An argument can be made by some that the sport of harness racing exists in a vacuum. Races are being contested in states across the country at multiple levels – from fair tracks to stakes racing – yet much of the general public barely knows it is occurring. Whether the product is good or bad (we aren't getting into that controversy here), whether people are paying attention to it or not, harness racing does exist and only through more exposure will it find a new or wider audience. This idea is what kick-started the revival of a consistent schedule of live racing broadcasts on Fox Sports as part of the America's Day at The Races broadcast by NYRA. "Initially it started with Jeff Gural and Jason Settlemoir at the Meadowlands. Jeff is good friends with Dave O'Rourke [NYRA CEO & President] and they had a little conversation to see what they thought was doable and they wanted to give it a try. Although the industries – Standardbred and Thoroughbred – might be a little different, I think they are really on the same page with some of the ways of thinking about regulations and building a new model for racing and gaming to attract new fans. Part of that is television," said Eric Donovan, Sr. Director of TV Broadcast Operations for NYRA, about the Meadowlands showcasing some of its major races as part on the Fox Sports lineup of networks. "I think the only hope we really have of creating new customers is to expose our product to the people who watch the FOX racing show," said Meadowlands Chairman and CEO Jeff Gural. "It is unfortunate that the SBOA of NY does not allow people to wager on our product or any nighttime harness signal through NYRA Bets since they are the ones doing us the favor of getting on TV.  "I just wish that Bulldog Hanover was still racing or another superstar that would generate some buzz when people watch our major stakes." The concept of harness racing being on TV is far from new. The $1 million Hambletonian has been a mainstay for years, moving from network TV to cable and more recently back to the network spotlight again. The American Championship Harness Series ran on ESPN in the 1990s featuring some of the sports' best races and tracks like Yonkers Raceway at one time had a local TV presence. But as portable media began to take hold and harness racing became readily available on phones and other devices to those who wanted to watch it, the sport's visibility on more traditional outlets dwindled to just the Hambletonian. What began with the Meadowlands simply broadcasting its live signal on Fox Sports a few times in 2021 has blossomed into a nine-date schedule in 2024 anchored by the NYRA team off-site and complemented by a crew at the track. "Originally it was a little different format with everything done at the Meadowlands. They had done some shows on SNY before with a lot of Meadowlands talent but it just didn't work for what we were trying to do, with the time between races and what they had to devote to simulcast and resources there. It just turned out to be a better product the way we are now doing it for our viewers," said Donovan, who oversees a team of 20 to 30 people that may have a hand in each show. The 2024 lid lifter for the Fox Sports series is on Saturday (May 18) as the Meadowlands showcases the $145,150 Arthur J. Cutler Memorial as well as a series of New Jersey Sire Stakes races for trotters and an Open Pace. Viewers will be able to see multiple Dan Patch Award winners, including pre-Hambletonian favorite Karl, 2023 Older Trotting Mare of the Year Jiggy Jog, 2021 Older Pacer of the Year Allywag Hanover, and many others. The hope is that this exposure to the top horses in the sport will spark interest from those who aren't currently paying attention to harness racing. ► Sign up for our FREE DRF Harness Digest Newsletter As a special treat for those turning in this Saturday from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. (EDT), Hall of Fame driver and Hambletonian Society CEO John Campbell will sit next to regular host Acacia Clement because regular analyst Paul Verderosa has a personal event to attend. While being in front of the camera with a microphone won't be a new experience for Campbell, doing it for a televised show will be something different. "I've done a little commentary for a race or two at a time but never for a whole show like this one," said Campbell, who admitted to being a bit trepidatious about taking the assignment. "I was a little apprehensive when Eric Donovan asked me about it. I took a couple of days to think about it but now I am excited about it. We are going to have some decent races to talk about, the Cutler and hopefully some Sire Stakes races. I'm looking forward to it" Having a driver in the analyst seat has been more commonplace in recent years. The now retired Randy Waples is a regular host on the Woodbine Mohawk Park feed and reigning Driver of the Year Scott Zeron earned accolades for his work on Hambletonian Day a couple of years ago when he was unable to compete due to injury. "Scott was exceptional. I'm not going to be that good; I know that," said Campbell, who hopes to provide a driver's view on the racing action. "The perspective from a driver is going to be different than from someone who hasn't been on the track." After the show on Saturday, which will air on Fox Sports 2 and feature Jessica Otten and Gabe Prewitt reporting live at the track, the next Meadowlands events are slated for July 6 (Graduate Finals), July 13 (Meadowlands Pace), August 3 (Hambletonian), October 18/19 (Breeders Crown eliminations), October 25/26 (Breeders Crown finals) and November 30 (Fall Final Four). Other events which were covered in 2023 and could be coming back in the near future are the August 9 Dan Patch at Harrah's Hoosier Park and Little Brown Jug from the Delaware County Fair. In support of the tracks which have a desire to get onto local/national TV or promote their product via other outlets, the United States Trotting Association has set aside $135,000 to help fund the endeavors, up from $125,000 the previous year. Of those looking to partner on the Fox Sports broadcasts, the Meadowlands will get $30,000 in 2024 while Hoosier Park ($22,500), Scioto Downs ($10,000), Hambletonian Society ($7,500), MGM Northfield ($5,000) and The Red Mile ($5,000) are also receiving funds. "It seems like Joe Morris [Sr. Vice President of Racing for Caesars, which operates Eldorado Scioto Downs, Harrah's Hoosier Park and Harrah's Philadelphia] sees the value of it pretty clearly. Gabe [VP of Racing & Sports Wagering Operations at Red Mile] expressed interest for The Red Mile and we did the Jug last year and I thought it was a great show. To be able to cover a piece of Americana like that and have the crowd – the video was just beautiful that day – makes it was a great event. I'm really looking forward to building off last year and show people that winning two awards wasn't a fluke," said Donovan. In recognition of their work, the Fox Sports team were honored with the Sam McKee Award for Broadcasting Excellence and the President's Award by the United States Harness Writers Association in 2023. As the America's Day at the Races concept continues to expand on the Standardbred side of the sport of horse racing, the hope is to continue to open up new eyes to what makes it special. "People that are fans of harness racing know where they can go to get it. We try to expose a new audience to it. With FS2, FS1 and FOX for the Hambletonian, you get more of an average viewer, that novice or sports fan that could be watching a soccer match or something like that, and next up is harness racing, which is an opportunity to draw in a new audience," said Donovan. "I hope we've developed a brand for harness racing on national TV and people have come to realize we are focusing on big events and races. We want to tell the stories and cover the races. I think we have a talented lineup with Acacia doing the majority of hosting on the harness shows, Paul serving as analyst, and certainly Gabe and Jessica as our top reporters on site." Campbell agrees that this new exposure is key to the survival of harness racing for generations to come. "I think it is tremendously important," said Campbell. "This Fox/NYRA partnership, not only with the Meadowlands but also with the Hambletonian Society, Hoosier, Scioto, and they did the Breeders Crown from Mohawk in 2022, I don't think we can overstate how important it is for this to continue into the future." While there is no black and white metric to measure whether new harness racing fans were created by the broadcasts, there is no denying that exposing new people to quality racing and combining it with good background stories is a recipe for success. Here's hoping for the continued growth of the program across more outlets and a constant stream of harness racing available to the masses.