There is an entry in the View From the Racetrack Grandstand blog which wonders why we don't get women drivers that compete regularly at our pari-mutuel
tracks. Look at any t-bred track and there is at least one or two women drivers that compete with some regularity. As the blog says, this can be a great
marketing campaign.
Why can't we get a program together to encourage women to start driving? I am not saying give them an unfair advantage over the men; they need to do their
time and earn their mounts. But we can encourage them to get into the driving business. It would help our industry in the long run if we women driving at
all levels of racetracks.
The link about this is http://viewfromthegrandstand.blogspot.com/2009/06/women-drivers.html
Where Are the Women Drivers?
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 Pacingguy |
Where Are the Women Drivers? |
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Posts: 714 06/25/09 2:35 PM |
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twinfox |
#1 | |||
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Posts: 34 07/04/09 2:10 PM |
We have to do all the work in the barn. How can we get all our work done and drive all night/afternoon and take care of the kids, laundry, housework.
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RnRroughriders |
women drivers | #2 | ||
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Posts: 51 07/04/09 5:02 PM |
lol Fox-There is no "I" in team is there??
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STBDgirl |
where we are | #3 | ||
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Posts: 37 07/08/09 10:27 PM |
I am too busy riding them under saddle, Its more fun being in the saddle !
Standardbred Retirement Foundation - www.adoptahorse.org
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Moonshot |
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Posts: 205 07/10/09 11:56 AM |
In the Mildred Williams Series is one place you will find women drivers....
Also here in NS, Clare MacDonald is one of the top drivers (-not just top "lady driver"), although she was kicked in the face last year by a horse as she got in the bike & needed serious surgery. She's Canada's top female driver by win percentage (or was before the accident) & one of 3 in N. America to top 1000 career victories. (I interviewed her 2 years ago. She is also a trainer & stable owner, so she would have many more wins if she went the catch driver route in a region with more racing dates in the year.) Very talented driver who has great results in Atlantic Sires Stakes & more. Lady J is also great but doesn't drive much at M1. It would be great to have more women drivers because t-breds have been marketing successful female jocks & getting lots of media attention. Canada's national news magazine (MacLean's) just had a big article on Chantal Sutherland, who has also appeared in some advertising camapaigns for makeup, etc. (she's gorgeous) & even in Vogue magazine (riding a t-bred in a bikin, lol). Too many young guys seem to be into NASCAR & motorsports these days & prefer to gamble in casinos or sports betting (hockey, etc. not horses). If we could get more women to the tracks & OTBs & (more important) get them wagering, it's worth it, by any means necessary. BTW, I was banned from hanging around my hometown track's backstretch as a teenager (by my dad) , while my brothers were allowed to. It's crap like this that can really teach young women that racing is not for them. 
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Pacingguy |
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Posts: 714 07/10/09 2:41 PM |
I have seen the Mildred Williams Series, in fact they were in Goshen, and most of these ladies had less than 25 drives for the whole year. In fact, most of
them were racing their own horses or horses they trained. It is just said they are not given the chance to race more often and get more exposure.
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Moonshot |
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Posts: 205 07/12/09 1:59 PM |
You are right: most of the women drivers seem to be driving their own stock. Some might say this is evidence of women's "nurturing" nature that
they want to take care of the horses, not just take what's available as catch drivers. But it likely also has lots to do with other trainers not selecting
the women drivers for their horses, regardless of talent.
Look at Casie Coleman. Top trainer now, but she said she realized when she went to WEG that she had to really choose to make it in the big leagues- to be a trainer, or be a driver. She went the training route, obviously, with significant success. Yet I wonder how she would've fared had she stopped training & decided to catch drive instead. WEG has a low-profile but smart trainer/driver from Finland who I beleive is also a vet in her native Finland: Reina Rekila (sp.?) Small stable of few trotters, but not a bad driver. Question: when all these young kids go to events designed to promote harness racing as a career for the future, & put them in the sulky to try it out, etc. , it seems like a v. high percentage of the kids involved are girls. What is happening to their interest? It seems such programs aren't producing results because I don't see many female drivers coming up the ranks, or, for that matter, young women wagering when I go to see live racing aywhere... |
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