Harness racing is an individual sport with anywhere from two to 12 drivers at any given time on the track competing against each other with an equal number of horses, trainers, owners and caretakers all in the mix competing against one another as well. Whether it’s a match race with just two horses or a Grand Circuit race with 10 or even more horses, the goal is the win the purse money; the hard work of every day and every week culminating into an end result at the wire. All in less than two minutes! But that’s not true, right? Harness racing cannot be summed up in just two minutes. And it’s hardly an individual sport when it comes to things that matter most. If one thing remains true, it’s that the harness racing community proves time and time again that there’s more to the industry than just a sport, just those two minutes on the track, and just individual stables racing against each other. In a time of need, the community bounces back stronger than ever to help one another. This was readily apparent in the Tioga Strong movement, the 2023 tragedy that caught the attention of the world as a whole. But the idea of horsemen helping horsemen dates back to the beginning of the sport. And now, the spotlight shines once again on the horsemen with the accident on March 19 at The Meadows that claimed the life of 27-year-old driver Hunter Myers. The news of the accident was first to reach social media as it always does, but this was not just another accident. Early reports were marred with confusion and uncertainty, but the following morning the news was confirmed that Myers had passed from his injuries during that accident. Immediately words of support and prayers filled the social media timelines alongside a drawing I had produced in recognition of the true sorrow horsemen are experiencing with this devastating loss. Many messages asked if I would create shirts using that drawing and use the money as a fundraiser for the family. I didn’t have the intention to do so originally, but with the interest of everyone and with the intent to make sure all of the proceeds go to the family, I thought it could be a good way to raise some money. I set a goal of $5,000 and thought I might need to raffle off some other items to get to that goal. I asked my mom if she thought 100 shirts would be too many to order and she said I should be able to get them sold eventually. It didn’t take to ‘eventually’! Within minutes, the orders flooded in. By the end of the day, 1,000 shirts had sold. Within 24 hours, $10,000 had been raised off the profits of the sales alone. By 48 hours, the number doubled to $20,000. And then came the requests for hoodies and decals as well as infant and toddler apparel. Nearly 3,000 shirts have sold with about $4,000 worth of hoodies added to the mix. Altogether, the number wavers around $30,000 between all of the shirt sales, hoodie sales, donations, and more. The final total will be calculated and a certified check will be made out to Chloe – Hunter’s fiancée – by the end of the month once all is finalized. Overall, the support poured in from individuals and organizations all over the industry. To tell you the truth, I realize now that I had a very narrow perspective of the industry itself. I had always prided myself on meeting more and more horsemen as I increased my involvement with different endeavors in racing. But those horsemen came from the same general background – tracks that I have raced at like Pompano Park, Tioga Downs, Monticello Raceway, and Saratoga Raceway, as well as those I have met through traveling on the Grand Circuit or the prolific races as The Gold Cup and Saucer in PEI, among other races. And yet, that is only a fraction of what the industry is at its core. With their orders, the horsemen and women sent along a little insight into their own stories and backgrounds. Some were former horsemen, now retired and moved away from the tracks while others were from tracks I’ve never visited. Many knew Hunter Myers and shared stories of how he drove their horses or their last win with him. After I posted the shirts on Twitter/X, I received response from the thoroughbred community as well. The team behind Horseshoe Indianapolis bought 50 shirts to show their support and their followers jumped on board as well. ► Sign up for our FREE DRF Harness Digest Newsletter The Indiana Standardbred Association (ISA) took another 50 and Walsh Products took 15. The United States Harness Drivers Association opted out of the shirts, but sent in a donation for $1,000 for the cause. Individuals and stables across the world posted orders for shirts as it spanned 29 states, 6 provinces, 3 continents and 4 countries. And these individuals came from over 40 different racetracks and training centers across the world, some places that I never even knew existed. I created a chart on Google Sheets as the best way I could think of to keep it all organized. As I got to a comment or message, I acknowledged their order and added it to the chart. That chart just kept growing and is still growing now. It certainly wasn’t a one-woman show. While I was the only one who could field the orders and enter them into that chart, I had help from everyone, whether it was the way in which they placed their order or their help in making sure other orders weren’t missed. And I had the most help from the representatives at each track who volunteered for their role as leaders. Angie Coleman quickly took command of The Meadows orders. She has made sure I haven’t missed anyone, collected orders on the ground at The Meadows, and handled anyone offering to pay by cash. Francis Guillemette volunteered early to take the Ontario orders as well, saving on the cost of shipping across the border and instead getting the shirts from me, in Saratoga, to him, in Buffalo. He offered to drive to Buffalo and grab the shirts to bring back for all of the Ontario horsemen. And not only that, he has been instrumental in getting the currency exchange for the horsemen that don’t have the same money apps as we do here in the states (i.e. the U.S. uses Zelle whereas Canada uses e-transfer). Cam MacPhee leads the Prince Edward Island charge with horsemen from two tracks – Summerside and Charlottetown – placing their orders. He has also helped with the currency exchange issue in collecting all of the funds from everyone who ordered in PEI. Toni Dale Hollar will handle all of Ohio’s orders, making those orders much simpler as they only have to go to one person from me. And the leaders just keep going. In addition to track reps like Cory Stratton at The Meadowlands and Renee Lynn Martin at Buffalo, I have had offers for shippers to take the shirts from me to those locations, like Heather Vanhorn to several of the northeastern tracks, Gretchen Athearn to Maine, and Ellen Taylor to the Horseshoe Indianapolis group among many, many others. Truthfully, too many to name because like the support rolled in for Hunter and his family, the support had rolled in for these shirts and my efforts to get them everywhere without needing to mail nearly 3,000 of them. Many orders also banded together as complete stable orders or places, like the employees of the Meadows grandstand making those orders more streamlined as opposed to mailing individual orders. As it stands, about 500 of the shirts will need to go to the post office, but advice from some of my supporters should make that a much easier process. All-in-all, 2,500 of these shirts have become this large cross-country expedition to numerous tracks and training centers. It was a totally unexpected response that should have actually been expected given the strength of the harness racing community. And the shirts weren’t the only support going towards the family. Numerous fundraisers popped up all over selling gear in tribute to Myers in addition to a GoFundMe that has raised over $80,000, breedings auctioned off from several farms, custom equipment and race bikes/jog carts, and as well as Chloe’s personal Venmo. Whether by sharing the posts, sending in a donation, or buying a shirt, it has been clear that the harness racing community shows their strength in numbers. In a time where it’s hard to decide what the best thing to do is, the horsemen always find a way to help in any way that they can. We need to remember that even though we race against each other in those two minutes on the track, we stand together and we can’t do it alone.