An American Tradition: Harness Racing at County Fairs

Thursday, 21 June 2012 00:00

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By Bill Heller
County fairs throughout New York State are poised to come to life in the next several weeks, and, at many of them, New York Sire Stakes harness racing is a principal drawing card.“Harness racing is still a big draw at the county fairs,” Brenda Wilmot, the racing secretary at the Oswego County Fair, said. “Fairs started because people would say they had the best road horse. That’s how horse racing started. Women said they baked the best pie or made the best quilt. That started a lot of the exhibits at these fairs.”

    Wilmot, whose father, Elwood Waugh, raced horse at the fairs, lives in Corinth. “We’d travel all over the state,” she said. “My dad raced against Billy Haughton. I go way back. When I was a kid, the horsemen would pull into the fairs. They’d pay kids a dime to walk their horses for an hour.”
Horsemen can make a lot more money these days. Last year, six horses topped $10,000 in county fair earnings: two-year-old trotters Enough Cash ($19,244) and Barn Boss ($16,916), two-year-old pacers Wright Road ($12,726) and Neptune ($11,931), three-year-old trotter Cabo ($13,643) and three-year-old pacer Surf Cast Michelle ($10,580). Enough Cash, Wright Road, Cabo and three-year-old pacer Grab a Cab, who made $8,244, were named County Fair Champions in their divisions.
Last year, Harold Smith and Doug Ackley enjoyed the most success at the fairs. Smith was the leading trainer in earnings ($36,675) and in victories, 25 from 59 starters. Ackley was second in both with $30,593 in purses and 18 wins from 33 starts.
Ackley was the leading driver in earnings ($57,926.59) and victories, 34 from 67 starts. Smith was second in both earnings ($33,979.86) and in wins, 24 from 54 starts.
This year, the Sire Stakes will visit 23 county fairs as the summer unwinds. The first stop is the 155th Oswego County Fair in Sandy Creek on the fair’s opening day, Saturday, June 30th. Wilmot expects as many as 100 horses in the entry box. “Sandy Creek gets an awful lot of horses,” she said. “It’s the first day of the fair. Everything else is put on hold that day. Nothing goes on until the horse racing is done. “
    Wilmot, who has been Oswego’s Race Secretary since 1983, will also serve in that position at seven other fairs this summer.
    Sire Stakes officials are hopeful that the Montgomery County Fair at Fonda will be back on the schedule after a twenty year absence. Billy Haughton grew up in a house flush on the banks of the Mohawk River and directly across from the Fonda Fairgrounds, where he began honing his harness racing skills at a very young age.
    The Sire Stakes County Fair races conclude with four finals at Monticello Raceway on Friday, August 30th for two and three-year-old pacers and trotters.
    The New York Sire Stakes County Fair schedule:
    Oswego – Saturday, June 30
    Orange (Goshen) – Monday, July 2
    Tioga – Sunday, July 10
    Chenango – Thursday, July 12
    Seneca – Monday, July 16
    Lewis – Tuesday, July 17
    Livingston – Tuesday, July 17
    Clinton – Wednesday, July 18
    Erie – Wednesday, July 18
    Chautauqua – Monday, July 23
    Oneida – Tuesday, July 24
    Schoharie – Friday, July 27
    Livingston – Monday, July 30
    Chemung – Tuesday, July 31
    Otsego – Tuesday, July 31
    St. Lawrence – Tuesday, July 31
    Chenango – Tuesday, August 7
    Essex – Wednesday, August 8
    Franklin – Thursday, August 9
    Wayne – Monday, August 13
    Steuben – Tuesday, August 14
    Tompkins – Tuesday, August 21
    Montgomery – Tuesday, August 28