The following items are listed below as they appeared on this website during the month of July 2012 . To view each item, simply scroll down the page and it will appear in the order shown .

1. - Arndon and Delvin Miller

2. - On The Road Again Syndicated

3. - Hanover Raceway Oldies Night 

4. - Grattan Bars Ad

5. - Wilcos Comet Wins Governor Generals Cup

6. - O.S.S Statistics From 1984

7. - Old Woodbine Recollections - 1958

8. - First Maple Leaf Trot - 1950

9. - Dresden Opens Under The Lights 1966

10. -Adios Butler Wins Pace of The Century

A crowd of 8,883 fans came out mainly to see if the trotting sensation Arndon could continue his unbeaten streak and saw him do just that .A large field of 10 starters including a 4 horse entry faced the starter ,all with the hope of ending Arndon's winning ways at 9 straight   .Purse for the event billed as "The Montreal Trot" for 3 year olds was $143,000 . It was not to be and driver Delvin Miller who was celebrating his 69th birthday made sure of that .Miller of Meadowlands Pa. who also owns and trains the trotting phenomenon, headed straight to the front from 6th position and made every post a winning one .They cut out fractions of 29.1;58.1;1:27.4; crossing the wire in 1:57.2 and in so doing set a new World,Canadian and Track record .Ironically the previous Track mark belonged to Speed In Action another Miller pupil . Finishing second was Speed Bowl for Tommy Haughton while Incredible Nevele (Glen Garnsey) a part of the entry got up for third place money .The large crowd pushed  $ 984,170 through the mutuel windows on this Sunday afternoon, many collecting on a $3.50 win ticket on 3-5 Arndon  .Arndon's season's winnings now total just over $207,000 .

The picture of Arndon that accompanies this post was given to me personally by Delvin Miller . Delvin was an incredible man who despite his lofty accomplishments and extremely busy schedule,always took time to be in touch with people who he knew were eager to learn about the sport's past ,and its rich history .We corresponded for many years and I was fortunate to visit him a number of times at his winter quarters in Florida . We lost this great man in 1996 .

It has recently been announced that the great pacer On The Road Again 1:52.2 has been syndicated and will begin his first year in the stud at Blue Chip Farms in Wallkill N.Y. .His service fee has been set at $ 15,000 for the 1986 season .The terms of the syndication state that 40 shares have been established at a value of $200,000 each, thus making the paper value of the offering $8 million .

It further states that the share price is payable over 5 years with interest at 8 percent .Each share entitles the owner to breed three mares per season .Observers feel this is a very reasonable price given that Nihilator recently sold at $400,000 per share and Dragons Lair at $300,000 .

A few of the top service fees for top stallions at the current time are as follows :

Albatross               - $ 75,000

B G's Bunny           - $15,000

Big Towner            - $20,000

Cam Fella             - $25,000

Falcon Almahurst - $15,000

Nero                        - $30,000

Ralph Hanover       - $15,000

Sonsam                  - $40,000

Nihilator                  - To be announced

Dragons Lair          - To be announced

As an interesting side note, there have been some fairly serious discussions about a possible match race between OTRA and Nihilator which if it occurs would be at The Meadowlands on August 10th .

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Back in the summer of 1971, a special evening was held at Hanover Raceway to honour a few veteran horsemen and their families for their pioneering work in establishing harness racing in the Hanover area .It was a time for visiting,reminiscing,story telling and picture taking .Even a vintage high wheeled cart much like the forerunner to the modern day sulky was brought out for the festivities .

Four area horsemen appeared on the track and were thrilled to be a part of the evening's activities put together by Hanover Raceway officials .These individuals are among those who  witnessed in their lifetime a rapid rise in the popularity of  harness racing and a change in status to a year round sport and business .

Many descendants of these gentlemen are still very much involved in harness racing in a major way,not only locally but across the country .

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The Old Woodbine summer meeting is now in its fourth week .The racing has been excellent with ample horses on the grounds to fill nearly all classes . This year marks the 5th season that harness racing has been staged at this downtown Toronto location which started when Thorncliffe Park closed its doors in 1953 .

Attendance has been exceptional and as shown in the accompanying picture, it has become a family venue as well .I have no idea who the people are in this vintage photo, but it certainly portrays an image consistent with this time period .These great old photographs tell a much better story than I can hope to ever tell ......

On the afternoon of July 11, the first race of the day included some rather long "odds" and that does not include what may have lit up the tote board as I have no idea  what that the mutuel payoff of this race was . A rather young driver by the name of Peter Thibaudeau from Markdale Ont. was driving his parents not so young trotter Goldie Lee in a Class 28 Trot (for maidens) . In the short span of 2 minutes and 11.4 seconds the pair were headed for the Old Woodbine winner's circle .This victory marked the first lifetime win for the 12 year old Lee Harvester - Goldie Bars (by Grattan Bars) mare .At the end of the 1958 season, she had banked a total of $453 in 13 starts, perhaps proving that with time and patience almost anything can be accomplished .(Maybe there's a picture of this one ?)

A short list of the top horses competing here would include the following divided by gait :

Also a list of competing drivers would include the following :(This a partial list)

Racing at this time was over a 3/4 mile course employing the famous "chute" .

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