the New York Post, where she spent almost 27 years.

She currently writes a weekly column for Harness Racing Update called “Meadowlands Matters,” which deals with the happenings at the New Jersey oval. She is also a regular contributor to TROT Magazine and the Standardbred Journal. This past January, Little was named the winner of the 2020/2021 John Hervey Award for feature writing for her story, “The Legend of Walter Case Jr.,” which appeared in TROT.

Little will be honored as USHWA’s Member of the Year at the Dan Patch Awards sponsored by Caesars Entertainment on Feb. 19, 2023, at Rosen Shingle Creek in Orlando. Room reservations for the weekend can be made at the USHWA website at usharnesswriters.com.

Sponsorship opportunities for the event can be procured from sponsorship chairman Shawn Wiles at swiles@rwcatskills.com.

For information regarding banquet tickets, contact Judy Davis-Wilson at zoe8874@aol.com. To place an ad in the Souvenir Journal, contact Kim Rinker at Trotrink@aol.com.