As live racing comes to a close for the 2019 season at
Vernon Downs on Saturday (November 2), Samantha Winiavski will have completed
her first year as Regional Marketing Manager of Racing for both Vernon and
Tioga Downs. The 24 year-old graduate of Mansfield University first
started as a promotions attendant at Tioga Downs in the spring of 2018.
“When I started out as a promotions attendant I knew nothing
about harness racing but I was willing to
take on this learning curve,” said Winiavski. “When this opportunity came up
last November I just couldn’t pass it up.”
Winiavski reports directly to Jason Settlemoir, who sits on
the American Racing and Entertainment (Tioga Downs and Vernon Downs) Board of
Directors and has overseen racing at the New York properties since January of
2006 as the Regional Vice President of Racing and COO and General Manager of
the New Meadowlands Racetrack. “ I am so proud of Sam, she has handled
everything I have thrown at her and ran with it,” Settlemoir said. “She
continues to impress with her professionalism and her ability to learn
quickly.”
Winiavski is in charge of marketing and live race
promotions. She would like to thank Settlemoir, Jeff Gural, chairman of
American Racing and Entertainment and former Director of Racing, Jason
Bluhm. “I was fresh out of college when I first started working for this
company,” she said. “For them to have faith in me at such a young age really
means the world to me.”
Winiavski is originally from Lindenhurst, Long Island but
now resides in Troy, PA. She spends most of her days at Tioga Downs but
does frequent Vernon Downs as well
