What kind of car do you drive? I have a Chevy Truck, a GMC SUV and a Chevy Geo that I use to go to the track. Favorite dinner meal? Snack?     My wife's lamb stew; Potato chips or popcorn. What is your favorite track to race at? Monticello. It's my home track and I’m most comfortable there. What is your favorite big event in racing? Probably the Hambletonian. It’s an exciting race to watch the better 3-year-olds go at it. How often is racing on your mind? Every day. I'm at the barn every day training, jogging or cleaning stalls. What is your favorite thing to do outside of the sport? Gamble in the casino. I like blackjack. What is your favorite sport to watch? Harness Racing. I'm not really into spectator sports. What is one thing about you most fans/bettors don't know? Maybe my age. I’m going to be 75. I doubt people would bet on me if they knew I was an old man. What is one word that describes harness racing for you? Challenging. How did you get started in the sport? In 1972, a cousin of mine had me go partners in a couple of horses with him and that gave me the fever. I was in it for a couple of years and then got back involved in 1985 when I went partners with Gerry Hade in Curragh ($509,740). Ronnie Ingrassia trained for us.  Are you the all-time leader in wins for amateur drivers at 621? I'm the winningest amateur driver still alive. There was a guy named (Walter) "Boots" Dunn, who started driving as a kid and lived to be an old man. I started when I was 44 but I’ve achieved every goal I wanted. [Editor’s Note: "Boots" Dunn won 1,152 career races. He passed away in February 2015.] Did you ever think about giving up your amateur status? Absolutely not. I love the International amateur racing comradery and it has been a hell of a ride for me over the years. Speaking of the International racing, you’ve had many experiences overseas in the World Cup of Amateur racing. What was that like? I represented the United States three times. In 1996, I was in Australia, in 2000, in Belgium, and 2020, in France. It was an eye-opening experience. There are some very capable and competent amateur drivers throughout the world. I did win the last race at Moonee Valley, the biggest track in Australia, which was really a big thrill for me. I also won a race in Belgium, but had no luck in France. At 74, what drives you to keep training and driving? The love of the sport. I love being around the animals. I like what I'm doing. What is the best advice you’ve ever gotten about harness racing? Before you pull (your horse to the outside during a race), count to three. What was your favorite moment in harness racing? I went to Buffalo Raceway with two 3-year-olds in the New York Sire Stakes and won both of them. Who was the best horse you ever drove? Iroquoindiangiver. He was my favorite. He made me a half-million and won the New York Sire Stakes as a 2- and 3-year-old, though Wally Hennessey drove him in those races. After that, I won a lot of races with him. How has COVID-19 affected your life? Not at all. I'm doing the same thing I would normally be doing except for racing. I go to the track every day. I train and jog. The only thing missing is the racing. You are President of the Horsemen’s Association at Monticello. How are the horsemen handling the shutdown of racing? Moral is pretty high. I accumulated quite a bit of money with the Horsemen’s Association and I was just getting ready to start a retirement fund for them when COVID-19 hit. What I did with that money is I gave everybody a paycheck two weeks after they shut down and we are giving everybody another paycheck on May 1, that’s grooms, trainers and drivers. We are supplying all of the feed, hay and straw for all of the horses stabled at the track. So, moral is high. Everybody is just anxious to get back racing. Monticello is more Upstate New York. Do you see a light at the end of the tunnel for a return to racing? There is nobody that I'm aware of from Monticello Raceway that has the virus. There are also very few cases in Sullivan County. I think we are ready to go with some precautions. We could go with four races in the paddock instead of seven. It is very doable. Ninety percent of the horses who race there are on the track, so if we limit the races to just those people, I would think we could get operational in no time. What’s the state of racing at Monticello? Can the track maintain at the status quo? I believe it can maintain. Monticello actually seemed to have a bright future before this virus came in. The casino at Monticello got approval to open a VGM parlor in Orange County (by Westbury Commons), which the horsemen would share in the profits. If that ever gets started, I think the horsemen at Monticello Raceway are going to have a bright future. Originally, when it was approved (about six months ago), they said it would be operational in two years. I’m sure this has caused it to be delayed. So many things are happening in Orange County right now. Lego Land was supposed to open July 4 this year, though now it is going to be next year. Amazon is building a 100,000 square foot warehouse in the county. We’ve heard some talk that maybe Yonkers and Monticello could run a circuit at the Monticello location. Do you see that as possible in the future? We talked about it and Joe Faraldo was against it. He is trying to get something going at Belmont. I thought it was a turn-key operation for Joe. They could race in the evening and we could race in the afternoon. I thought it was a win for both of us, but he disagreed. If you had the power to change one thing in the sport, what would it be? Probably how they deal with trainers that use illegal drugs. In my opinion, they are too lenient. I think we need a purer sport. So, were you happy when the indictments went down in early March? I don't know if the proper word is happy. I was glad it happened. I think it is a black eye for the sport, but I think it was necessary. I'd like to see them do more policing. How do you view the future of harness racing? Bleak. Unless something dramatically happens, people just aren’t showing enough interest in the sport anymore. There are too many different types of sports and betting. It takes too much away from the sport. If you had one wish in life, what would you wish for? Happiness for my children. Time for the stretch drive: Best Horse You Ever Saw: (Hambletonian winner) Malabar Man, because he is the one I was closest to. Mal (Burroughs) asked me to be his partner when the horse was born and I of course turned him down. Best Driver Ever: Walter Case Jr. I saw him pick up horses to unbelievable levels. You talk about (Mike) Lachance, (John) Campbell and (Herve) Filion; great drivers. But I’ve never seen anyone pick up a horse like him. He had natural talent. Lasix – Yes or No?: Yes. Favorite TV Show?: Fox News. I’m not much of a TV watcher.