by Bob Carson

Editor’s Note: The USTA website is pleased to present freelance writer Bob Carson and his popular “Outside the Box” features. This monthly series is a menu of outlandish proposals presented with a wink — but the purpose behind them is serious. The views contained in this column are that of the author alone, and do not necessarily represent the opinions or views of the United States Trotting Association.

“Carve your name on hearts, not tombstones. A legacy is etched into the minds of others and the stories they share about you.” — Shannon L. Alder

Bob Carson

Riding down to the hotel lobby in an elevator 10 years ago, the door swished open and to my surprise, Sam McKee entered. His trademark grin made him instantly recognizable. For a split second, my mind wrestled with that awkward choice; introduce myself or just stare at the floor. Despite being an obscure writer with a mere handful of harness stories under my belt, he recognized me and dove into the introductions using his unforgettable voice. In that ten-second ride to the ground floor and a five-minute chat in the lobby, Sam became a person that I liked, trusted and respected.

Immediately gravitating to a person may seem preposterous, but people who knew Sam McKee will understand. Rare is the person who crosses our paths who has the ability to radiate kindness, decency and competency. Sam was one of those blessed with this gift.

Time does not always heal all wounds. It has been a few months and we are still reeling. Even those of us who only met Sam McKee once, only knew him through his fantastic race calls, or listened to him talk throughout the day at the Little Brown Jug, we feel as if a family member has died — because one has.

When we lose someone like Sam, we sit and think, “What can we do? How can we make something good out of something so very sad?”

We scramble to deliver casseroles, make phone calls, say prayers, screw brass plaques onto benches, write eulogies and set up trust funds. We feel compelled to do something, anything, to fill the void.

Memorable people in harness racing have races renamed in their honor, and this is always a nice gesture. For Sam, this has already happened, as the Meadowlands renamed the US Pacing Championship the Sam McKee Memorial, but a race with his name might not be enough. Nothing will really be enough to take away this heartache, but perhaps we could find a way to pay homage to Sam that is a little deeper, longer lasting and does a little good. Nothing fancy, nothing formal, nothing funereal — just an organic gathering for friends and fans who knew him, and for those regular fans who wished they had known him.

No big planning, no major production, just an annual text or email such as “Come one, come all, we are having a little community meeting in remembrance of Sam McKee.” We could name it the McKee Melee, Sam’s Club, Sam’s Soiree, the McKee Memorial Weekend or some other moniker. A causal affair could take one of several forms. Let me toss out a few possible events to bring the two-dollar bettors and the top trainers, owners and drivers together for fun, fellowship and to celebrate a wonderful life.

1. Each March or April, one of our training centers in Florida or North Carolina could host a weekend. Visiting training centers to watch young horses is fun. A day with socializing and a few simple activities tied to Sam might be appropriate. Regular folks could plan a little winter get-away and see the young horses train. They could meet big name trainers, owners and drivers. They could also bump into luminaries in our sport like Murray Brown, Roger Huston, John Campbell or Bob Marks.

2. It was interesting to learn that Sam cut his harness racing teeth by jogging horses and announcing in the Wolverine State. We all know that Michigan racing is struggling. Perhaps we could choose a day each year and hold a get-together at a track in Michigan. We could bring in some good horses, set up a weekend of racing, and maybe bring in horses from states doing well, interspersing them with Michigan horses. It could be more social than cutthroat racing, give Michigan a little boost and a little hope in honor of their native son.

3. Sam was a pedigree maven; he remembered horse families from decades past. I loved it when he worked this information into his race calls, post parades, or his selections. I even enjoyed listening to Sam narrate sales videos of the 2-year-olds. Another possible idea would be to select one of the fall sales and after the last hammer falls on one of the sales days, everyone could stay around for some Sam fellowship with perhaps a few words from the auctioneer’s booth. Imagine if an event like this that honored Sam nudged a few fans that had never attended a sale, or never owned a yearling, to attend and purchase a yearling. Sam would love this because he loved harness racing.

4. Of course, we could tie a Sam tribute to a major stakes race.

It is beyond my job description to know if any of these suggestions are feasible. Maybe they are just casserole dishes served up in a futile effort to do something. I just know that if one of these events ever happened, many of us would be there. Many of us also believe that Sam would be there with us, too.