2024 Harness Racing News

Supplemental Entry Reminder

Just a reminder that any three-year-old pacer not currently eligible for the 79th Little Brown Jug may, with a payment of $45,000, supplement to the 2024 Little Brown Jug. Supplemental entries are due by Saturday, September 14, 2024 at 10:00 a.m. Those currently eligible must submit their entry by Monday, September 16, 2024 at 10:00 a.m.

Any three-year-old filly pacers not currently eligible for the 54th Jugette may, with a payment of $15,000, supplement to the 2024 Jugette. Supplemental entries are due by Friday, September 13, 2024 at 10:00 a.m. Those currently eligible must submit their entry by Sunday, September 15, 2024 at 10:00 a.m. The 2024 Little Brown Jug is sponsored by the Ohio Harness Horseman’s Association and the Jugette by Crawford Farms.

2024 Lady Pace Honor to Lisa Schwartz

Lisa Schwartz, the long-time racing official, will be saluted as the 2024 Lady Pace honoree by the Delaware County Fair.

Schwartz has been Involved in harness racing her entire life. Her parents and grandparents on both sides raced Standardbreds, primarily trotters. Schwartz and her husband, Dr. Bob Schwartz, breed and sell Standardbred yearlings.

The Schwartz’s were honored by the Ohio Harness Horsemen’s Association for their years of service to the industry with their Special Recognition Award earlier this year. Schwartz worked 25 years as a commercial

construction chief estimator and project manager and in 2018 she became a USTA licensed Clerk and Charter.

She is the Secretary/Treasurer for the Ohio Colt Racing Association, the administrator of the Signature Series and the scholarship administrator for the Christian Harness Horsemen’s Association and the Buckeye Fair Racing Consortium. She has been the Assistant Charter for the Delaware County Fair since 2019.

Schwartz will be honored after the Ohio Breeders Championship for three-year-old filly pacers in a winner’s circle ceremony on Jug Day (Thursday, Sept. 19).

The 2024 Neville Award to Herve Filion

Top Right Photo: Herve Filion brings Hot Hitter back to salute the Delaware fans after wining the 1979 Little Brown Jug. Photo Credits: USTA Photos

Herve Filion, the Hall of Fame driver and two-time winner of the Little Brown Jug, will be honored as the 2024 Joseph Neville Memorial Award recipient by the Little Brown Jug and the Delaware County Fair.

Filion, a native of Angers, Quebec, started driving standardbreds at the age of 12 and won his first race at the age of 13. He would conclude his career in 2012 with 15,179 wins and $88.4 million in earnings.

He won two Little Brown Jug titles. In 1971, Filion guided Nansemond in an upset victory over the heavily-favored Albatross in an epic, three-heat battle. In 1979, Hot Hitter and Filon enjoyed an easier day, winning in straight heats.

Filion, who won the inaugural World Driving Championship in 1970, was North America’s leading driver 16 times, earning his first title in 1968 and final dash crown in 1990.

He topped the purse standings seven times. He was voted the Harness Tracks of America’s ‘Driver of the Year’ a record ten times.

Filion was the youngest person ever elected to harness racing’s Living Hall of Fame in Goshen, NY and Canada’s Horse Racing Hall of Fame. Herve Filion passed away on June 22, 2017 at the age of 77.

LBJ Wall of Fame to Welcome Yannick Gingras

Yannick Gingras, a three-time Little Brown Jug winning driver, has been selected as the 39th Little Brown Jug Wall of Fame honoree by the Delaware County Fair.

tember 19).

The third-generation horseman and native of Quebec began jogging horses at the age of five, training at ten and driving at 18 years of age. He moved to the United States in 2001 and he has never looked back.

Gingras has won more than 9,000 career races and $238 million in earnings to rank fourth on the all-time list.

Gingras first hoisted the Little Brown Jug in 2014 with Limelight Beach, in 2017 behind Filibuster Hanover and finally in 2021 with Lou’s Pearlman.

He has turned the Delaware County Fair half-mile track into his personal playground. Along with his three Jug wins, Gingras has also captured the Jugette thrice, the Old Oaken Bucket four times, the Buckette and 15 divisions of the Standardbred.

Gingras is a two-time Dan Patch ‘Driver of the Year’ (2014 & 2017) and led the sport in earnings five times (2014-2017 and 2023).

He achieved the sport’s greatest honor when he was elected into the Harness Racing Hall of Fame in 2022.

Yannick Gingras will be honored the Tuesday evening (September 17) before the 79th edition of the $800,000 (est.) Little Brown Jug and in the winner’s circle on Jug Day (September 19).

Photo Credits: Yannick Gingras head shot (USTA Photo) and Lou’s Pearlman (Conrad Photo)

The Ohio Chapter of the USHWA is offering a scholarship to the Hirt Journalism Workshop

The Ohio Chapter of the United States Harness Writers Association (USHWA) is offering one Ohio based journalism student the opportunity to participate in the Clyde Hirt Journalism Workshop from July 31 – August 3, 2024 in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

The college or grad student will be learning through writing and editing sessions, tours and reporting drills.

Students will be asked to file stories focusing on one of harness racing’s biggest events, the $1-million Hambletonian (August 3).

There is no cost to the student during the workshop – meals and lodging expense are covered by USHWA and travel expenses (up to $500) will be covered by the Ohio Chapter.

Any Ohio college journalism student or resident interested is asked to submit an application and writing samples by July 3, 2024. For an application, please contact Jay Wolf at jugpublicity@outlook.com.

Dr. John C. Mossbarger Elected
to Ohio Harness Racing Hall of Fame

Dr. John Mossbarger, a veterinarian and president of Midland Acres, Inc., has been elected as the 50th member of the Ohio Harness Racing Hall of Fame by a vote of the members of the Ohio Chapter of the United States Harness Writers Association.

Dr. John Mossbarger and his family have bred horses in the Buckeye State for half a century at Midland Acres, which was established by Mossbarger’s father Dr. Don Mossbarger, who was a 1994 Ohio Harness Hall of Fame honoree.

The younger graduated from The Ohio State University with a B.S. degree in 1972 and a D.V.M. degree in 1977.

Dr. Mossbarger’s gift is more than as a breeder, His service to for the industry has been extensive. He has served is a past president of the Ohio Harness Horsemen’s Association and the Ohio Standardbred Breeders and Owners Association. He is a member of the Hambletonian Society, Fayette County Harness Horsemen’s Association, a Director of the United States Trotting Association, and serves as a state trustee on the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation.

He was honored as the Maynard and Stella Hagemeyer Significant Contribution Award (2021) and as 2005 Rambling Willie Achievement Award winner by the Ohio Chapter of the United States Harness Writers Association. honoree.

His wife, Kyle, is retired from the Madison County Schools. They have two daughters that are married, Jamie Lee (Kyle) Butts and Jill Ann (Chris) Cottrill, and are blessed with six grandchildren.

Mossbarger will be honored at the Ohio Harness Horsemen’s Association’s annual banquet on Saturday, January 14 at the Polaris Hilton in Columbus.

Photo Credit: OHHA

The Ohio Chapter of USHWA
to Hand Out 2023 Awards

The Ohio Chapter of the United States Harness Writers Association will hand out its annual awards at the Ohio Harness Horsemen’s Association banquet on Saturday, January 13 at the Marriott Columbus OSU.

The Ohio Chapter will honor Ronnie Gillespie as the recipient of the Winner’s Circle Award for outstanding achievement during the past year; Edward Miller as the Peter Haughton Memorial Award winner for being the young Ohioan who is an “up-and-coming” star among harness horsemen; Earl Bowman into the Immortal Hall of Fame; Overcomer into the Standardbred Hall of Fame; and Steve Bateson as the winner of the Rambling Willie Award for the Ohioan who has done the most for harness racing over the past two decades.

Gillespie, a 51-year-old native of Mississippi, came to Ohio in 2020 and has established himself on the Buckeye fair and sire stakes circuits. He was the regular driver for Sugar Instead, who swept the five legs of the OSS and the $300,000 final on her way to $373,925 in season earnings. As a driver, Gillespie owns a .370 UDRS and a career best $ 786,934. As a conditioner, he had a .430 UTRS.

Edward Miller, the a 26-year-old resident of Polk, Ohio, is excelling in the job cart, as well as the race bike. He currently ranks seventh in the trainer’s standings at MGM Northfield Park. He has conditioned 108 winners this season, earning a career best $1.6 million. He is the trainer of the World Champion, Jet Hill. As an amateur driver, Miller has a lifetime .397 UDRS with more than 50 wins and nearly $300 thousand in career earnings.

Earl Bowman was a well-respected driver/trainer of more than 50 years. Bang The Door ($257,844), Ruff Door ($213,212), Perfect Door ($203,353), Cervantes Osborne ($123,553) and Sweet Potato Chips ($129,993) were among the many fine horses that Bowman trained during his career. Mr. Bowman was

a 1988 inductee into the Medina County Sports Hall of Fame and was placed on the Northfield Park Wall of Fame in 1993. He passed away on March 18, 2006, just a couple of days short of his 81st birthday.

The stallion Overcomer stood 14 seasons in the Buckeye state. He had 1,017 registered foals, 162 in 2:00 and 65 who earned $100,000 or more. As a racehorse, the son of Speed In Action finished on the board in 45 of 53 career starts, earning more than $400 thousand dollars. He was a three-time Ohio Sire Stakes Champion trotter.

Steve Bateson, a resident of Bowling Green, Ohio, has been involved with Standardbred horses since 1981 and bought part of his first racehorse in 1986. A director of the Ohio Harness Horsemen’s Association since 2011, Bateson served as vice president of the organization for four years and is its currently in his fifth year as president. He was the driving force behind the implementation of the Buckeye Stallion Series events for 2- and 3-year-olds, which added another valuable classification for staking many outstanding Ohio-bred foals.

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