Excitement was in the air as Elora’s Grand River Raceway opened another season of harness racing Monday night.
But beyond that excitement was a sense of uncertainty over the future of Ontario’s harness industry after significant decreases in provincial funding for tracks.
At the Flamboro Downs racetrack in Hamilton, 100 race days were taken off the calendar for 2013.
Cost-saving measures taken at Grand River Raceway aren’t that drastic, but raceway manager Ted Clarke says he’s already seeing discouraging signs.
“Horses are vacating the province and heading to the U.S.,” he says.
Gone are the old revenue sharing agreements which provided the racetracks with millions in revenue based on how much money went into its slot machines.
Installed in their place are new agreements, which provide a set fee for hosting the slots – a fee much lower than what racetracks were taking in previously.
As a result, purse reductions are in effect at some tracks.
At Grand River Raceway, the figure paid out to race winners is expected to fall around $4 million this year, down from $7 million in 2012.
Still, the attachment many in the harness industry feel for their community is strong enough that they’ll ride out the storm as long as possible.
Scott Young, a jockey, says he’s willing to stick with Ontario harness for as long as it’s viable.
“Horses are expensive, so it’s tough for some of us, but as long as we can make a living at this, we’ll keep at it,” he says.
