Saturday, June 19, 2010

Harness Racing Museum's 2010 Hall of Fame Day, Sunday, July 4

It's time to honor, congratulate, recognize and remember those who have made significant contributions to the world of harness racing. This year, the harness racing community will honor the following inductees:

THE LIVING HALL OF FAME:
Hal Jones
Dave Palone
Bunny Lake
Varenne

IMMORTALS HALL OF FAME:
Alden Goldsmith
Richard Stone Reeves
Dr. Harry Zweig
Three Diamonds

COMMUNICATORS' CORNER:
Murray Brown
Jim Moran

We will also recognize 2010 Pinnacle Award Honoree and creator of the Hall of Fame figurines, sculptor/artist Bev Lopez, and the 2010 Harness Racing Museum Amateur Driving Champion Todd Whitney will receive the Museum's gratitude for providing the most drivers' fees to the institution this year.

The Hall of Fame inductions will have their bucholic flavor, taking place on the museum lawn as they have for more than half a century. Cocktails will launch the proceedings at 5:30 pm in the William Haughton Memorial Hall followed by dinner. Induction ceremonies commence at 6:30 pm. Tickets are $100 each. Call Kim Green at 845-294-6330 for reservations and more information.

Meet the 2010 Hall of Fame Inductees:

Hal S. Jones has devoted a lifetime to the business of breeding trottng and pacing horses. In the early 1960s, he pioneered the use of artificial insemination when breeding horses. His Cameo Hills Farms has the distinction of having produced 2008 Hambletonian winner Deweycheatumnhowe, 3,1:50.4 ($3,155,178).

Dave Palone is now the only driver in history to have won the Harness Tracks of America's Driver of the Year award six times. His 13,655 wins place him third all-time in North America. To date, Palone has earned over $82 million in purses, while garnering, since 1989, an ongoing streak of 21 Meadows' consecutive dash titles.

Bunny Lake (nominated as racehorse), p:2,1:54; 3,1:51s; 4,1:49.4; 5,1:50.3s, 6,1:49s ($2,843,476) Bay Mare, 1998 (Precious Bunny - Lake Nona - Abercrombie)

Bunny Lake earned more than $2.8 million during her racing career, retiring the second-richest pacing mare of all time. Highlights of her career include being named the 2001 Horse of the Year by the US Harness Writers' Association and winning 19 of 21 starts (18 in a row), never finishing worse than second in that year. In 2002 Bunny Lake $400,049 that year as well as lowering her record to 1:49.4.

Varenne (nominated as racehorse) 6,1:51.1; 7, 1:51.3f ($5,636,255) Bay Horse, 1995 (Waikiki Beach - Ialmaz - Zebu)

Varenne, a paternal grandson of 2003 Hall of Famer Speedy Somali, is the richest trotter of all tiem and the fastest all-age and aged trotter on a five-eights mile track (1:51.3). in 2001, He became the first European horse to win a Breeders Crown and even set a world record of 1:51.1 in the process. He also stands as the first foreign trotter to be elected France's Horse of the Year and took the USTA's Trotting Horse of the Year title.

2010 Immortal Inductee Alden Goldsmith (1820-1886) was the proprietor of Walnut Grove Farm and best known for his development of the famous Immortal Volunteer and Immortal Goldsmith Maid. Goldsmith also took an active roll in the early administration of the sport of harness racing, serving as a prominent figure within the Turf Congress and the National Association of Trotting Hourse Breeders and assisting with the organization of The National Trotting Association.

2010 Immortal Inductee Richard Stone Reeves (1919-2005), was described by The New York Times as "one of the premier eequine artists in the world." Not afraid to leave his studio, Reeves regularly traveled to tracks and training facilities to study his four-legged subjects and talk to their owners, trainers and drivers, to better understand their horses' personalities. The result was a lifetime of stunning portraits that magnificently captured the character and individuality of each equine subject.

2010 Immortal Inductee Dr. Harry M. Zweig (1914-1977) Dr. Harry Zweig was the founder of Middlebrook Farm in Nassau, NY, breeding and raising Standardbreds eligible to compete in New York-sired racing events. In 1965 he was an instrumental figure in the passing of NY State's Laverne Law, which tapped in the the state's... gambling tax revenues to bring money back into the Standardbred industry and provided the foundation for the first state-bred racing program, the New York Sire Stakes.

2010 Immortal Inductee Three Diamonds p.3,1:53.1 ($735,759) (1979-1995) Three Diamonds took victories in nine of her 10 freshman year starts and in her sophmore year too sixteen wins out of twenty-one starts, fifteen of which were under 1:58. Her lifetime earnings were $735,759 and was named three-year-old Pacing Filly of the Year. At her retirement she held or shared world records on all three size tracks for three-year-old filly pacers, as well as having matched Niatross' all-age two-heat record of 3:47.3.

Harness Racing Hall of Fame Communicators' Corner 2010 Inductee M. Murray Brown - Murray Brown has been the public relations director for Hanover Shoe Farms in Pennsylvania since 1967. Since 1972 he has also served as vice-president and general manager of the Standardbred Horse Sales Company, operators of the continent's largest yearling sale in Harrisburg, PA Through the mid-1990s, Brown wrote all the pedigrees for the company's sales catalog, famously known as "The Black Book." He is also regarded as one of North America's leading experts on the subject of Standardbred breeding. The Canadian Racing Hall of Fame honored its "native son" with induction into its ranks in 2003.

Harness Racing Hall of Fame Communicators' Corner 2010 Inductee Jim Moran Jim Moran is Vernon Downs announcer, a position held since 1965. He became the track's publicity director in 1975 and was elected to the Board of Directors of Vernon Down's parents company, Mid-State Raceway, Inc. in 1986, serving until March 2002. He also became the corporation's vice-president, assistant secretary and secretary. Moran is a past president and chairman of the board of the North American Harnes Publicists Association and was the group's Golden Pen Award Recipient in 1990. He is a member of the Vernon Chapter-USHWA (now the Upstate NY Chapter) since the mid-1970s and the secretary/treasurer since 1978. Moran was inducted into the Greater Syracuse Sports Hall of Fame in 2003.

2010 Harness Racing Museum Amateur Driving Champion Todd Whitney Todd Whitney is the owner of Whitney & Sons Concrete Company and enjoys his work and racing stock, driving his Standardbreds in amateur and non-amateur events at Maine's Cumberland Fairgrounds, Scarborough Downs and Plumridge Racecourse, MA, as well as other racetracks around the country. In 2009 Whitney enjoyed the best season of his racing career with 30 wins, 32 seconds and 17 thirds in 197 starts, he was among the leaders in amateur competition. In the same year, he was named USHWA's National Amateur Driver of the Year. With 101 lifetime amateur victories under his belt, Whitney has earned the respect of his peers.

Thursday, November 19, 2009

Annual Holiday Concert at the Harness Racing Museum

Mark your calendar for Thursday, December 10th at 7:30 p.m. for the annual Holiday Concert at the Harness Racing Museum & Hall of Fame. This museum members’ benefit event will be held in the Museums William R. Haughton Memorial Hall. The Goshen High School’s Varsity Choir, Jazz Voices, and Saxophone Ensemble will return for the occasion. We are also delighted to welcome the After Hours Quartet of the Evergreen Chapter of Sweet Adelines International, who will lead our lively audience in the concert’s annual version of "The 12 Days of Christmas."

Museum member Edie Haughney, Merrill Lynch Senior Financial Advisor together with Rose & Anatoly Shevchuk of Goshen Gourmet will be providing a wonderful holiday dessert table for the enjoyment of all. Arrive early to see our holiday tree filled with horsy ornaments, tour the museum with its festive halls and stalls, and check out the new exhibits that have been installed since last year’s concert.


Admission of $3.00 per person is waived for members. Non-members who bring a toy for the Marines’ “Toys for Tots” program receive a $1.00 admission discount! As seating is limited we recommend making reservations as soon as possible by calling Joanne Young at (845) 294-6330.


A visit to the museum is never complete without a stop at the Winner’s Circle Gift Shop for the perfect holiday gift. Our gift to you is a 10% discount on purchases to shoppers and concert-goers prior to the musical program.


If you are unable to attend the concert a Marine Corps Toy Drop Box is located in the Museum’s main lobby and toys can be brought in from now until Sunday, December 20 between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. daily. The US Marine Corps Reserve "Toys for Tots" program distributes toys as Christmas gifts to needy children in the community. Please go to www.toysfortots.org for a location near you and help make a child happy this holiday season.

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Accepting Employers For Equine Job Fair

Are you an employer in the horse world looking for new employees? Whether you are looking for grooms, managers and everything in-between, we encourage you to sign up for a booth at the Equine Job Fair!

The Harness Racing Museum and US Trotting Association will hold the second annual Equine Job Fair on Wednesday, April 28, 2010 from 5 to 9 pm at the Museum, 240 Main Street, Goshen, New York.

The event is free and open to anyone seeking a job in the horse world. Employers are expected to include breeding farms, racing stables and similar employers.

Participating employers can be seeking to fill current or future openings for any kind of job, “hands on” or administrative. They must be members of either the US Trotting Association or the Harness Racing Museum.

For more information or to save an employer’s spot, contact Katie Vermilyea at the Museum at 845-294-6330 or email education@harnessmuseum.com.

Thursday, November 5, 2009

November Workshop - A Standardbred Smorgasbord

A Standardbred Smorgasbord

Children’s Workshop

Saturday, November 14, 2009

10:30 AM to 12:00 Noon

at the Harness Racing Museum & Hall of Fame


Goshen, NY – Stop by the Harness Racing Museum on Saturday, November 14, 2009 from 10:30 AM to 12 noon as we give thanks to our furry and feathered friends! Sample the delights at our Standardbred Thanksgiving table and learn what foods both horses and humans like to eat. Gobble up some fun as we create turkey centerpieces using foam and flowerpots for your Thanksgiving celebration. Keep your horse well fed with our Hungry, Hungry Horses Scavenger Hunt. Trot to the winner’s circle with a ride on the 3-D Harness Racing Simulator! The cost of the program is $5.00/child with one accompanying adult admitted free. This program is appropriate for children ages 3-11. Reservations are required; please call us at (845) 294-6330 for further information.

Thursday, October 15, 2009

Racing Breeds Adoption Fair This Saturday

The Racing Breeds Adoption Fair, to be held Saturday, October 17 in Goshen, New York is just days away and the lineup of horses provides something for everyone. The adoption fair, featuring race horses, greyhounds and barn cat prospects will be held at the Harness Racing Museum and adjacent Historic Track, 240 Main Street in Goshen, from noon to 3 pm, rain or shine.

About a dozen Standardbreds and Thoroughbreds, ready for adoption, can be viewed by prospective adopters at the track. Visitors can learn more about the groups offering them for adoption at booths in the Museum. Both the Thoroughbred and Standardbred Retirement Foundations will send horses looking for a home, along with Equine Rescue Resource, located in Pine Bush, N.Y.

The horses include three seasoned trail horses, an unraced Arab, dressage prospects and horses who have been extensively handled and are ready to train to the discipline of the adopter’s choice. Two grey geldings are among the horses looking for a home, as well as two horses recovered from severe neglect and malnutrition, now healthy and ready for a second chance.

Joining the adoption fair will be greyhounds seeking a permanent home through Greyhound Rescue and Rehabilitation, of Cross River, N.Y. Since horse owners must also have a barn cat to keep rodents out of horse’s grain, the Goshen Animal Shelter will have cats in need of a job on display for potential adopters. The greyhounds and cats will be on hand to greet prospective adopters in the Museum, horses will be at adjacent Historic Track. All groups will have booths at the Museum.

Those who cannot adopt a horse, dog or cat, can find out about other ways to help the equine, canine and feline adoption groups, including volunteering, providing foster care or providing a donation.

There is no charge to attend the adoption fair. The Museum will donate a portion of the day’s gift shop proceeds to each of the groups in attendance. For more information, call 732-780-3700 or 732-616-6092.

Thursday, October 1, 2009

October 2009 Children's Workshop

Trot to the Harness Racing Museum on Saturday, October 10, 2009 from 10:30 AM to 12:00 noon for some Halloween hijinks! Come in costume (if you wish) and take a guided tour through the Museum’s Haunted Stable. Then put your best hoof forward as we create some spooky sock puppets! Take part in a special Halloween Horseshoe Hunt complete with a sweet surprise. Always included is a ride on the 3-D Harness Racing Simulator!

The cost of the program is $5.00/child with one accompanying adult admitted free. This program is appropriate for children ages 3-11. Reservations are required; please call us at (845) 294-6330 for further information.

Monday, September 28, 2009

Meet the Staff

Recently, Katie Vermilyea, the Education Coordinator here at the Museum, was profiled on the College of St. Rose English Department Blog. Learn about her day-to-day responsibilities and her alma mater here.