“We chose the date of May 14th because it’s
just a day after Mothers Day and we thought it would be a good time to
feature the women drivers,” noted Eric Warner, the raceway’s director of
racing.
This year the Lady Godiva Pace will be the fourth
preliminary leg of the track’s Heritage Drivers Series. It follows the
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Pace for African American drivers; the St Paddy Pace
for drivers of Irish descent, and the recently completed Passover Pace for
drivers of Jewish heritage.
At one time filling a race for the ladies was a tough chore
since most of the gentler sex didn’t drive very often. But things have
certainly changed over the years and there is a growing number of women who
enjoy racing harness horses, especially since the inception of Mildred Williams
Series a few years ago.
Some of the most famous women drivers who have competed in
North America are the long-retired Bea Farber; the forever youthful, Jackie
Ingrassia and, of course the Canadian pioneer Mildred Williams.
Though Farber hasn’t driven competitively since 1995 she
still leads the pack with 1801 winners while Ingrassia is the reigning queen
with 1078 driving victories. And Williams, with over 500 wins during the 1950’s
and 1960’s, was instrumental in getting the United States Trotting Association
and the Canadian Trotting Association to license women to drive in
harness races.
Betsy Phillips, whose 550 driving victories ranks her among
the winningest of female drivers in North America and she’s been the queen of
women drivers here at the Mighty M.
The race is open to all female drivers who hold at least a
Provisional license from the United States Trotting Association and the winner
will represent the ladies in the series finale-- dubbed the All
America Cup- later this fall.
For further information, or to participate, interested
parties are urged to contact Warner by calling the tracks race office at
845-794-4100x557; or they can contact the raceways publicity office at ext.
455.
